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You know television shows? People actually write those—even, weirdly, the “unscripted” reality ones have someone, you know, subtly moving moments around behind the scenes. And television, arguably, is much more of a writers’ medium than, say, movies, which tend to be a place where directors reign. The writers’ rooms work differently for any given show, but they have enough commonalities to make them seem familiar to anyone who pushes words around for a living.
Television writers’ rooms are a world Ben Acker and Ben Blacker know intimately. The duo worked for a number of television shows (most recently the CW’s Supernatural). They also created The Thrilling Adventure Hour, a monthly show and podcast that they script for some very familiar actors, if you’re a nerd. Blacker also hosts the Nerdist Writer's Panel, where he interviews television writers from a variety of shows to deeply dissect the craft. (Yes, Acker has been on.)
Acker and Blacker were recently in town for a live Thrilling Adventure Hour as part of San Francisco’s Sketchfest. They stopped by the Wired offices to talk television writing—how to structure an episode (and a season), what “breaking a story” means and more— with host Adam Rogers. Then, in our very first crossover episode, they continue the conversation on this week’s Writer's Panel, turning the tables to talk to Adam about the magazine editorial process. The dead but remembered television show Wired Science also gets discussed.
Storyboard Podcast:
Episode 74:
https://downloads.wired.com/podcasts/assets/Storyboard/Storyboard_074.mp3
This episode won’t get a 3.2 primetime share, but maybe we’ll become a cult hit. You know, like Community.
