All Episodes
Get Reel with Richard Walter — 445 episodes
More On Inflection
Inflection Vs. Text
More on A.I.
Art's Worst Enemy
Guilt and Goals
The Large Doll Area
Do You Really Like It?
Avoid Stereotypes
Audiences Are Not Stupid But Smart
How Movies Cure Cancer
Sympathetic Bad Guys
Inflection Versus Text
Screenwriting and the Middle East
Thomas Edison and Screenwriting
Disclosure Day
We Had Faces
Authority Means Zilch
The Purpose of Art and Movies
No Credits Is Your Best Credit
More on A.I.
Narrative in Porn - Part II
Narrative in Porn
Little Things Mean A Lot - Part II
Little Things Mean A Lot - Part I
Perfectly Imperfect
Art Versus Commerce
More Michael
Michael
Narrative Bloat
Writer's Block
Betrayal
Self-Respect
Dialog--Keep it Short
Best Line of Dialog Ever! The Idol Maker
Sight, Sound, and Integration
Stories Make The Rules and Not the Other Way Around
Women and Men--Writers and Protagonists
Dialog--Keep It Short
Art Is An Ego Trip
Sympathy for the Devil
A.I. - The Devil's Library
The Oscars
Finances for Writers
Blue Moon and AI
After the Hunt: A Kvetchfest
Still More on AI--The Magnificent Ambersons
More On (What Else?) A.I.
A.I. - The Good and Bad
Cruelty
Identity -- Schlindler and Malcolm
This And That
Magic
Train Dreams, Another Yawner
Assimilation
Magic and Rejection
The Biology of Narrative
The Importance of Art
Karma and the F Word
How Does a Writer Know It's Time To Stop for the Day?
Hollywood Agents
Writing Right or Wrong
Conan, Brooks, Men Writing Women Characters
What're You Watching, Richie?
Writing the Lived Experience
Napalm in the Morning
Technology and Story
Every Writer's Best Friend: The Delete Key
LGBTQIA+ Female Protagonists
More on A.I.
Invisible Artistry
More Regarding Novels Into Films
Books Into Films
Still More on Amateur Chic
More on Amateur Chic
What're You Watching Richie?
Strategies as Distractions
Screenwriting: Exceptions to the Rules
Every Screenwriter's Conundrum: Should I Update My Old Scripts?
Freedom of Expression and Creativity
Mentorship--Write to the Writer
Shakespeare the Plagiarist
Endings
Endings
More About Beginnings
Don't Leave Out The Magic
Free Speech
Storyteller As God
Assimilation
The Power of Story
Sympathy for the Devil
Speech Cops
Endings - St. Elsewhere
Rest in Peace, Robert Redford
Beginnings
Genre Is Wildly Over-Rated
Interactive Print
More on Long Story Short and The Empress
Happy Endings and Other Hollywood Myths
Long Story Short and The Empress
Writing for Money
Movies Are For Audiences
Can You Really Teach Screenwriting?
Appearances
The Business of Show
Trends
Untamed
The Only Thing You Know For Sure
Writing Versus Film Tech
Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain
Writers Kvetching, Karping, and Komplaining
Ellipses and Assimilation
Assimilation
Squid Games Etc.
Sex, Violence, and Cover Pages
What Are the Odds Of Greatness?
Film Education in the Digital Era
Feces As Entertainment
Not Dialect But Dialogue
The Art of Trash
Want Your Screenplay to Get Made? Write to the Writer
The Dreaded Dreadful Auteur Theory
The Studio and Art Spiegelman--Disaster is My Muse
Experimental Film
Artificial Intelligence and Film
Movie Trends
Falwell
My Fifteen Minutes of Fame
Original Movies V. Adaptations
Should I Hire An Editor?
The Professor's Favorite Movies
Why Isn't Streaming Great?
Conclave: My Film Review
Writers: Get Out of Your Own Way
Diversity and Casting
Where's Heinz?
Stop Worrying About People Stealing Your Ideas
Genre-Schmenre
Intellectual Property--Can I Write a Book or Make a Movie About You Without Your Permission?
Good Guys vs Bad Guys
Intellectual Property - Copyright and Credits
Movies and Snobbery
Hollywood: An Egomaniac With An Inferiority Complex
The End of Adversity
Melody and Story
The Brutalist
Who Is The First Creator in Film - The Writer, Director, or Producer?
The Oscars - Theatres Vs. Streaming
Oscars 2025 Edition!
Processing Criticism
Dealing With Criticism
Emelia Perez - What's Real and What's Reel?
Emelia Perez and the Oscars
The Two Principles That Guarantee Screenwriting Success
Tis the Season - Let's Talk About the Oscars
Song Lyrics
Finding the Right Word
Adapting Short Stories and Video Games
Adaptations
Language and Snobbery
Dialogue... Less is More
The Delete Key Is Every Writer's Best Friend
Art, Adventure, Life, and Boredom
Violence and Tushies
Artificial Intelligence Paradise
Why Women Are Better Writers Than Men
Film and Artificial Intelligence
Adaptation - Don't Do It!
Overwriting Character Descriptions
Novels and Screenplays and How to Turn One Into the Other and Back Again
The Two Most Important Rules for Writers' Finances
The Write Way and The Wrong Way
Anora--The New Worst Movie Ever
There Are Patterns in Film - Can You Spot Them?
Sex, Violence, and Bambi
Let's Talk About Vaginas in Movies
Immigration, Diversity, and American Film
In Screenwriting, Story Is Everything
Screenwriting With Your Audience In Mind
My Livestream - Part 2!
My Livestream - Part 1
Truth and Authenticity in Film
Cringing When I See "Based on a True Story"
George Lucas the Experimentalist
A Dirty Word in Hollywood: Experiment
Never Underestimate the Loudness of Silence
Mood Is Doom Spelled Backward
Angry Queries
How Not to Get a Film Agent
Attention!
Let's Talk About Query Letters
Intellectual Property and Paranoia
Intellectual Property
Hooray for Hollywood
Leave Your Brain Outside the Theatre
Art Versus Entertainment - Don't Let It Be A False Dichotomy
The Personal Screenplay
How Many Pages Should You Read Before Quitting a Book?
Changes and Endings
Free Parking, Rejection, and Screenwriting
Reel Versus Real
Screenplay Beginnings--Must a Script Explode on Page One?
Too Many Screens
Nudity in Movies
Will You Read My Screenplay?
Why Titanic Is Good But Not Great
When Writing Love Stories, Don't Make This Mistake
How to Deal with Rejection
A Rare Thing in Film: Engaging the Audience
How to Write Strong Beginnings
The True First Artist in Film
The Unsold Script
Remember, Screenwriters: You'll Catch More Flies With Honey
Praise Versus Kvetching
Smoking and Integration
Want to Get An Agent? Write to the Writer!
Climate Change and Screenwriting
What's Changed and What's Remained the Same In Movies
The Two Biggest Changes in Film
Weinstein, Spacey... Let's Dispel the Myth of Mean Old Hollywood
Animation and Horror
The Status of the Observer
Excellent Versus Good
The Ideal Training for Hollywood
The Worst Movie I Ever Saw
Stereotypes in Movies - Use Them Or Ditch Them?
Jerking Off vs Making Love
An Underrated Book on Screenwriting: Plots and Characters
Civil War: My Thoughts
Two Threes
Pain In Narrative
Brainy Writers Must Never Forget: The Heart Is Smart
Reel Versus Real
Great Protagonists are Dreadful People
Identity and Community
This and That
What I've Been Watching, Loving, and Loathing Lately
How to Get the Script Reader to Not Reject Your Screenplay
How to Get the Script Reader to Not Reject Your Screenplay
Implication Versus Expression
Imply vs Express
In Film, Entertainment is Not a Dirty Word
Seven Dirty Words in Hollywood
Screenwriters and Distractions
Goals and Guilt
My Thoughts on Oppenheimer
Encountering Jack London in the Waiting Room
Novel vs Screenplay
I've Just Published a Book!
We Are Trained to Write Too Much - Throw More Away
Screenwriters - Learn to Throw It Away
That Time I Pretended Not to Be the Author of My Own Novel
Naivety is the Writer's Friend
A Trio of Triumvirates - Part II
Trio of Triumvirates
Want a Free Copy of My New Book?
Whatever You Do, Make Your Screenplay Personal -- Like Star Wars
In Hollywood You Start from the Top and Work Your Way Down
The Key to Great Screenwriting? Being a Human
Writing Rule #1: There Are No Rules
Creativity and Patterns
Creativity and Patterns
Hamas, Israel, and Screenwriting
Big Money
Screenwriters- Get Out of Your Own Way
Testicles and Freedom of Speech
How to Wreck Your Writing Career - Part 6
How to Wreck Your Writing Career - Part 5
How to Wreck Your Writing Career - Part III
Some More Ways to Wreck Your Writing Career
Various Ways to Wreck Your Writing Career
Here's Another Handy Trick If You Want More Action in Your Screenplay: Give Your Actors Something to Do
Here's a Handy Trick If You Want More Action in Your Screenplay
Should Screenwriters Still Use Gender Specific Names in 2024?
It Is the Movie's Job to Keep the Audience Awake, Not the Other Way Around
Is Your Intelligence Not Helping Your Writing Career? Instead of Smart, Try Stupid
Big Chill, American Graffiti, and the Collective Protagonist
Dialogue Versus Dialect
What "Da Jewz by Da Hood" Can Teach Us About Diversity in Screenwriting
Is It Time for a Writer-Owned Netflix?
What the Writer's Strike Means for Writers
First the Writers, Then the Actors
The Writer Strike Is Over-- But the Actors Soldier On
The WGA Strike Is Over
Why American Films Are More Successful Internationally Than Other Countries
Beyond black, white, gay, straight, old, young, rich, poor... we need diversity in film.
Screenwriters Know the Truth: Different Is Better
Attention Deficit Is Here to Stay
The Best Dialogue is No Dialogue
Novel vs Screenplay
Identities: Intersectionality or Taxonomy?
What Is the Value of Screenwriting?
The Biggest Mistake Screenwriters Make: Writing Far Too Much
Authenticity Is Massively Overrated in Screenwriting
My Review of Barbie, and Why It's Okay to Hate Movies
Let's Talk About Barbies and Vaginas
My Opening Thoughts on Oppenheimer
Actor Ronald Reagan's Advice to Screenwriters
What Font Should I Use for My Screenplay?
How Many Drafts Of My Screenplay Should I Write?
Screenwriting Format: How Many Pages Should My Script Be?
How to Format a Screenplay
How to Know Your Screenplay's Theme
Is It Time to Stop Screenwriting Scenes in Restaurants?
Is It Time to Stop Screenwriting Scenes in Restaurants?
If I Could Re-Name My Book on Screenwriting, I'd Call It "Appearances"
No I Will Not Read Your F*****g Screenplay
Dialogue
Guilt and Goals: Use Both On Your Screenwriting Journey
A Reckoning Is Coming for Privilege in Public Education
The F-Word
Screenwriters Rarely Get the Credit They Deserve
Spoilers - Part I
AI and Film
Should Writers Fear Artificial Intelligence?
The New Dead Ringers Doesn't Work
Hate Speech in Films
How to Sell a Screenplay
How to Sell a Screenplay
How Do I Protect My Screenwriting Ideas?
What Screenwriters Must Learn from Cult Leaders
The Absolute, Irrefutable, Undeniable #1 Rule for Screenwriting in Hollywood
"Cinema" vs Film
In Screenwriting, Goals Are Your Enemy
In Screenwriting, Imperfect is Perfect
Personal Pronouns and Gender in Screenwriting
Three Rules for Creating Singular Characters
Ideas Are Overvalued
Context Is Everything - Part 2
There Are Two Movies That Depict the Same Scene With Absolute Opposite Goals
The Love Story in Titanic Doesn't Work
History is a Story
Can't Break Into Hollywood? Save the Rage for the Page
Being a Celebrity Has Its Downsides
Character V. Story
The "Best" Movies of 2022
How Authentic Should My Screenplay Be?
When Writing Screenplays, Don't Try to Teach a Lesson--Just Tell a Good Story
Script Stuck? Take Out the Improvements
Want to Read My Hate Mail?
The New N-Word
Writing Mistakes That Amateur Screenwriters Make - Part II
Writing Mistakes That Amateur Screenwriters Make - Part I
Genre Shmenrah
The Greatest Film of All Time - Part II
The Greatest Film of All Time - Really?
The Top 100 Films of All Time - Part II
The Top 100 Films of All Time - Part I
How to Be a Professional Screenwriter
Is Writer's Block Real?
Why See a Movie Twice?
What Is the Ultimate Purpose of Storytelling, If There Is One?
A Key to Great Screenwriting: Keep It Personal
Three Cheers for Judas Iscariot
Should We Ban Smoking in Movies?
What Peace In the Middle East Can Teach Us About Screenwriting
Should I Reverse-Engineer My Screenplay Around an Ending, a Scene, or an Emotion?
One of the Biggest Amateur Screenwriting Mistake: Making Your Villains Villainous
How Much Technology Does a Screenwriter Really Need?
Are Commercial Movies Pure Garbage?
How to Nail a Query Letter to Agents
Should I Write My Next Screenplay By Hand?
How the Discovery of Cosmic Background Radiation Can Help Screenwriters
Is Citizen Kane Actually a Great Movie?
Beginnings, Middles, and Ends
The Process Is What Separates screenwriters from Screenwriters
Are High Concept Ideas Overrated?
Screenwriters: Nothing Is Better Than Something
Finance 101 for Writers
Film Dialogue Shouldn't Sound Like Real Life
Whether You're A Writer, Director, or Actor... Little Things Mean a Lot
As A Screenwriter, Is "Save the Cat" Worth Following?
Can You Really Teach Screenwriting?
The Auteur Theory Is Pure Bull$hit
What is the Purpose of Stories and Movies?
The Birmingham Cop
Embrace the Creative Process
Seven Naughty Words in Hollywood That You Should Absolutely Embrace
Authenticity in Film is Boring
Can Screenwriting Books Guide Novel Writing?
The Backstory to American Graffiti
What's the Secret to Training So Many Oscar-Winning Screenwriters?
Want to Write A Better Movie? Think Like a Real Estate Agent
How Accurate Do Screenwriters Need to Be When Writing Screenplays Based on True Stories?
In the Age of Mass Shootings, Should We Still Have Guns in Movies?
After 50 Years in Screenwriting, Here Are the Two Questions I Still Never Answer
Bashing Hollywood Is Wildly Overrated
Should Dialogue Have a Structure Like Screenplays?
What's More Important - Story or Theme?
The Delete Key Is A Writer's Best Friend
Should Screenwriters Read Shakespeare?
Overlapping Dialogue
Hired, Fired, Hired Again - A Hollywood Yarn About Trusting the Process
Adapting Your Own Screenplay As a Novel
A Safe Space
Diversity In Screenwriting
How I Elbowed My Way Into Hollywood -Part 2
How I Elbowed My Way Into Hollywood -Part 1
How Many Characters Should I Have in My Screenplay?
Do the Pentagon and CIA Fund War Films to Inculturate Americans?
The Two Questions I've Never Answered
Violence in Screenplays
Is It Better to Outline My Screenplay or Just Start Writing?
The Power of Non-Violence In Life and Movies
Box Office Success Versus Critical Acclaim
Box Office Success Versus Critical Acclaim
The Slap Heard 'Round the World
The Science of Storytelling (Part 2)
Is There A Science to Storytelling?
Should I Box Myself In By Picking A Genre Or Just Start Writing?
The Importance of Great Endings
Screenwriting Books
Should I Copyright My Screenplay?
What Is the Absolute Minimum, Maximum, and Ideal Length of a Screenplay?
Screenwriting Word You Need to Know: GOOYOW
When Execs/Producers/Directors Ruin Good Screenwriting
How to Ramp Up the Energy of Your Screenplay By Using Better Locations
The Pros and Cons of Prologues and Flashbacks in Screenwriting
My Screenplays Get Optioned But Never Sell. What Should I Do?
Stereotypes Will Ruin Your Script
The Worst Writing Job I Ever Had
How to Stay Excited While Writing Screenplays
Writer's Block
The Two Best Lines of Dialogue I've Ever Heard
What Was the Worst Script of 2021?
The Scariest Movies I Have Ever Seen
The Most Interesting Screenwriter I've Ever Met
How Can Screenwriters Avoid Leaving Out Necessary Plot Points?
Hollywood Hoaxes That Screenwriters Need to Know
How Do You Know When Your Script is Ready?
Should I Use the N-Word in My Screenplay?
Should Screenwriters Describe Characters or Leave It to Casting?
Should My Story Be a Novel or Screenplay?
Don't Let Perfection Destroy Your Screenwriting Ambitions
Screenwriters: You Need a Teacher
When To Give Up on Screenwriting
The Narcissism of Hollywood Screenwriters
If You Don't Care About What You're Writing, Why Would Anyone Else?
Directors Yell "Action!" Not "Description!"
People In Positions of Authority Don't Know What They're Talking About
Backup Girl
Zorro's Back
The Elevator Pitch
Proud Confession: I Am Sexist
When A Screenplay Doesn't Sell, It's Just the Beginning
Here's What Makes the Best Story