Masterclass: Jeff Melvoin and Brendan Foley on writing and producing international TV dramas скачать в хорошем качестве

Masterclass: Jeff Melvoin and Brendan Foley on writing and producing international TV dramas

In no other area of high-end TV production do the American and UK industries differ so wildly than in the writing process. Jeff Melvoin (US writer-producer, Killing Eve) and Brendan Foley (UK writer-producer, Cold Courage) discuss lessons UK screenwriters can learn from these differences. When Jeff first read the scripts for Killing Eve he couldn’t believe the versatility of the British writers. “Pound for pound, these 10 scripts were better than 10 typical American spec scripts.” But just what is the difference between a US showrunner and a UK lead writer? What are the hierarchies of the two systems? What are the perceived strengths and weaknesses of UK writers and how could their traditionally authored series benefit from US style writers’ rooms? And crucially, what are the current routes you can take to international success? About Jeff Melvoin Emmy-winner Jeff Melvoin has been a writer-producer on over a dozen primetime series, most recently as an Executive Producer on season three of BBC America’s Killing Eve. Other Exec Producer credits include Designated Survivor, Army Wives, Alias, Early Edition, and David E. Kelley’s Picket Fences. He was Supervising Producer of CBS series Northern Exposure, winning an Emmy and two Golden Globe Awards. Other writer-producer credits include the NBC’s Hill Street Blues and Remington Steele. Melvoin is founder and chair of the Writers Guild of America’s Showrunner Training Program and the Writers Education Committee. In 2015, he received the Morgan Cox Award, the WGA’s highest recognition for Guild service. About Brendan Foley Brendan Foley is one of the busiest of a new generation of UK TV writer-producers working internationally. His recent work, as series writer with David Joss Buckley includes 2020s Cold Courage, a Nordic noir series for Viaplay, Lionsgate and Luminoir. He has also worked in USA, Canada, Finland, France, UK, Denmark, Poland and China with TV producers, distributors and broadcasters including CBC, ZDFE, Lionsgate, BBC, Croton-Huace, Viaplay, Elisa-Vihde, Free@Last, Starlings and Nucleus. Past work includes writing, producing and directing indie features for Sony and Lionsgate, animation for NBC and books including WWII bestseller Under the Wire (Random House). He was previously a features journalist, working in 77 countries. About the session This conversation took place on 17 June 2020. It was introduced by Kaye Elliott, ScreenSkills’ director of high-end TV, and supported by the ScreenSkills Television Skills Fund which invests in training for the freelance television workforce thanks to contributions from the BBC, Channel 4 and Channel 5.