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30:19
Bonus Episode: Justin Simien Talks '2001: A Space Odyssey'
The 'Dear White People' writer-director offers up a bold new take on a seminal piece of art from his life - the Stanley Kubrick sci-fi classic
 • Cole Haddon
1:01:16
Director Justin Simien on Telling the Truth in His Films (and Hollywood)
The filmmaker behind 'Dear White People', 'Haunted Mansion', and 'Hollywood Black' discusses finding your voice in an industry that increasingly doesn’t…
 • Cole Haddon and Justin Simien
This NYC Local News Story Is a Master Class in Screenwriting
You can learn so much about three-act feature writing from this 100-second 2001 news segment about a landlord-tenant dispute
 • Cole Haddon
10:23
5AM RealTalk Feb. 10, 2026
On the itinerary today: The death of cinema? • Horror's killer year • The screenwriter's waiting game
 • Cole Haddon
☕ 5AM StoryTalk Monthly Arts Seminar – February 2026
An ongoing group for paid supporters of this newsletter to discuss (with me and each other) the arts, craft and business, and the challenges they’re…

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💬 Weekly Question: What is your favorite monster allegory in art?
Filmmaker Guillermo del Toro, a person who knows a thing or two about monsters real and imagined, recently said, “Sometimes the world gets so…
5:24
TRAILER: Season 3 of the 5AM StoryTalk Podcast Is Almost Here!
Find out about the brilliant guests - and exciting upgrades to this podcast - coming your way starting next week...
 • Cole Haddon
5AM CoffeeTalk: February 2026
A monthly rundown about my life as a professional artist, art lover, and human being trying to survive the 21st century - good and bad, glorious and…
Australia Has No Culture? Yeah, F*ck Off, Mate
Here are 15 contemporary Australian artists and artworks I love (that also prove Australia's cultural scene is thriving)
 • Cole Haddon
💬 Weekly Question: How should we talk about our art during the apocalypse?
Weekly questions’ comment sections are left open for one week.
60 A24 Screenplays to Download and Study
There's no American film studio/distributor with a better 21st century track record, which is why I curated this collection of scripts for its arthouse…
 • Cole Haddon
Resource: Kurt Vonnegut's 8 Rules of Writing Fiction
Let’s take a look at the legendary author’s approach to storytelling and see what we can learn from it
 • Cole Haddon
💬 Weekly Question: Was Ursula K. Le Guin right about J.K. Rowling?
Weekly questions’ comment sections are left open for one week.
My 12 Favorite Problems...This Year
I use physicist Richard Feynman's problem-solving method to tackle my biggest questions about the future of the arts
 • Cole Haddon
The Screenwriter's Guide to 'Selling Out' in 2026 (and Why It Might Be OK)
Some thoughts on an article by Black List founder Franklin Leonard about the resurrected commercial spec market and breaking into Hollywood today
 • Cole Haddon
💬 Weekly Question: What film would you force Hollywood to make?
Weekly questions’ comment sections are left open for one week.
'Real Steel 2': Lessons from My Screenplay Pitch
Thirteen years ago, I was asked to develop a sequel take for Hugh Jackman's robot boxing family film...so, let's see what screenwriters can learn from…
 • Cole Haddon
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