Tony DuShane, Writer/Podcaster/Teacher: I don’t think there’s a lot of originality in the stories. There’s originality in how they’re told.
Film Courage: Would you say filmmakers today are more concerned with forcing a message than telling a good story?
Tony: I see it a lot and I think people are concerned about how they’re portrayed instead of what the story is talking about, which is, people do what they need to do, that’s not how I work. I have no problem eating crow if I have to as long as I’m telling the story as truthfully and from the heart as possible. I see it a lot where people are trying to steer their stories in a marketing way. It’s like Oh, this is fresh and they’re like Well I’m writing fresh and I should never ever do that because it reeks of inauthenticity. But you know what, there’s 80 percent inauthentic films out there that are making a ton of money. So I’m not right on that, a few very successful careers are being made, it’s just not how I do it. It’s not how I approach it and it’s not how I want to consume it. I don’t want…I never…I preached door-to-door knocking on doors with the word of…(Watch the video interview on Youtube here).
Confessions of a Teenage Jesus Jerk by Tony DuShane – Check out the book on Amazon:
BIO:
Tony DuShane is the author and award-winning screenwriter of Confessions of a Teenage Jesus Jerk. The book was published by Soft Skull Press and the feature film, directed by Eric Stoltz, was released in 2018 and is currently streaming on Amazon Prime. His journalism and essays has appeared in The Los Angeles Times, Mother Jones, Penthouse, The Rumpus, The Believer, and other media outlets. He teaches writing at UCLA Extension and his journalism has appeared in Mother Jones, The Los Angeles Times, and San Francisco Chronicle. He hosts the literary podcast Drinks with Tony every Wednesday.
CONNECT WITH TONY DUSHANE:
Drinks With Tony Podcast on Podbean
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