Write On with Screenwriting Career Coach Carole Kirschner

Feral State is the story of a misfit gang of runaways and orphans who are taken in by a dark and charismatic father figure and together wreak havoc throughout swamps and trailer parks in central Florida. Writer-Director Jon Carlo talks to Write On about how the film came about: “Location was the starting point for everything. This movie came about in such an untraditional kind of way where the money was there first before there even was a script, and part of the stipulations was to shoot in a specific area in Florida, so I went down to meet the producers and kind of scope out the scene, and the story kind of grew organically out of what I was seeing in the community.” Jon talks about his background as an actor, applying to the Sundance Screenwriters Lab, and how hard work is the key to a successful career. “I think the one thing that I’ve learned that I think is the most important lesson is you have to do the work. There is no easy way around: you can’t just scribble something down and hope that it’s good. You have to write and rewrite religiously until it’s there.” Don’t forget to subscribe to the Write On Podcast on iTunes!