Writing Samples

By Sean McCormick After 32 seasons, Cops — a reality television show once described as a “one-celled amoeba” by co-creator Stephen Chao — has been cancelled by Paramount. On June 9, a Paramount Network spokesperson made a no-frills statement regarding the cancellation to the New York Times. “Cops’ is not on the Paramount Network and…

On June 8, the Los Angeles Times published an opinion piece by screenwriter John Ridley titled “Hey, HBO, ‘Gone With the Wind’ romanticizes the horrors of slavery. Take it off your platform for now.” The next evening, HBO Max did just that. Whether this was a coincidence, a coordinated effort or a capitulation is irrelevant.…

By Sean McCormick At the beginning of the workday on any film set, the first thing heard is, “we’re in, we’re in!” It’s the production world’s equivalent of a factory whistle. Thousands of furloughed television commercial workers — including yours truly — yearn to hear this again. It’s time we got back to work. Commercials…

“Everyone may know of your idea; even though, it will never be as it real as you thought.” ― Alan Maiccon Independent filmmaking is often a dubious and quixotic endeavor, better-suited for chess players than first-person shooters. Truly, a get-poor-quick scheme that only promises seemingly endless pitfalls and compromises. Producing a finished piece requires a…