Writers, stop trying to control the darkness and start letting it speak.

Actor, filmmaker, and comic book creator DAVID DASTMALCHIAN (‘Dune’, ‘Late Night with the Devil’, ‘Murderbot’) joins me to discuss why the most dangerous thing an artist can do is try to "button up" the darkness. Through the lens of his life, career, and bold new graphic novel ‘Through’, we explore the thin line between creating a "fortress" of control and finding the courage to let your stories – and your life – remain beautifully unresolved.

JOIN THE COMMUNITY!

Join the 10,000+ members of the 5AM StoryTalk community at Substack mastering the craft of storytelling (and the art of life) together: https://colehaddon.substack.com/

ON THE ITINERARY:

• AVOIDING ARCHETYPAL ANTAGONISTS: Why fully fleshed-out villains, like those in Frank Herbert’s Dune, are essential for a story to feel truly justified and human.
• THE MONSTER WITHIN: How the horror genre provides a safe place to confront not just the "dark outside the window," but the terrifying parts of ourselves we aren't comfortable talking about.
• THE CREATIVE VACUUM: Why the artist’s best work is done when seeking to overcome fear rather than being driven by it, moving from a state of hyper-vigilance to conscious presence.
• THE TRUTH ABOUT VULNERABILITY: A raw discussion on addiction, suicide attempts, and the "implosion" of self-control – and how these experiences become the clay for David’s meaningful art.
• BREAKING ‘THROUGH’: The creative and emotional origins of David’s new graphic novel from Z2 Comics and why it’s one of the most personal things he’s ever worked on.
• THE SABOTAGED ENDING: The last-minute phone call that dismantled a "perfect" conclusion to ‘Through’ because life – and art – is far more honest when it refuses to be buttoned up.
• RADICAL HOPE: How normalizing conversations about the morbid can help us face the "monstrous" within a capitalist culture that often buries the value of human wellbeing.

🔒 EXCLUSIVE BONUS EPISODE: HAROLD AND MAUDE (1971)

David Dastmalchianb returns to discuss a seminal piece of art from his life – HAROLD AND MAUDE, the 1971 cult classic from legendary director Hal Ashby. This conversation is going to explain how David became the person – and artist – he is today.

🔑 UNLOCK AT SUBSTACK: https://colehaddon.substack.com/

🔑 UNLOCK AT APPLE: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/bonus-david-dastmalchian-talks-harold-and-maude/id1807437928?i=1000766143248

LINKS

• Learn more about and purchase David Dastmalchian's graphic novel THROUGH: https://z2comics.com/products/david-dastmalchian-through-graphic-novel-collectors-cards-deluxe-edition
• Watch/Listen to David's podcast GRAVE CONVERSATIONS: https://www.youtube.com/@graveconversations

JOIN THE COMMUNITY!

5AM StoryTalk is reader-supported. Help me keep the coffee brewing by becoming a free or paid subscriber at Substack: https://colehaddon.substack.com/

TIP JAR

Not up for a paid subscription but appreciate the work that’s gone into making this podcast happen? You can “buy me a coffee” ⁠⁠⁠here to help keep me caffeinated (translation: writing)⁠⁠⁠: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://buymeacoffee.com/colehaddon⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Follow Cole/5AM StoryTalk at…

• 5AM StoryTalk @ Instagram⁠⁠: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/5amstorytalkpodcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
• Cole Haddon @ Instagram⁠⁠: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/colehaddonwashere/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
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EMAIL

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CREDITS

◼5AM StoryTalk acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the land on which this podcast is recorded, the Djarra people of the Kulin Nation and pay respects to Elders past and present.

◼This podcast’s music is by ⁠⁠my dear friend Cary Brothers⁠⁠. ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.carybrothers.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Are you thinking about writing a feature spec script? I’m breaking down the 4-part stress test I used to pick my first big-screen project in five years.

Today on The Brew — an intimate 5AM StoryTalk series on the struggles and successes of life in the arts — I’m sharing the exact process I used to identify and fall in love with an idea that would also have commercial appeal. Whether you are a screenwriter, author, or graphic novelist, the logic remains the same — what is relevant to one medium has applications across all others.

JOIN THE COMMUNITY!

Join the 10,000+ members of the 5AM StoryTalk community at Substack mastering the craft of storytelling (and the art of life) together: https://colehaddon.substack.com/

ON THE ITINERARY THIS WEEK

• THE ARTIST’S INTERROGATION: Why you must constantly challenge your creative process and the way you pursue your art.
• THE PILOT POISON: How a decade of writing TV pilots "ruined" the feature-writing process by favoring aborted character journeys over definitive endings.
• THE BULLSEYE STRATEGY: A breakdown of the four-part stress test used to find the precise intersection of passion, commercial logic, theme, and sequel potential.
• THE "COMMERCIAL" MYTH: Why writing for a large audience is a moral case for cinema rather than "selling out".
• THE LAVA CAKE STRATEGY: Learning to hide your most serious, "grim" themes inside a high-octane "sugar cake" of entertainment.
• THE JAMES CAMERON SCHOOL OF GOAL-SETTING: Why setting ridiculously high goals ensures that even your failures land above everyone else's success.

🔒 EXCLUSIVE BONUS EPISODE: "WEAPONIZING CURIOSITY IN SCREENWRITING: BUILDING THE NARRATIVE HOOK"

🔑 UNLOCK THE BONUS AT SUBSTACK: https://colehaddon.substack.com/p/weaponizing-curiosity-screenwriting

🔑 UNLOCK THE BONUS AT APPLE: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/bonus-weaponizing-curiosity-in-screenwriting-building/id1807437928?i=1000763998965

LINKS:

• Watch/Listen/Read "'Project Hail Mary' Is the Blueprint to Save Hollywood (and Our Future)": https://colehaddon.substack.com/p/project-hail-mary-blueprint-save-hollywood-our-future
• Watch/Listen/Read "The Brew | 'Hustle Culture Is Killing Me'": https://colehaddon.substack.com/p/5am-realtalk-feb-23-i-cant-do-this?utm_source=publication-search

TIP JAR:

Not up for a paid subscription but appreciate the work that’s gone into making this podcast happen? You can “buy me a coffee” ⁠⁠⁠here to help keep me caffeinated (translation: writing)⁠⁠⁠:

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://buymeacoffee.com/colehaddon⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

SOCIAL MEDIA:

Follow Cole/5AM StoryTalk at…

• 5AM StoryTalk @ Instagram⁠⁠: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/5amstorytalkpodcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
• Cole Haddon @ Instagram⁠⁠: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/colehaddonwashere/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
• Bluesky⁠⁠: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bsky.app/profile/colehaddon.bsky.social⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
• Threads⁠⁠: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.threads.com/Colehaddonwashere⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

EMAIL:

⁠5AMStoryTalk@gmail.com

CREDITS:

• 5AM StoryTalk acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the land on which this podcast is recorded, the Djarra people of the Kulin Nation and pay respects to Elders past and present.
• This podcast’s music is by ⁠⁠Cary Brothers⁠⁠. ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.carybrothers.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

We’ve all said it: "They don’t make movies like they used to.” It's true, too...but Andy Weir's PROJECT HAIL MARY is the blueprint for how to fix the problem!

This is the story of how my 11-year-old son — a kid raised on a steady diet of Marvel and Star Wars — ended up sobbing through a 28-year-old disaster flick and declaring it the best thing he’s ever seen. It’s also about why Hollywood is currently failing its audience, and how a science teacher lightyears from home in PROJECT HAIL MARY holds the key to saving the movie business and maybe even our future.

If you’ve ever felt fatigued by superheroes and god-like beings, if you’re a screenwriter trying to work out what’s next, or if you’re wondering how a culture could so dramatically lose its way, this episode of 5AM StoryTalk is for you!

ON THE ITINERARY:

• DECONSTRUCTIVE VS. CONSTRUCTIVE ART: The difference between art as a "mirror" and art as a "hammer."
• THE 11-YEAR-OLD LITMUS TEST: Lessons from ‘Deep Impact’ on why grounded human drama triggers "awe."
• THE SCIENCE OF MORAL BEAUTY: Exploring Dr. Dacher Keltner’s research on why acts of courage are emotional triggers.
• SUPERHERO FATIGUE: Why we must trade powerful beings for ordinary people facing certain death.
• ANDY WEIR'S ‘PROJECT HAIL MARY’: Why this story is the answer to: "Why don’t they make movies like they used to?"
• THE MIDDLE ROAD: Using the "grinder" of deconstruction to earn a transcendent ending.

JOIN THE COMMUNITY!

5AM StoryTalk is reader-supported. Help me keep the coffee brewing by becoming a free or paid subscriber at Substack: https://colehaddon.substack.com/

LINKS

• Listen/Watch/Read "Screenwriters Meg LeFauve & Joe Forte | Breaking Your Story (and Life)": https://colehaddon.substack.com/p/the-screenwriting-life-meg-lefauve-joe-forte?utm_source=publication-search
• Listen/Read "When Did We Stop Dreaming of a Better Future?": https://colehaddon.substack.com/p/new-podcast-did-science-fiction-help?utm_source=publication-search
• Learn more about Dacher Keltner's study of awe: https://www.dacherkeltner.com/

TIP JAR

Not up for a paid subscription but appreciate the work that’s gone into making this podcast happen? You can “buy me a coffee” ⁠⁠⁠here to help keep me caffeinated (translation: writing)⁠⁠⁠: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://buymeacoffee.com/colehaddon⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

SOCIAL MEDIA

Follow Cole/5AM StoryTalk at…

• 5AM StoryTalk @ Instagram⁠⁠: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/5amstorytalkpodcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
• Cole Haddon @ Instagram⁠⁠: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/colehaddonwashere/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
• Bluesky⁠⁠: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bsky.app/profile/colehaddon.bsky.social⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
• Threads⁠⁠: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.threads.com/Colehaddonwashere⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

EMAIL

⁠5AMStoryTalk@gmail.com

CREDITS

• 5AM StoryTalk acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the land on which this podcast is recorded, the Djarra people of the Kulin Nation and pay respects to Elders past and present.
• This podcast’s music is by ⁠⁠my dear friend Cary Brothers⁠⁠. ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.carybrothers.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠