John welcomes writer and actress Zoe Kazan (Ruby Sparks, The Big Sick, She Said) to talk about her sweeping and thorough reimagining of East of Eden, releasing on Netflix on October 1st. They discuss her approach to period piece dialogue, the process of adapting such an expansive novel, and the family history behind this particular project.

Rich with biblical parallels, East of Eden is a perfect story for a discussion of archetypes. John invites Zoe to pull cards from the upcoming Character Creator Kit in a conversation about the iconic East of Eden antagonist, Cathy.

In our bonus segment for premium subscribers, John asks Zoe about her experience growing up with two screenwriter parents.

Links:

Writer Emergency Pack: Character Creator Kit
why I can't stop thinking about Papua New Guinea by Daniel Frank

Download the episode here!

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Outro by Adam Pineless (send us yours!)

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754 - East of Eden with Zoe Kazan

Scriptnotes Podcast

754 - East of Eden with Zoe Kazan