Time for a Reset!
The Austin Film Festival is just the place. 

Hello Friends, Family & Associates, 

On Wednesday, October 22, 2025, after two years of reading screenplays and writing coverage for the Austin Film Festival, I finally decided to take the leap and attend the festival. By reading many scripts and earning points, I acquired a Conference Badge. That went a long way to being able to afford to go to Austin. One has to consider flights, hotels, and food. 

Wednesday: I’m on a plane

Our flight had one stop in Phoenix, Arizona. There was a change of plans and planes when we landed. So, we had to go inside the Phoenix Airport to our gate. Phoenix is a very hot place. Imagine if the airport had NO AIR CONDITIONING? UGH! (Apparently, in Phoenix, they ruled out air conditioning because of the Freon being released into the air, messing with the environment. Oye.)

The hotels in Austin are very expensive. Even with the AFF discounts, the hotels were still too costly. I lucked into a loft situation with some fellow writers staying right in the heart of Downtown Austin and in the middle of all the AFF festivities.  

The drive from the airport to the Littlefield Lofts was about 20 minutes. The Uber driver dropped me off in front of a building named Littlefield. Unfortunately, the building I was staying at, Littlefield Lofts, was across the street. It was 10:30pm. I knew there was a small black box on a wall beside the Gold’s Gym. After circling twice, I managed to locate the little black box. PHEW! 

My goal the first night was to get my hands on my Conference Badge. Goal achieved! 

I was so exhausted from my trip. I didn’t want to have to walk far to acquire my badge. I checked my Google Map app. Great! It was a 5-minute walk to the Omni Hotel. 

As soon as I entered the registration area, feeling like a zombie, I heard someone call out, “Ross!” It was Paige Parker, the AFF Script Manager. It was a nice moment of recognition and very welcoming to connect with someone I knew through email and Zoom meetings. 

Thursday:
Breakfast With Roadmap Writers

Roadmap Writers has been a huge indirect addition to the Austin Film Festival. They are a screenplay platform with resources on their website for rewrite clinics, pitching reps and Zoom meetings with industry insiders. Roadmap held numerous mixers throughout the week, often around food. 

On Thursday, October 23, Roadmap hosted a breakfast at Halcyon Coffee. I knew that one member from each of my small writers groups would be attending. I invited them to this breakfast. Sarah Angell is from Canada. Troy Mann lived about an hour or so from Austin. It was surreal to meet them both in Austin. 

It was also great meeting some of the Roadmap staff. I was familiar with some of them. 

As time passed, the coffee shop filled up with writers. There were writers I knew from a monthly Zoom meetup, hosted by Collin, called #VHH or #VirtualHappyHour. Collin is also one of the guys I was staying with. 

I also reunited with a mutual friend, Brandon Walter, from whom I hadn’t seen in over a decade. 

It was the best way to kick off my AFF adventure! This was even before the first panel on AFF Opening Remarks. 

That afternoon, I attended a panel called ‘Your Second Act: Breaking In Over 40.” There is some ageism in Hollywood, but really, it comes down to your screenplay. 

From 4pm to 5pm, I was at the Reader Happy Hour at Higbie’s. I hung out with Paige Parker, the Script Manager, (Below) and finally met the Script Director, Grace Donaldson. I had known Grace for two years, but only online. 

At the same mixer, I met Carolyn Carpenter (below) for the first time in person, too. Carolyn is an instructor for the Hollywood Gatekeepers, an online course I took on script reading. 

It was early evening and I had not had lunch yet. You get caught up going from panel to panel and can be out of reach for food. Brittney Coon is both a reader and a screenwriter. We decided to grab some fast food, but took our time. Brittney (below) is from Phoenix and was on my plane, but we did not know each other until Austin.

Friday

My Friday, October 24th, started with a panel titled, ‘Meeting a Manager.’ It was all about seeking representation. It was great that Jason Lubin of First Story Entertainment was on this panel, as he was going to be doing a roundtable with Roadmap on Saturday that I was attending. I got a preview of what Jason was like. 

A term was mentioned about meeting other writers in the same situation: Lateral Networking. That resonated and stuck with me the rest of the week. 

The next panel I planned on attending was ‘Everything Everyone Else is Telling You is Wrong.’ I wasn’t going to make it so I pivoted to seeing Michael Ardnt’s panel about developing first acts. What if the panelists in ‘Everything Everyone Else is Telling You is Wrong’ would give wrong advice? 

Michael Ardnt’s presentation at the Paramount Theater was sensational! It had visuals and great examples on the movie screen. I’ll have to check out his website, and so should you. If an attendee misses a panel, there are supposed to be replays available at some point. 

Another night. Another Roadmap party. This one took place at the San Jac’s Saloon. 

John August and Craig Mazen held a live podcast of Script Notes from 9pm to 11pm with special guests. It was a fun event. 

I did take some pictures. Out of respect for AFF not wanting pictures taken of any of the panels, I’m saving those for myself. 

Saturday:
A Day of Roundtables

On Saturday, October 25th, I decided to sleep late because I hardly slept the first two nights. 

This is my day of roundtables. The first one was with literary manager Jason Lubin through Roadmap Writers. There were about twelve of us writers doing a quick pitch to introduce ourselves, our screenplays, and ask Jason a relevant question. About eight writers went before me and some of them had some crazy stories, some of them supernatural. I felt more comfortable about what I was going to pitch because my story is out there.

These days, I’m branding myself as a sci-fi feature screenwriter. It’s suggested that your personal statement relate to the genre and story you’re pitching. 

If you didn’t already know, I saw a UFO when I was fifteen years old. 🛸

My pitch went well. My question at the end was about querying managers and producers. When you have 3 or 4 scripts close to being solid, should you query? Jason was adamant about having a solid script to query with. 

Another panelist during the week suggested querying to create relationships. 

I just have to keep rewriting until I have a SOLID screenplay. It’s been over 30 years. What’s another year? (I’m 55, people.) 🙄

After a nerve-racking time pitching a literary manager, it was time to stuff my face! I was craving BBQ, and Roadmap Writers were doing a get-together at Coopers Old Time BBQ. YUMMY!

Good food! I met more people. NEXT!

I had to race to the next panel. I didn’t think I was going to make it because people stress to be early if you want to get into a popular panel. My next panel was Christopher McQuarrie and Rian Johnson discussing time travel in movies. It’s the one panel I wanted to be at. I made it…barely. I must have used The Force.

Jon Concepcion, who got Rian to sign his “Last Jedi” Blu-ray, posted on one of the WhatsApp AFF groups that Johnson and McQuarrie were at the Stephen F. Austin Hotel. So, I left my loft and headed there. Just as I arrived, I spotted McQuarrie for a moment, and he soon vanished.

Rian was heading towards the stairs to leave. I was able to briefly say hello and shake his hand. It didn’t hurt that I was wearing my Skywalker Ranch tee shirt. 

Below is a marketing stunt for the screening of the feature film, “Christy” starring Sydney Sweeney. Sweeney was awesome! I saw the film back in Los Angeles. 

Round 2 As in Roundtable 2

I only signed up for one official roundtable with AFF. Andrew Kevin Walker (“Seven”) was one of the speakers and the reason I chose that roundtable. I arrived early and was first in line. I ran into Viki Solis whom I met days earlier. She, too, was excited to meet Andrew Kevin Walker.

There were probably 8 or 9 speakers for each roundtable. Upon entering the room, I did not see Walker. You never know if speakers have to cancel last minute. 

So, I sat down at an empty table. My thought was whoever I got, I’d be happy with. Nadia Abass-Madden (“911”) sat at our table. I was thrilled as I’ve met Nadia before and am Facebook friends with her. It was a great way to reconnect. 

Somehow, I sat at the perfect table because I noticed Mr. Walker finally entered and sat at the table behind us. This meant that when the first session ended, the panelists would get up and move clockwise to the next session and Walker would move to our table. 

Andrew Kevin Walker did not disappoint. He answered some questions I had about his screenwriting process and approach to outlining. Walker was very down-to-earth and easy to talk to. Viki got Walker to sign her “Seven” script.

The third and last speaker was Virgil Williams (“Criminal Minds”). Virgil was intense. I asked him about the research done on the show and how he was able to write about dark topics involving sexually assaulted and murdered women and children. Virgil was very emotional. He reached his limit on the show and had to move on. He stressed that the work can affect your mental well-being. 

Saturday night was simply a night to hang out at the Stephen F. Austin and Omni Hotels. Lots of people were partying at both places. 

I hung out with some members of an old writers’ group, Deadline Junkies. I ran into Harim Sanchez, whom I first met earlier in the year at the Slamdance Film Festival. After going back and forth between these two hotels, I made the decision to remain at the Omni since the sky opened up and started raining. 

Sunday: Last Day 

Sunday morning started with donuts at Voo Doo Donuts. Fun place. 

The first panel for me was The Writer Producer Relationship with Christine Vachon and filmmaker Celine Song (“Past Lives,” Materialists”). I ran into Taylor Coriell (above) who had a short film, “Ladylike” playing at AFF.

Song talked about how good the crew was to her about being a novice filmmaker. They helped Song feel comfortable, answering her questions. 

What Song got from Vachon was no bullshit. If a scene was too much for the budget, Vachon would inform Song to think about other ways to tell her story. 

Closing Remarks with Shane Black

Shane Black (“Predator,” “Lethal Weapon,” “Kiss Kiss Bang Bang”) has been giving closing remarks for AFF for many years. After attending the panel, I can understand why. 

Black was no-holds-barred and off the cuff. Black humbled himself and brought himself down a level to all of us struggling writers. Black shared how he had plenty of troubled times as a writer. 

It was a very inspiring way to finish my first experience with the Austin Film Festival. 

Goodbyes

Although this section is about goodbyes, I finally got a chance to meet up with fellow Deadline Junkie, Nate Russo at the Stephen F. Austin Hotel. 

Sarah Angell met me there. Nate had to leave. Sarah and I went to grab a bite to eat. Then I returned to the Stephen F. Austin Hotel for more goodbyes. 

Andrew Kevin Walker saw that I was standing with my little suitcase, as I had been rolling it around all day. He said goodbye and wished me a safe trip back. 

My loft mates were awesome! Above are Dan Gorski, Collin Lieberg and me. Jim Wurst, not pictured, was in the roundtable I had with Jason Lubin. 

A screenwriter doesn’t need a screenplay to place at AFF. You can get so much out of simply attending the conference. 

Stay Weird, Austin!  Until next time!

Below is a video I edited with more pictures and footage. Enjoy!