ARC Asks: Brant Englestein

Interview with Agent Carter writer/producer on the world of TV screenwriting

Today I’m debuting a new feature on ARC Worlds: ARC Asks!

Each month I’ll be interviewing a creator/writer/artist in a different field to learn more about their craft, their industry, or how they created something I really like!

For the first installment, my good friend Brant Englestein joins us from Los Angeles.

Brant has been working as a TV screenwriter since 2006. He’s written for such shows as Agent Carter, Borgia, Kevin (Probably) Saves the World, and Emergence, and is a producer on an upcoming Marvel show on Disney+ and The Boys spin-off on Prime Video.

What made you want to become a TV writer?

As a child I wanted to be a clown. Then, slightly older, a magician. Slightly older still, an animator. Eventually I came around to writing. I always loved reading books and watching movies — and, simply, I loved daydreaming. I discovered the TV show Homicide: Life on the Street, which, to me, felt somehow both raw and polished at the same time. I would’ve been happy being involved in any part of the creation of books, movies, or TV. I got lucky.

How did you get your first job in TV?

I temped for the soap As The World Turns, filling in as a writer’s assistant. It was written, shot, and edited in a studio in Midwood, Brooklyn. They were having trouble filling the job because people didn’t want to do that commute. I was willing. And it turned out to be a great time for that soap. They were having a revival under a new showrunner and winning Emmys. It was a fun time and good learning experience. After that, I sent out random cover letters to showrunners whose work I really liked asking if they had any openings. One was Tom Fontana, because I loved Homicide and Oz. Another I remember was Judd Apatow’s company because I liked Freaks & Geeks. Tom’s company randomly had a position opening up AND randomly knew people I was working with at As the World Turns. So I got really lucky in getting that interview.

Describe what an average day is like in a writers’ room. How has that changed in the post-COVID world?

It truly depends on the show and the showrunner’s process. So it’s tough to describe a typical day. But, very generally, it’s a number of writers sitting in plain rooms surrounded by whiteboards and we throw out different ideas and some get approved for a while and some don’t, and that continues ad nauseam until eventually there’s an outline for an episode of TV. And then one of the writers takes that outline and goes off to write the actual script. In the COVID world, everything’s moved on to Zoom, but mostly it’s still that.

How is the experience different working on a show connected to an existing property/universe compared to an original show?

It’s mostly the same really. In some ways easier, in that you don’t have to figure out the general characters or world you’re operating in — but in some ways harder, because there could be less leeway from breaking the tone of that world.

Is it a coincidence that the SSR’s Los Angeles office, introduced in Agent Carter, season 2, episode 1 (written by none other than Brant Englestein), is the Auerbach Theatrical Agency? I’ll let you decide.

How do you write believable sounding dialogue?

Listen to how people really talk! All dialogue is stylized in some way — the umms and repetitions usually get polished out — but as long as you use as a guiding beacon the question “how would someone truly react in this situation?”, you will be good.

TV writing is at times a collaborative process when you’re breaking episodes in the writers’ room and other times an individual effort when you’re writing an episode. How do you balance the two aspects?

Abandon your ego. As a staffed writer, you’re trying to realize the best version of the showrunner’s vision. So that means doing your very best, and then not only not caring but also learning from when and how you get rewritten by the boss, so you can do a more effective job next time.

How much do you get to interact with the cast of the show during production?

Always dependent per show, but I’ve been lucky to have worked for showrunners who believe that a writer should be present on set during filming. Which means that I’m there whenever an actor has a question or concern about a scene or their character. Because often the writer has been involved with the full season while the directer is there just for the one episode.

What’s one of the most random /memorable moments from your career?

That’s tough. Shooting in a freezing castle in Prague where there’s a pet bear in the courtyard — unrelated to our show, just part of the castle — comes to mind. Oh — or getting to meet Stan Lee when he appeared in an episode of Agent Carter I wrote!

Picture of the actual castle bear from Prague

Stan Lee with Dominic Cooper during the shooting of Agent Carter, season 1, episode 4, “The Blitzkrieg Button”

Did your then-girlfriend forgive you after the character you named after her in Agent Carter got cut from the episode?

You have a better memory than me!

[Editor’s note: don’t worry, they are now happily married with a very cute daughter.]

Thanks again to Brant for being the inaugural ARC Asks participant! Do you have a suggestion for a future ARC Asks interview? Hit Comment and leave your suggestion below!