Video: Mike White

The screenwriter of School of Rock and Nacho Libre shares insights into his creative process.

A few years back, the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences ran a terrific series of video interviews called Creative Spark. Here is one featuring Mike White (School of Rock, Nacho Libre, Pitch Perfect 3, The White Lotus).

This is a real fun video as White takes us through his writing process which involves a lot of what seems like procrastination.

Of this part of the process, White says, “You get inside the character’s head, you imagine certain details. It’s like you’re building a world and the world needs to be built out.”

Eventually after living with the story, White suggests you achieve a kind of clarity: “This is the idea, and now I need to do it.”

Perhaps White has read this: “The Power of Structured Procrastination.”

Here is an extended interview with Mike White:

To watch all of the videos featuring screenwriters in the Creative Spark series, go here.