Category: THE WRITERS ROOM
Keep dreaming
Paulo Halm and Rosane Svartman, the creators of Brazilian telenovela Totalmente Demais (Total Dreamer), discuss making the 130-hour series about a young girl who looks to escape her simple life by entering a modelling competition.
Crime wave
Screenwriter José Junior reveals how he created two hard-hitting crime dramas for Brazilian streamer Globoplay: Anti-Kidnapping Unit and Dissident Archangel.
Secrets and lies
Swedish crime writer Camilla Läckberg tells DQ about writing her first television series, Lyckoviken, in which a police officer is drawn into a murder investigation after returning to her home town.
Alfa male
Two brothers begin a journey of self-discovery in Alfa, a multi-stranded Danish series that blends thriller and character drama. DQ speaks to writer and director Milad Avaz about his first television project.
Proper Charlie
Charlie Covell, whose career has spanned acting and writing, speaks about creating The End of the F***ing World and teases her upcoming Netflix series Kaos.
On the run
Nick Santora, the creator of Quibi action-adventure series Most Dangerous Game, tells DQ about writing follow-up shortform drama The Fugitive and working for the fledgling streaming platform.
Over the Years
Russell T Davies, the creator and writer of series including Queer as Folk and Years & Years, opens up about his career, being a showrunner and writing about ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances.
Building The Nest
Bafta-winning writer Nicole Taylor takes DQ inside her thrilling five-part emotional drama The Nest, which has become the biggest new drama launch on the BBC this year.
Testing times
Operation Buffalo writer and director Peter Duncan tells DQ how he mixed authentic detail with satirical humour to dramatise the true story of British nuclear testing in South Australia.
On the Hunt
Cheat writer Gaby Hull talks about the inspiration and writing process behind six-part drama We Hunt Together, an unconventional police thriller in which two couples begin a cat-and-mouse chase.
Anything but Normal
Sally Rooney and Alice Birch tell DQ about adapting the former’s critically acclaimed novel Normal People, in which a pair of teenagers embark on a tender but complicated relationship.
Chaos rules
Now in its third season, Fauda has pushed Israeli drama into a new direction by exploring both sides of the Israel-Palestine conflict, presenting an action thriller tinged with emotion and compassion. DQ chats to the show’s creative team.
Girl talk
Having started life as a one-off drama, Our Girl is now in its fourth full season. Creator Tony Grounds tells DQ about making the military series, being inspired by real-life stories and replacing star Michelle Keegan.
Bye bye Bosch
Michael Connelly, author of the Bosch and Lincoln Lawyer book series, tells DQ about how the dramas based on both have affected by the coronavirus outbreak and his hopes for the final season of Bosch.
Writers unite
Lisa Holdsworth, chair of the Writers’ Guild of Great Britain, tells DQ about the union’s plans to support writers amid the coronavirus pandemic, while also questioning how future series might represent current events.
Criminal genes
Forbrydelsen (The Killing) writer Torleif Hoppe speaks to DQ about the genre-defining Danish series and how his latest crime drama, DNA, flips the script on its leading detective.
Life and Unsoul
Brazilian drama Desalma (Unsoul) marries crime drama with small-town paranoia and religious ritualism to unsettling effect. Writer Ana Paula Maia tells DQ about the creative process behind her first television series.
New radicals
The writers and producer of Swedish drama Kalifat (Caliphate) tell DQ how they crafted this story of five young women who become radicalised by religious fundamentalism.
Norway’s darkest day
Sara Johnsen, the co-creator and writer of Norwegian drama 22 Juli (July 22), tells DQ about her approach to dramatising the devastating terror attacks that struck Oslo and the island of Utøya on that date in 2011.
Life through a lens
After working on a pair of adaptations, writer Daisy Coulam is bringing an original story to television in the shape of Deadwater Fell. She tells DQ how a love of true crime shows and the power of social media inspired the series.