Many venues in L.A. feature film and television writers speaking about their work, including the Paley Center and the Nerdist Writers Panel. But events hosted by the Writers Guild Foundation — which are open to the ticket-buying public — get our nod for their wonkiness and A-list talent factor. In the last year, attendees have heard from the executive producers of New Girl and a panel of Oscar nominees (Spike Jonze, David O. Russell), and watched a live version of John August and Craig Mazin’s Scriptnotes podcast. Yes, some panels feel a little sugarcoated (“We have the best crew in Hollywood,” “The network trusts us to make a great show”). But in a city with lots of talk about its “creative community,” arguably the most interesting of those creatives are film and television writers, who hone their scripts through dozens of drafts in order to propel them to the top of piles that no one wants to read in the first place. Talk about dedication to craft. —Zachary Pincus-Roth
(323) 782-4692, wgfoundation.org.

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