​JEFFreY PEMBERTON
​

 PictureJEFFREY PEMBERTON
Where do you live (City, State, or Country)?
I live in Woodway, Texas just outside of Waco.

Your script stood out among hundreds of others. What was the inspiration for your story and why did you write a script instead of a short story or a novel?
I grew up reading back issues, mostly Marvel, and I really love the Comics medium. “The Super Society” started as a more adult-oriented comic idea from my teen years that didn’t develop into anything, and what notes I had ended up sitting in a notebook for years. And then, toward the end of 2023, I saw an ad on LinkedIn for a family-based publisher asking for story samples, so I dusted off the notebook, reworked the concept into an all-ages project, wrote a sample of the first five pages of the first issue, and sent it in. I heard nothing back. But I held onto the sample, always intending to finish it. Fast forward to June, 2024 and I saw an ad for the Nickelodeon Animation Scholarship Program, and one of the requirements was to come up with an original, 30-minute Pilot. So I dusted off the sample, changed the format to Television, and set to work on finishing the story for Episode One. I never actually applied for the Scholarship though because “Super Society” became my main focus and I just kept coming up with more and more ideas for future episodes, so I ended up setting out to write the entire first season instead. I feel like this show has become my “first novel”, to quote John Steinbeck on “East of Eden”. This is the show I was always going to make, and have been unknowingly writing my entire life.

How long did it take you to write your script...and what is your writing process? Do you outline...use index cards...white board...or just start with FADE IN?
I have an unorthodox style where I don’t really outline or plan very much before I start. I’ll have usually a paragraph or two on a concept and maybe a character arc, and then pick an opening and start writing from there. The first draft is a lot of “word vomit”, just throwing up everything I might want to use. And then I come back and edit, which is really where the story takes shape. I’m fairly merciless towards my work, so I don’t tend to hold onto things that aren’t working just because I happen to like them. I was developing the show’s format as I was writing the script, and I chose to make it a two-part opening with the intent of each subsequent story being two-parts as well. And then I realized this was untenable for the kinds of stories I wanted to tell, but by that point I’d already finished the first draft, which was around 80 pages. I think it took a month to write that. And then I waited a couple months, worked on some of the other episodes, came back and began the process of immensely trimming down the script to fit closer to the average 35 pages most other scripts were hitting. Several more rounds of editing ensued, and eventually I’d trimmed it down to 50 pages, which is still slightly long, but hey, it’s the premiere, hopefully it can get a little runtime leeway! Then I submitted it to Wiki for the fast feedback. I thought it was good, but wanted to know if it could be better. To my surprise, the feedback was largely positive, and it netted me this interview, so I guess it’s not just good, it’s pretty good!

What is your ultimate ambition as a writer?
To be left alone. No seriously, I just want to make and market my art without anyone looking over my shoulder telling me how to do my job.

Which film or television writers inspire you? Why?
I owe a lot to Russell T. Davies in terms of dialogue and my writing style, primarily coming from his first tenure on “Doctor Who” from 2005-2009. And I suppose I owe the confidence in my abilities and the keys to my imagination to George Lucas and his “Star Wars” Saga.
Although I feel like I owe a small piece of myself to every work of art I’ve consumed.

What’s your all-time favorite movie or television show?
“Doctor Who”! It changed my life and inspired me to pursue writing as a career. It’s got the greatest premise of any show ever made: you can go anywhere, and do anything with anyone. Plus it stars one of the greatest fictional characters ever created, and is probably the only non soap opera TV show that has a long enough history to make a study of it a fascinating history lesson in and of itself, similar to a long-running comic.

What advice do you have for writers hoping to win a contest or place as a finalist as you have?
That’s a little difficult considering I wasn’t entering this to win in the first place, so I guess I’d say “Write something you know you’ll love, and maybe the passion will shine through the words”. Plus, you’re gonna be working on it for years to come if you’re ever going to get it
made, so loving it helps. A bit like raising a kid I suppose.

What else are you working on that the world needs to know about? (be sure to include any links you want the world to check out)
I’m writing the screenplay for a faith-based short film right now, and working on a prose short story with a friend. Additionally, I’m developing an idea for a potential, space-based spinoff of “Super Society”. My Instagram is jeffpem1458, but I rarely post anything on there.