This week, Liz Hannah — the Golden Globe-nominated screenwriter whose credits include the feature films The Post, Long Shot, and Lee, and co-creating the TV mini-series “The Girl From Plainville”) — joined me for some 5AM StoryTalk, which you can listen to here if you haven’t already. Today, she’s back for a bonus episode exclusive to my amazing paid subscribers. In it, we discuss a key scene from a favorite piece of art in her life – David Bowie’s 1972 album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. What can we learn about the creative process from this glam rock masterpiece?
In this bonus episode, Liz and I will discuss (amongst other things):
Her earliest experiences with David Bowie's music and specifics about how it profoundly rewired her creative identity
The history, audacity, and unexpected death of Ziggy Stardust and what artists can learn from the brevity of the character’s existence
Bowie’s career-spanning artistic ethos and how she applies it to her own creative process/work (i.e., creative risk-taking, reinvention, etc.)
A specific example of how Bowie impacted the production of “The Girl from Plainville”
Sincerity and passion in Bowie’s work (or: how honesty can make art accessible and relatable)
Todd Haynes’ Velvet Goldmine, a film that's intrinsically linked to Bowie's Ziggy character and our own relationship to Bowie
This bonus episode was released half a year earlier than it became available to all subscribers. To get access to all bonus episodes like this one upon initial release, become a paid subscriber to 5AM StoryTalk at Apple or here at Substack.
Your support provides me the time necessary to write these articles, chase down interviews, and edit the podcast episodes I hope will add even more to your experience here. Thank you!
Don’t forget to listen to the first part of my conversation with Liz!
If you want more like this podcast episode, these other three episodes might also prove of interest to you:
