IndieWire's Fan Favorites Showrunners Panel: Top Producers on Getting Away with Salty Language, the Pros and Cons of Social Media, the Potential of a Writers Strike, and More

All of our producers managed to make the trek down -- and all the more amazing, "BoJack Horseman" creator Raphael Bob-Waksberg *literally* got to the convention center a minute before the panel, while "Mystery Science Theater 3000" producer/star Jonah Ray took the train down, was on the panel, then immediately took the train back to LA in time to perform a comedy set at the Shrine Auditorium for KROQ's annual "Kevin & Bean April Foolishness" comedy event.

It was a wide-ranging conversation, and things got raucous early when we talked about what words you can and can't say on TV. We also touched on plenty of hot topics, including the potential writers' strike, and the impact Trump has had on storylines.

IndieWire staffers Steve Greene and Hanh Nguyen joined me down in Anaheim to provide support, including photos and coverage. Hanh has a great writeup of the proceedings here.

The producers who attended -- Marc Guggenheim ("Arrow," "DC's Legends of Tomorrow," "Trollhunters"), Aline Brosh McKenna ("Crazy Ex-Girlfriend"), Jessica Goldberg ("The Path"), Raphael Bob-Waksberg ("BoJack Horseman"), Jonah Ray ("Mystery Science Theater 3000," "The Meltdown with Jonah and Kumail," "Hidden America with Jonah Ray") and Sera Gamble ("The Magicians") had great interaction -- some of the best I've ever seen of producers together on one stage -- and were all appreciative at being a part of the event.

This was the sixth annual panel I've helped organize for WonderCon, and the first at IndieWire; hopefully it's the sign of more to come! A few more pics:

Scenes from Wondercon 2015: Showrunners, Lightsabers, Cosplay and More

Another fun Saturday (always during Easter weekend though, what gives?) at Wondercon in Anaheim, and Team TV Guide Magazine was there in force. My colleagues Rich Sands, Damian Holbrook and Rob Moynihan all moderated several panels, our photo guru Geraldine Agoncillo was there documenting it, and I got to once again moderate our annual "TV Guide Magazine Fan Favorite Showrunners Panel."



And it was a good one this year -- as I noted, the cross section of drama/comedy/thriller/sci-fi/animation looked a lot like your DVR. Here's who we had:

Brannon Braga (Star Trek: TNG/Voyager/Enterprise; 24; Cosmos and Salem)
Kerry Ehrin (Moonlighting, Friday Night Lights, Parenthood, Bates Motel)
Adam F. Goldberg (Still Standing, Breaking In, The Goldbergs)
Dan Harmon (Sarah Silverman Program, Rick and Morty, Community)
Alex Hirsch (Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack, Fish Hooks, Gravity Falls)
Peter Horton (actor; Grey’s Anatomy, Brimstone, The Philanthropist, American Odyssey)
Graeme Manson (Flashpoint, Being Erica, Orphan Black)



Rob wrapped the panel up here. Among the takeaways:

Thanks to Twitter and Facebook, today's showrunners are more accessible than ever before, which sometimes comes as a blessing and a curse when you have fans voicing their opinions. "You're the face of every mistake," Hirsch said. "The more visible you are, the more crazy people are mad at you." Goldberg added that he oftentimes feels like his show's writers are in a bubble when crafting the season, so he embraces social media because, "I can find out what people like and know what people are responding to."

Collider has a nice roundup of the panel here. Among the highlights:

The panel discussed what it means to be a superstar showrunner; making noise and pushing boundaries; Harmon’s big move to Yahoo; how Hirsch gets away with a show that’s one of the most dense animated series ever seen on a children’s network; how social media has changed the game; the premiere of American Odyssey and Anna Friel’s committed performance; how Manson keeps track of every clone and personality while constantly bringing in more; how it’s impossible to shock people anymore; their take on remake mania; where Goldberg gets the content for Erica; the breaks that got them to the next level; and what we can look forward to this next season.

Another nice mention of the panel here by Mr. Rhapsodist.

More pics from the panel:









And how about some pics from the rest of Wondercon:


Alex Hirsch signs posters for "Gravity Falls" fans after the panel.


Lightsabers! Many, many lightsabers.


Yeah, OK, guys, a bit disturbing.


Live makeup demonstration


The Ice King!


Posters!


Outside the convention center

Scenes from Wondercon: TV Guide Magazine's Showrunner Panel; TNT Panel; More

It's becoming an Easter Eve tradition: Heading down to Anaheim on the Saturday of Wondercon to moderate TV Guide Magazine's "Fan Favorites Showrunner" panel. And we had a good one this year, with folks from all walks of the TV landscape: Comedy, animation, comic book adaptations, thrillers, sci-fi, more.



Panelists included Steve Callaghan (Family Guy), Chris Carter (The X-Files), Marc Guggenheim (Arrow), Andrew Kreisberg (Arrow), Steven Molaro (The Big Bang Theory) and Rockne S. O'Bannon (Revolution), as well as Jane Espenson (Once Upon a Time) and John Rogers (Leverage).



We discussed a wide range of topics, from why so many major characters are being killed on TV (Callaghan gave the back story on Brian's short-lived death on "Family Guy") to how and when show runners have fights with fans on Twitter.



As part of the panel, we also screened "Showrunners," directed by Des Doyle, which spotlights the creative forces responsible for overseeing every element of production on television's most popular dramas and comedies.



Here's me with the panel, backstage before it began. I was excited to finally meet many of the folks on these panels I didn't know, including Jane Espenson, "Arrow's" Kreisberg and Guggenheim, and John Rogers, who it turns out is a former comedian.



Thanks to Geraldine Agoncillo for taking all of these great photos for TV Guide Magazine.



Also: Thanks to my colleague Rich Sands, who organized the panel and made it happen.



Earlier in the day, I also moderated the panel for TNT's upcoming thriller "Legends." Stars Sean Bean, Ali Larter, Tina Majorino and Morris Chestnut plus executive producer David Wilcox were there. Yes, we made many jokes about whether Sean's character will survive season 1. Low-hanging fruit.



The scene outside the Anaheim Convention Center. I like the fact that it's not nearly as hectic or crowded as San Diego Comic-Con. The floor this year did feel bigger however, and I think it will continue to grow as the convention that takes place right before the summer movie season starts.



Fake Michonne.



Sugar Frosted Fat, they're gr-r-rooooss!



Yeah, the nut jobs were out in full force.



Wackiest booth might go to "The Room," the low-budget movie that still has a weird cult following.

Scenes from Anaheim's Wondercon

You may recall that last month I had the opportunity to moderate TV Guide Magazine's TV Showrunners panel -- featuring Julie Plec (The Vampire Diaries), Glen Mazzara (The Walking Dead), Steve Molaro (The Big Bang Theory), Remi Aubuchon (Falling Skies) and others -- at Wondercon in Anaheim.

Since I was going down there, I thought it might be fun to introduce the Blogger Kid to the "con" culture, and also brought along his older cousin for the ride. They both got a kick out of the spectacle. Evan was a bit freaked out at first by all the costumes, but the Nintendo booth (where he kept going back to try out games) and all the Minecraft paraphernalia won him over. Here are some photo highlights:


Stormtroopers


Inside the convention center


Inside the convention center

Pics From TV Guide Magazine's Showrunner Panel at Wondercon

TV Guide Magazine was in force at Wondercon this Saturday in Anaheim, and I got to moderate one of the best panels of the convention (if I do say so myself!). Our TV Guide Magazine TV Showrunner Panel, which we organized in honor of the magazine's 60th anniversary, boasted some of TV's heaviest hitters: Greg Plageman (Person of Interest), Jeff Davis (Teen Wolf), Remi Aubuchon (Falling Skies), Glen Mazzara (The Walking Dead), Steven Molaro (The Big Bang Theory) and Julie Plec (The Vampire Diaries). In a wide-ranging chat, we talked about everything from how and when to kill off major characters, to when to bring romantic interests together and how to walk the tightrope of network content standards. We also chatted about the showrunners' TV influences ("Hill Street Blues" was a popular one), and they all also gave us a few nuggets of storyline scoop.

My colleague Rob Moynihan summed up the panel here. And here are a few more pics from the panel, snapped by TV Guide Magazine's west coast photo editor, Geraldine Agoncillo.