More about Seth: https://www.networkisa.org/profile/seth-michael-donsky
In 2023 Seth was invited to join the ISA's Development Slate via their Diversity Initiative for his screenplay Grit N' Glitter, which was also a finalist in the Austin Screenplay Competition.

His screenplay Stardusk, the story of Andy Warhol transgender superstar and muse Candy Darling is currently being produced by Oscar-award winning Bruce Cohen. Canadian Screen Award nominee Bretten Hannan is attached to direct.

Seth also has completed screenplay adaptations of the Penguin/Random House YA book OCD, The Dude, and Me and ex-Scientologist, transgender icon Kate Bornstein’s memoir A Queer and Pleasant Danger.

Seth’s debut feature Twisted, which he wrote and directed, premiered at the International Film Festival of Berlin in 1996. Twisted had a limited theatrical run in the US and Europe to great acclaim from The Los Angeles Times, Variety, The Village Voice, The New York Press, and Film Journal International. Twisted was inducted into the permanent film collection of the Museum of Modern Art in 2012.

Seth lives in Los Angeles with his husband, acclaimed modern dancer and choreographer Patrick Corbin, a professor of dance at the Glorya Kauffman School of Dance at USC, their adopted son Anthony, three cats, and one French Bulldog.

Time Stamps
0:00 - Introduction
0:56 - Meet Seth
1:12 - Watching right now
2:13 - Influenced by other filmmakers
5:27 - Seth’s Journey into screenwriting
6:19 - Getting into directing
7:02 - Deciding to make a film
8:13 - Telling stories that need to be told
8:40 - Stories about the Queer experience
9:46 - Where to start?
10:57 - Exploring Candy Darling
11:44 - Adapting a memoir
12:52 - Adapting a novel
13:20 - Diving into your worst instincts
14:40 - Inspired by Chicago’s politics
15:24 - Picked by the ISA for a big budget film
16:10 - Writing that first draft
17:21 - Trading material with peers
18:19 - Disagreements with notes
18:53 - No one is stopping you from making it better
20:08 - Don’t be afraid that you can’t do it
21:14 - Exploring the human experience
23:07 - Adapting books
25:14 - Coming into the ISA
26:35 - Learning from ISA classes
28:32 - Biggest Goals
29:26 - Becoming an queer auteur
31:16 - Advice to young creatives
31:25 - Don’t let setbacks hold you back
32:42 - Keep writing