Michael Price on Writing/Producing for The Simpsons, and Creating F Is For Family with Bill Burr

DreamPath Podcast

Michael Price has been writing and producing for the beloved and iconic television show The Simpsons for the past 20 years. In 2014 he co-created F is For Family, a serialized, animated series for Netflix, with comedian Bill Burr. Starring Bill Burr, Laura Dern, Justin Long, and Sam Rockwell, the series just concluded its fifth and final season. Michael has written for numerous other shows, including Teacher’s Pet, Aaahh!!! Real Monsters, the Hercules tv series, and many Lego Star Wars projects.

What you will learn:

• What it’s like working again on The Simpsons full time after the series finale of F is For Family. How Michael was able to bounce between the two shows throughout the creation and production of F is For Family for five seasons. [0:00-5:56]
• Michael reveals how he broke into Hollywood as a writer, with no backup plan, starting as a theater major, doing improv in New York, and then auditioning for acting roles before discovering that his true calling was writing. [5:56-15:10]
• Michael reflects on what has changed (and what remains the same) in Hollywood for writers over the last 30 years. The pros and cons of the seemingly limitless television content available due to streaming, and the logistics of making a show for Netflix. [15:10-24:25]
• The nostalgia that F is For Family evokes for fans and how Michael was mindful of maintaining that tone, while also calling attention to problematic social issues of that era (the 70s). How F is For Family attracted such an amazing cast of voice actors. [24:25-34:43]
• Michael goes into detail about what staffing for The Simpsons is like and what “breaking story” means in the writer’s room. [34:43-41:34]
• What it was like getting hired as a writer at the Simpsons in 2002 and how he ended up working on such a popular, beloved show. His personal dos and don’ts in writer’s rooms. [41:34-52:16]

Resources:

• Michael’s: IMDb, Twitter