My conversation with the 2021 Black List writer.

Michael Kujak wrote the original screenplay “Follow” which landed on the 2021 Black List. I had the opportunity to chat with Mike about his creative background, his script, the craft of screenwriting, and what making the annual Black List has meant to him.

: First off, congratulations for making the 2021 Black List.

: Thank you so much.

: Let’s learn more about your background here. Where’d you grow up? How did you find your way into writing as an interest?

: I grew up in Bloomington, Minnesota, which is a suburb that’s just south of Minneapolis. We’re famous for Mall of America, if you’ve ever heard about that big monstrosity of a mall out there. I grew up there and got into writing in high school.

I had one of those magical “Dead Poets Society” high school teachers, that was just a great influence on me. I found her in 10th grade. She had a creative writing class. I got really into that and basically took all her classes after that.

She helped guide me towards writing and didn’t even see that I was necessarily talented or anything like that. She just saw that I was super into it and took it more seriously than the other kids. That’s…