Always a writer in one shape or form, Jonathon Stewart set off to Hollywood immediately after graduation to become a writer and director in Hollywood. He has achieved the dream after years of work and an outlook that has always pointed him to the multifaceted lives that humans lead. Find out how finding the human story—whether in a non-human animated character or the protagonist of a period biopic—all about simultaneously seeing both the whimsy and drama of life.
Guest Jonathon “Stew” Stewart, Dartmouth '96, set off to Hollywood immediately after graduation to become a writer and director in Hollywood. Without ready-made connections or a pre-determined path, he had to stumbled around in the beginning until a few observations of the sublime and the ridiculous within his own family made him take stock anew and recommit to the path he’d chosen. Embarking on a collaboration with fellow Dartmouth writer Eyal Podell ’97, he worked on a biopic script about a protégé of Frank Lloyd Wright’s before taking the plunge into a similar project on Theordore Geisel. The Dr. Seuss script, though not without its barriers to an easy road to the box office, became the duo’s calling card around Hollywood and ultimately opened doors to animated film projects and other creative initiatives that require just the tricky balance of humanity the pair have continued to perfect.
In this episode, find out from Stew how finding the human story--whether in a non-human animated character or the protagonist of a period biopic--is all about simultaneously seeing both the whimsy and drama of life…on ROADS TAKEN...with Leslie Jennings Rowley.
About This Episode's Guest
Jonathan Stewart is a screenwriter, director, and author, who—with writing partner Eyal Podell, Dartmouth ’97—has straddled big budget animation and period biopic projects, pulling both the humanity and whimsy out of such characters as Lightning McQueen, a protégé of Frank Lloyd Wright, and our own Dr. Seuess. Find out about his creative projects (as well as a very cool coffee endeavor called Java Stew) at jstew.com.
Executive Producer/Host: Leslie Jennings Rowley
Music: Brian Burrows