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Benito Skinner tells us his biggest career power move was writing the pilot script of 'Overcompensating' at THR's The Most Powerful People in Media event, presented by History Channel. Plus, he reveals his favorite fictional media character.

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Transcript
00:00How are you feeling tonight?
00:01I'm so good. I'm literally, I love being in New York.
00:04I just moved back, so this is heaven.
00:07See, now I'm in L.A., and I kind of want to move back.
00:09You have to come. Come live with me.
00:11I would love to.
00:12Do it. I would love to.
00:13Do it, finally. We've been talking about it for long enough.
00:16Yes, exactly.
00:17Let's just do this. Move in with me.
00:18We'd have a great life, by the way.
00:20Okay, well, I'm sold.
00:21I'm messy, but other than that, totally.
00:23I can do it with that.
00:24Okay, good.
00:25On this subject of moves, what would you say is the single most important power move you've made
00:29in your career?
00:30Oh, a power move.
00:33I think finally writing the pilot script of overcompensating, I was really scared to do
00:37that, and I think a lot of people, you just tell yourself, oh, I didn't go to a school
00:43for this, or I didn't have proper training, or all these things, like limitations you put
00:46on yourself, and I was fortunate.
00:48I was around a lot of people who were like, just do it, which I think, surround yourself
00:51with people that love you and support you and are excited for you.
00:54I feel like that, but yeah, that was maybe a power-ish move.
00:58Yeah.
00:58A huge power move.
00:59I'll take it, yeah, yeah.
01:01What surprised you most about the process of kind of like bringing something to life?
01:07Oh, I think I kind of got decision fatigue, because I was like, oh my god, you also have
01:11to think of like the names of fake beer brands and stuff, and I'm like, fuck, I'm so tired.
01:16I'm like, what if these are bad and it ruins the whole show, and I have to live with them
01:19for the rest of my life?
01:20Like, my OCD was just sick, but no, I think I learned just, you know, in order to do something,
01:28like make a show, like you just have to love it so much, and love the subject matter, and
01:31love the stories you're telling, and I'm lucky that the first thing I picked was something
01:35that was so personal, and like, that I really could be like, I'll go to work for this for
01:38like, hundreds of hours, and like, I will blood, sweat, and tears this until it's perfect,
01:43but oh, yeah, a lot of work, and then you have to look cute on camera, so sometimes you look
01:48in the mirror, you've been writing a script on that, you're like, oh shit, now I have
01:52to look cute.
01:53Can I say you nailed it today?
01:54Thank you so much, so did you, you look gorgeous.
01:58Wait, when I asked Leslie, who is your favorite fictional media person, TV or film?
02:03Oh my god, who's yours?
02:05This is so hard.
02:06Tell me who yours is right now.
02:09Someone said between Carrie Bradshaw and Andy Sachs, and I was like, yes.
02:14Okay, um, I mean, I've probably seen Sex and the City all the way through like eight times,
02:19so probably Carrie, but who else?
02:23Anchorman route with Will Ferrell, or Meg Ryan.
02:30Meg Ryan, is she a journalist?
02:31She was in, um.
02:32What is she a journalist in?
02:34In, um, oh my god.
02:39Yeah, wait.
02:40We're gonna know.
02:41We're gonna, we're gonna use all of them.
02:42Look at me, Phil.
02:43Yeah.
02:43Let's go.
02:44I always ask her something.
02:45Ask the question.
02:46These are so hard.
02:47I'm like, who's like a really, I'm picturing people on their little typewriters.
02:51Murphy Brown.
02:52Lemony Snicket.
02:54I love that little bitch.
02:56Lemony Snicket has such a little attitude.
02:58And so, yeah.
02:59And I feel like that was the first time I understood like, that I would probably be on antidepressants
03:03as a kid.
03:05My relation, like how much I really enjoyed those books.
03:08And him.
03:08So maybe him.
03:10Great answer.
03:11I bet everyone tonight said Lemony Snicket.
03:13No?
03:14Good.
03:14It's gonna be my problem now.
03:16We've got Lemony Snicket.
03:16Of course.
03:17You go, well, so Lemony Snicket and Carrie Bradshaw.
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