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It's been too long since we chatted with one of our Success Stories. We have a lot of catching up to do. We interviewed our 513th writer signed, Ryan Whittal. After joining our Top Tier program, Ryan signed with Lyra Tan of Rally Entertainment.
Firstly, tell us about yourself! Who are you as a writer & who did you end up signing with?
Hi, I’m Ryan. I’m a Canadian musical theatre nerd who likes to write character-driven, half-hour comedies and rom-coms about "lovable loser" underdogs and fish-out-of-water ensembles. I ended up signing with Lyra Tan at Rally Entertainment.
How did you meet your now rep? What was that first interaction like and how did it lead to your professional relationship now?
I shared my two-page pitch doc with Lyra through the Marketing Intensive module, hoping to gain her feedback on my materials. What I got was an extremely kind and exciting response! She initiated a Zoom call for us to discuss what I had submitted and to get to know each other. I loved learning about her background—as I often get bored talking about myself—and in all sincerity, I found her very courageous for striking out on her own to start her own management company. We took some time to reflect after our initial conversation, and during our next check-in call, we both agreed that we were a great fit. I’m inspired by the way she leads with positivity while backing it with grounded, real-life experience and industry knowledge.
From the moment you started training and/or working with Roadmap Writers, how long has it been before you secured your current representation?
It was a total of 5 months before making our partnership official.
How did (if at all) Roadmap Writers assist in getting you to this point? Do you think you could've made this step in your screenwriting career without Roadmap?
Roadmap was essential in helping me distill my projects and bio down into articulate, concise storytelling. The clarity that Dorian coaches through Pitch Prep is truly a foundation I’ll be forever grateful for; from there, I felt confident putting together my verbal pitch and presenting to execs. Terra’s Brand Clinic helped me find the right words to express who I am today as a writer while highlighting the parts of my past that led me to this point. Honestly, I’ve loved getting to work with and know Alex, Joey, and Jaime, and I truly appreciate Marisa and Tiffany for “keeping it real” from day one.
I don’t know if I could’ve made this step on my own. My ego says “heck yeah,” but my fear says “oh my god, no.” Either way, I appreciate this program and value everything I’ve learned and gained so far.
What types of stories do you write? What's your "writer brand" and how do you think that helped you attract a good match for representation?
My writer bio currently says:
Ryan is a Canadian comedy writer, performer, and alumnus of the UCLA Advanced TV Showrunning Program. His on-screen credits include Fox’s Glee and Rake, and ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy. Recently, he was the Runner-up in Roadmap Writers’ Coletta Preacely-Garcia Diversity Fellowship and earned a Broadway World Award nomination for playing Squidward in The SpongeBob Musical.
While other Canadian kids played hockey, Ryan spent his childhood inside watching sitcoms and Disney classics with his grandma. Bridging the gap from fan to performer, he lost over 100 pounds to train as a professional singer and dancer, later performing on a major family cruise line. This eccentric, crisis-filled experience inspired his ensemble comedy All Hands on Deck.
Ryan writes character-driven, half-hour comedies and rom-coms about "lovable loser" underdogs and fish-out-of-water ensembles. He proudly shares a birthday with Barbra Streisand, Kelly Clarkson, and Steve from Stranger Things.
I feel crafting this bio really helped paint a clear picture for Lyra about who she was going to meet on our first Zoom call. 🤓
Has your mindset about what you're writing changed now that you've added representation to your team? What's the biggest lesson you've learned or had to adapt to since you've been working with your rep?
My mindset feels a bit more celebratory now. Lyra has an infectious optimism that makes my approach to the materials feel joyous and playful—leaning heavily into the "play" side of "screenplay."
What do you hope your next steps are? What are your immediate goals now that you've landed representation?
My immediate goal is to connect with a producing partner or company that shares the same joy for the worlds, characters, and stories that Lyra and I do.
In 10 years, what do you want your screenwriting career to look like?
INT. PEACOCK THEATRE - NIGHT
A breathless, electrified silence hangs over the auditorium.
On stage, JULIA LOUIS-DREYFUS (comedy royalty, one of Ryan’s heroes) pulls the card out from the golden envelope.
JLD
And the Emmy goes to... All Hands on Deck!
The room EXPLODES into applause.
RYAN (me) leaps up, momentarily paralyzed in shock. He then hugs his team and jogs up the stage steps.
He takes the heavy golden statuette, steps up to the microphone, and adjusts the stand.
RYAN
(into the mic, breathless)
I used to perform on a cruise ship. If you had told me back then that getting sea-sick in international waters would eventually lead to winning Best Comedy at the Peacock Theatre... I would’ve believed you, mostly because I was severely dehydrated.
LAUGHTER from the crowd.
RYAN (CONT'D)
Thank you to my team, Canada, the Television Academy, our incredible cast and crew who kept this chaotic ship afloat, and every single person who tuned in. Keep laughing, keep steering, and never—ever—tip your cruise staff less than twenty percent! Thank you and good night!
Ryan raises the Emmy high to a roaring standing ovation and struts offstage into the wings.
FADE OUT