Today we’d like to introduce you to Leonid Andronov.
Hi Leonid , so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I’ve been writing since childhood—short stories, poetry. Later, I decided to become a musician and devoted all my energy to that. I kept writing, but never really thought of it as a profession or even understood why I needed it. Only around the age of thirty, when my music career ended, I realized I wanted to write movies.
Since there was no film school in my hometown in Russia, I began attending playwriting seminars led by one of the country’s most famous dramatists, Nikolai Kolyada.
When my play Karma of Success won a prestigious award, I immediately started pre-production on my first feature film. It was fully self-funded; I spent five years making it and, in 2012, arrived in Los Angeles with a lot of enthusiasm—and plenty of illusions.
Since then, I’ve probably worked in every position on a film set while continuing to develop my own projects. But the industry has been changing faster than I could finish a new draft of my scripts.
Now, finally, I’m working on a new feature film titled The Yond, a psychological thriller/horror about a secret desert retreat where people can fulfill their deepest desires.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Haha, well, when I first came here, my English wasn’t perfect. I had never been to the States before, and it took time to understand how everything worked. But the biggest challenge for me personally was the cultural difference in self-presentation. In my culture, it’s not cool to talk much about yourself or your work—it’s assumed your work should speak for itself.
You can imagine how hard that was in a place where you have to pitch yourself every single day. It took me a while to rewire that part of my personality, and even now I sometimes have to push myself to be more extroverted.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
If you’re a writer, you just keep doing it. I’ve written five books—four published in Russia, and my latest, my first in English, came out this March. It’s called First Draft Survival Guide: Practical Steps from a Working Screenwriter, and it became an Amazon #1 Bestseller in Play & Scriptwriting.
I don’t pretend to be a screenwriting guru. I wrote this book as a writer myself — someone who knows exactly what it feels like to be staring at a blank page, full of doubts and ideas that don’t yet make sense. I’ve been in the same shoes as the people I’m writing for.
Most screenwriting books are theory-heavy and filled with examples from big Hollywood films, but beginners struggle with something else entirely: how to actually get through their first draft. My goal was to give them simple, practical tools to finish that messy, imperfect first version — because that’s where every great screenplay begins.
Compared to many books written 25–30 years ago, I think mine brings something fresh and relevant to today’s writers.
But above all, I’m a filmmaker more than an author. Right now, my focus is on The Yond, the film I’m developing with my longtime friend and producer Yulia Safonova. We’ve already attached cinematographer Fedor Lyass—one of the best Russian DPs now based in Los Angeles—and the amazing Jena Serbu as production designer. The world we’re building in this film is visually unique, and the art aspect plays a huge role. I’d call it an art horror—a rare kind within the genre.
I write and direct my own projects, so for me the story always starts with character and emotion, even when the genre is stylized.
Who else deserves credit in your story?
It took me a while to understand that you can’t make it in the film industry alone. You need people who believe in you. I’m lucky to have friends who’ve supported me for years. My longtime friend Igor Yisark was the first to come on board as an executive producer, and others soon followed.
My entertainment lawyer, Bianca Goodloe, has been with me through all these years—we’re now collaborating on several projects on the producing side. Max Cutler and Marianne Bourg, both great actors and my dear friends, have been there for me when I needed help.
So yes, you can’t win the battle alone. You have to surround yourself with good people—and I’m grateful I have.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://leonidandronov.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/andronovleonid
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/leonid.andronov
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leonid-andronov-bb906146/
- Twitter: https://x.com/LeonidAndronov
- Other: https://imdb.me/leonidandronov
