John Dougherty

June 2025

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Summer Movie Reviews

• Summer is here, and I have reviews of several new releases over at America Magazine! Check out my thoughts on Mike Flanagan's The Life of Chuck, Wes Anderson's The Phoenician Scheme, and the live-action remake of How to Train Your Dragon featuring quotes from my conversation with writer-director Dean DeBlois.     

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Art & Hard Times: A New Series

• Over at my Substack, Roll Credits, I'm running a weekly series this month called ART & HARD TIMES. Every Friday I'll share a conversation with one of my cool, creative writer/Substacker friends about a particular work of art that helped them navigate a challenging moment in their lives. Check out the first two installments, featuring Cameron Bellm and Alli Bobzien!

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Loving v. Virginia: Opera Review

• Something new for me: I was honored to join a group from the Jesuit Media Lab to see the new opera version of Loving v. Virginia when it debuted at George Mason University last month. It was a really powerful and timely work, and you can read my review for the Jesuit Media Lab!

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April 2025

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Podcast

• I'm on Beyond the Habit this month talking about nuns in movies, film and spirituality, and the power of stories. It was an honor to get to chat with Sisters Colleen and Erin, and to be on one of my favorite Catholic podcasts. Check it out!

 

Events

• On Sunday, April 6, I facilitated a Spiritual Writing Workshop at St. Raphaela's Center in Haverford, PA, attended by 13 fantastic writers! Keep an eye out for announcements about similar events, in-person and virtual!​

 

Writing

• In Catholic Movie Club at America Magazine, we kicked off April with Robert Bresson's A Man Escaped (1956). You can read my reflection on the website, and join the conversation at the Catholic Movie Club Facebook page!

• I had a short story, "Carcinoma," published over at the Horror Tree under their Trembling With Fear series. If you usually read my spiritual work, this is a bit different! (Assume a PG-13 rating)​​