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SCRIPT
NEWS - May/June 2009
Script
is delighted to welcome two new Board members
to the team: Peter McLuskie and Mark Cunningham.
Peter
is based at the Light House, Wolverhampton, and
runs various support and development schemes,
including PLOT, a business support project for
the creative sector.
Mark Cunningham is Manufacturing Manager
for Jaguar Land Rover and brings a wealth of experience
in strategic planning and business development
to the team.
CURRENT
PROJECTS
TENacity
Forging
a career as a writer requires drive, determination
and a certain degree of staying power. TENacity
is a targeted workshop programme designed to support
writers along that path, to challenge pre-conceptions
of the industry and to identify talented writers
in the West Midlands who would benefit from further
development.
Delivered
in collaboration with ten venues across the region,
TENacity will draw on the experience
of professional playwrights, screenwriters, producers
and theatre practitioners, to offer a unique focus
on the creative process. Where possible
tying into local productions of new work, Script
will give writers the chance to learn new skills
and ways of working in a practical, dynamic environment.
Worcester
WAR
OF THE WORDS: NEW APPROACHES TO RADIO DRAMA
Saturday
23rd May, 10am-5pm
Led
by Nicholas McInerny
From
the epic to the intimate, radio drama is uniquely
placed to experiment with ideas, narrative and
storytelling tools. Using his experience
of writing over 30 radio plays, Nicholas McInerny
will examine current trends in radio drama and
what commissioners are looking for. What
new techniques are being employed and how can
writers use the medium to explore new concepts
and challenge the form?
Cost:
£50 (£45 concessions)
To
book: Visit the Radio
page
Stafford
THINKING
INSIDE THE BOX: DEVELOPING IDEAS FOR TELEVISION
DRAMA
Saturday
30th May, 10am-5pm
Led
by TV/Film Producer Claire Ingham
How
do television drama ideas get started - and how
do they make it from a scribbled one-liner to
a fully-fledged proposal, treatment or series
bible that will grab a commissioner's attention?
This day-long workshop will look at how to find,
create and develop ideas, how to present them,
how much story to tell upfront - and how to think
about satisfying the demands of different TV audiences.
The day will also include a review of the kinds
of ideas commissioners are looking for now - and
give an introduction to the key personnel at the
major broadcasters.
Cost:
£50 (£45 concessions)
To
book: Visit the Screen
page
Hereford
UNEARTHING
THE BOMB: WRITING POLITICAL THEATRE
Saturday
13th June, 10am-4pm
Led
by Alan Pollock
Alan
Pollock's recent play One Night in November
wove real events and personal testimonies
with political speculation to examine questions
of truth and choice in wartime. This workshop
will explore the use of research and documentary
elements in popular drama. How much truth,
and how much art should be employed? What
do we mean by 'political' theatre? What
kind of resources exist for the political writer?
A day of provocative discussion and practical
exercises.
Cost:
£50 (£45 concessions)
To
book: Visit the Stage
page
Birmingham
CHARACTER
INCUBATION: FINDING YOUR VOICE
Saturday
20th June, 10am-5pm
Led
by Malika Booker
Details
to follow...
Cost:
£50 (£45 concessions)
To
book: Visit the Stage
page
Stoke-on-Trent
INDEPENDENCE
DAY: WRITING FOR BRITISH FILM
Saturday
4th July, 10am-5pm
Led
by TV/Film Producer Claire Ingham, with Dan Lawson
(Screen WM)
What
kinds of feature films are currently being greenlit
in the UK? Who's funding them, and how do
you get your foot on the ladder as a new writer?
An overview of the films that have been made in
the last few years: trends, funders, writing schemes;
and how to gain access to development funding,
commissioners and producers.
Cost:
£50 (£45 concessions)
To
book: Visit the Screen
page
Bromsgrove
VISUAL
IMPACT: WRITING FOR THE SCREEN
Saturday
25th July, 10am-5pm
Led
by TV/Film Producer Claire Ingham and award-winning
novelist and screenwriter, Helen Cross
Writing
for the screen demands many of the skills a writer
uses in creating short stories, novels, radio
and theatre plays - but it also requires new ways
of visualising and thinking about plots and characters.
How difficult is it to make the transition from
prose storytelling to writing for the screen,
and what are the tricks of the trade?
Using
a mixture of film clips, writing exercises and
practical advice, this course will encourage writers
to think visually about stories, characters, delivering
information and developing a visual style.
It will also include a session with award-winning
novelist and screenwriter Helen Cross, whose book
My Summer of Love became a BAFTA award-winning
feature film. Her first original screenplay,
Stratford Road, is currently in development
with Red Room Films and the UK Film Council.
Cost:
£50 (£45 concessions)
To
book: Visit the Screen
page
to: Script, Unit 107 The Greenhouse, The Custard
Factory, Gibb Street, Birmingham, B9 4AA
OPPORTUNITIES
AND COMPETITIONS...
STAGE...
The
24 Hour Plays: Old Vic New Voices
If you're
18-25 and eager to launch yourself into the world
of professional theatre, then we want to hear
from you. Following rigorous auditions and
workshops successful applicants will have just
24 hours to prove their talent by creating engaging,
edgy theatre for the Old Vic stage. The
results will be seen by 1000 industry professionals,
family and friends.
Go to
www.ideastap.com
to apply
Deadline:
29th May 2009 (10am)
Pint
Sized Plays 2009
Following
the great success of the first year of Pint-Sized
Plays, we're pleased to say that we're now launching
the 2009 competition. Pint-Sized Plays is
your opportunity to show just how imaginative
and original you can be in a 5-10 minute play.
We're looking for plays which show that small
is beautiful and plays that use a pub situation
in the most interesting, surprising, dramatic
or funny way possible. Your play should
have a minimum of two and a maximum of three characters
and be capable of being staged in a pub, using
only such furniture that is there, but adding
any costumes, props as can be carried by the cast.
The
ten winning plays will be performed in pubs in
Pembrokshire starting this Autumn during the Tenby
Arts Festival and then in other pubs around the
county. In October, there will be a "Script
Slam" in a theatre which showcases the ten
winning plays and lets the audience vote for their
favourite.
Deadline:
30th June 2009
Further
info: www.pintsizedplays.org.uk
The
Birmingham Repertory Theatre is now accepting
submissions for two new writing programmes:
GRASS ROUTES
We are
seeking artists aged 18-30 from throughout the
West Midlands for this exciting new six month
programme. Whether you're a playwright,
a performance poet or MC, if you're interested
in writing for live performance, then we're interested
in you.
We have
a limited number of spaces on this development
programme that will give you the chance to experiment
with new forms, support you in creating new material
and give you an opportunity to showcase your work.
Meeting every two weeks at The REP, and including
dedicated help from trained professionals, the
Grass Routes programme could be the chance you
need to take your work to the next level
THE
ATTACHMENT PROGRAMME
For
many years, the REP has run a highly successful
attachment programme for playwrights, providing
writers at any stage of their career with resources
and mentoring to develop a play for our studio
theatre. This year, the attachment is changing
and expanding to reflect fully the range of opportunities
for new writing at The REP. As well as providing
tailored support for you as you develop your new
play, The REP will also provide masterclasses
in all the different areas of new writing we cover.
Over the course of the year, this group of writers
will have a chance to step outside of their comfort
zone and experiment with new ways of writing.
The programme will end with a week-long showcase
Deadline
(for both schemes): 1 July 2009
Further
info: http://www.birmingham-rep.co.uk/participate/for-everyone/writing/
or phone 0121 245 2045
A
New Voice
One-Act
Playwriting Competition 2009
The
Loft Theatre Company in Leamington Spa is launching
a competition to promote and encourage the writing
of new work, to be judged by BAFTA award-winning
writer Andrew Davies.
The
Loft is serious about theatre and aims to stimulate
interest in plays and the theatre, to give a voice
to unknown writers and to keep the spirit of local
theatre alive.
This
year we are pleased to announce a new play writing
competition. We are looking for a one-act
original play in any style.
Full
details: www.loft-theatre.co.uk/news/writers.php
Enquiries:
ad@loft-theatre.co.uk
Deadline:
30 July 2009
HighTide
Festival
HighTide
are looking to produce new scripts from emerging
writers for the fourth HighTide Festival, which
will take place in May 2010. Writers may
submit one unproduced full-length play.
Further
info: www.hightide.org.uk
Deadline:
1 August 2009
Short
or Full-Length, Kali wants your scripts
Are
you an Asian woman with something to say?
Then Kali wants to hear from you. The organisation
encourages, develops and presents high quality
new theatre writing by Asian women and is looking
for original and inspiring new theatre scripts.
Selected writers will receive dramaturgical support
to develop their script for the next Kali festival
on 2010.
Deadline:
31st August 2009
Further
info: www.kalitheatre.co.uk
STAGE
International Script Competition
STAGE
(Scientists, Technologist, and Artists Generating
Exploration) is a collaboration between The Professional
Artists Lab and the California NanoSystems Institute
at the University of California, Santa Barbara.
They are offering a prize of $10,000 for the best
play exploring themes surrounding science and/or
technology. The prize will be awarded at a public
event with distinguished professionals from the
worlds of theatre, film, science, and technology,
in conjunction with a staged reading/performance/demonstration
with a cast of professional actors. Authors are
strongly urged to avoid the stereotypes often
assigned to science, technology, and those who
engage in these disciplines, and the competition
is not open to plays written in the genre of science
fiction.
Further
information: http://www.cnsi.ucsb.edu/stage/guidelines/guidelines.html
Deadline:
15th December 2009
Sampad
International Writing Competition
An opportunity
for aspiring writers from or connected to the
South Asian Diaspora around the world.
Journeys...a
real or imagined journey, back to your roots,
homeland, or a journey of the heart.
You
can write in any style, using the theme of journeys
as a starting point: use your imagination to evoke
memories, sensations, your feelings about a journey
you have made - in your dreams or in real life
- voyage of self-discovery, back to your roots.
If you
would like to take part, call 0121 452 8899 or
visit the website: www.sampad.org.uk
for more details and an entry form
Deadline:
31 December 2009
National
Theatre Of Scotland: Call for Submissions
National
Theatre of Scotland takes theatre all over the
country and beyond, working with existing and
new venues, artists and companies to create and
tour world class theatre. We are looking for new
plays by writers who are inventive and fearless.
We want to be stimulated, challenged and excited
by writers with a strong theatrical imagination
and a nose for complex and urgent subject matter.
Further
information: www.nationaltheatrescotland.com/newwork
The
Group: Call for Submissions
The
Group consists of Equity members, whose monthly
meetings at Theatre Royal, Stratford East in London
focuses on reading & giving feedback on new
plays, both theatre, television & radio scripts
with the playwright present at the reading - followed
by an indepth discussion from all attendees, both
cast members & other members of The Group,
both actors & writers.
We
welcome submissions of new plays.
Further
information: www.thegroup-scriptreaders.com,
& contact Shenagh Govan at shenagh.govan@thegroup-scriptreaders.com
RADIO
RADIO
4 COMMISSIONING GUIDELINES
If
you've ever thought about writing for Radio 4,
take a look at the BBC's Commissioning Guidelines:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/arts/commissioning.shtml
SCREEN...
BAFTA
Rocliffe New Writing Forum 2009
Call
for Scripts
We are
accepting script submissions for the next BAFTA
Rocliffe New Writing Forum taking place at the
Broadway Cinema, Nottingham, as part of Broadway's
Festival of Screenwriting on 30 June 2009.
Further
info: http://www.bafta.org/whats-on/bafta-rocliffe-new-writing-forum,380,BA.html
Deadline:
26 May 2009
Rapid
Eye Movement
Warwick
Arts Centre is hosting this event which presents
the best in new film-making from across the West
Midlands, drawing from student work or emerging
professionals to work by some seasoned practitioners,
dramas, documentaries, animations and music videos.
If you would like to contribute a film to the
programme, please send it on DVD, Beta tape or
25mm by Friday 29th May to John
Gore, Warwick Arts Centre, The University of Warwick,
Coventry, CV4 7AL. Films must be less than
15 mins in duration.
Sir
Peter Ustinov Television Scriptwriting Award
Each
year, The Foundation of The International Academy
of Television Arts & Sciences administers
the Sir Peter Ustinov Television Scriptwriting
Award.
The
competition is designed to motivate non-American
novice writers under the age of 30, and to offer
them the recognition and encouragement that might
lead to a successful career in television scriptwriting.
Entrants are asked to create a completed half-hour
to one-hour (commercial length) English-language
television drama script for a family audience.
The
winner will be flown to New York City to be presented
with an Award and a $2,500 prize at the International
Emmy World Television Festival on November 21,
2009. The winning script will be read by
actors in front of an audience at the Festival,
and the winner will be invited to take part in
the red carpet festivities at the 37th International
Emmy Awards on November 23.
To
find out more and apply, please visit the website:
http://iemmys.tv/foundation.aspx
Deadline:
15th July, 2009
UK
Film Council
The
UK Film Council has a fund available to broaden
the quality, range, and ambition of film projects
being developed in the UK and to build a talent
driven home for writers, directors, and producers.
The First Feature Film Development Programme aims
to identify and support emerging filmmakers: screenwriters,
writer/directors, and writer-director-producer
teams who have not yet had a feature film released
theatrically or broadcast on UK television. Generally,
awards of up to £25,000 will be offered
to screenwriters or writer-directors to write
and develop a feature film.
Further
information: http://www.ukfilmcouncil.org.uk/development
BBC
Film Network
Film
Network is the BBC's short film showcase, screening
short films from new British Filmmakers, with
four new shorts every week. The site also provides
filmmakers with tools to create online profiles
and exchange tips, advice and ideas and allows
audiences to comment on and rate the films. It
also provides links to all the great online resources
that already exist through the Filmmakers Guide.
The site is currently trialing but will launch
fully in October.
Further information: http://www.bbc.co.uk/filmnetwork/
TRAINING
AND EVENTS...
Tuesday
21st May 2009
BIRD'S
EYE VIEW
Warwick
Arts Centre, 6.30pm
A selection
of the best film shorts from this year's festival
by women film-makers, including Amanda Boyle's
Pop Art, Rebecca Johnson's Top Girl
and a five-minute musical about random acts of
kindness, Like Other People Do.
Full
details: 024 7652 4524 or www.warwickartscentre.ac.uk
22-24
May 2009
Rogueplay
Theatre presents:
FINDERS/KEEPERS
RoguePlay,
the new Theatre in Residence at Birmingham's The
Custard Factory, are performing at The Factory
Theatre their new piece, Finders/Keepers.
When
is something (or someone) truly yours?
Do we
ever grow out of our childish need just to want
for the sake of it?
Inspired
by Caryl Churchill's Owners, 3 people
play dirty just to see how far they can go.
Join
them for an evening of mind games and witness
who will be bought, who will be sold, who will
come out on top and who will be left with nothing.
After
all, two's company, three's a battleground.
Tickets:
£7
Box
Office: 0844 700 0000 www.theticketsellers.co.uk
Further
details: www.rogueplay.co.uk
Tuesday
26th May 2009
EUROSCRIPT
EVENING OF GANGSTER AND DETECTIVE
Led
by Charles Harris, 6.15-9.30pm
Avoid
the biggest mistakes of Gangster and Detective
scripts. Let us make you an offer you can't
refuse!
Genre
is the best-kept secret of professional writing.
If you are having problems writing or selling
your scripts, whatever their subject matter, genre
could well be the problem. This evening
will help you clarify your genre and deliver your
story in surprising in surprising and satisfying
ways.
Cost:
£45
Venue:
London Welsh Centre, 157/163 Grays Inn
Road
Further
details: 020 7435 1330 or
enquiries@euroscript.co.uk
29-31
May 2009, 2-4 October 2009, 29-31 January 2010
WRITING
DRAMA FOR TELEVISION
3-day
residential course in idyllic Sussex
A course
designed to assist students with getting a vital
insight into the television industry as well as
provide practical and creative support on drama
scripts that are either complete or presently
being written, or concepts that are at the early
stages of development. This course is suitable
for anyone who has the desire to write a script
and needs some support in how to start!
Course
tutors are two industry executives both working,
commissioning and developing television drama.
Between them work credits include Where the
Heart Is, New Tricks, Rome, Hotel Babylon, Holby
City, Dream Team
Venue:
Tilton House, Sussex
Cost:
£395 (includes course fees, shared
accommodation, meals and refreshments throughout
the weekend)
To
book: Email nicolalarder@yahoo.co.uk
to check availability and book your place
Tuesday
2nd June 2009
RAPID
EYE MOVEMENT
Warwick
Arts Centre, 6.30pm
Screening
of films by emerging film-makers in the West Midlands
Full
details: 024 7652 4524 or www.warwickartscentre.ac.uk
22
April - 6 June 2009
THE
CONTINGENCY PLAN by Steve Waters
The
Bush, London
A double
bill of thrilling new plays from the frontline
of climate change.
Resilience
and On the Beach present an epic portrait
of England in the near future when catastrophic
climate change has led to widespread flooding.
Bristol is sunk, the east coast is next.
Can the new Tory Government save the day?
Written
by Steve Waters, course convenor for the MPhil
in Playwriting Studies at The University of Birmingham
Tickets:
£15 (£13 concessions)
Box
Office: 020 8743 5050
13-14
June 2009
ALL
TOGETHER NOW? BRITISH THEATRE AFTER MULTICULTURALISM
A
British Theatre Conference - Warwick Arts Centre
Michael
Boyd, Richard Eyre, Vicky Featherstone, Kwame
Kwei-Armah and Stewart Lee are among theatre practitioners
gathering at the Warwick Arts Centre to discuss
whether theatre should take on the role of bringing
Britain's diverse communities together.
Under
Labour, the arts were charged with challenging
social exclusion, celebrating diversity and reasserting
Britishness. But is there a contradiction
between diversity and national identity?
Should theatre foster cohesion or challenge it?
If multiculturalism is dead, should theatre be
promoting it? Is the theatre's role to encourage
tolerance or provoke outrage?
This
conference is supported by generous contributions
from Royal Holloway University of London, the
University of Warwick, and Warwick Arts Centre.
Tickets:
£100 (£50 student rate)
To
Book: www.britishtheatreconference.co.uk
Enquiries:
j.reinelt@warwick.ac.uk
25
June 2009
ILLUMINATE:
DIALOGUE
The
Art of Playwriting in a Culturally Diverse Scotland
CCA,
Glasgow (1.30pm-6pm)
Illuminate
investigates varying aspects of contemporary theatre
practice, as part of the Playwrights' Studio's
commitment to exploring and developing the art
form of theatre. Our event will be an afternoon
of debate and new thinking on the subject of cultural
diversity in Scotland's theatre industry; open
to established and aspiring artists, decision-makers,
and opinion formers in theatre writing, commissioning,
programming and casting.
Tickets:
£15 (including refreshments and
wine reception)
To
book: Email info@playwrightsstudio.co.uk
or phone 0141 332 4403
27-28
June 2009
DEALING
WITH WRITING
State
of the Nation
Workshop
Leaders: Noel Greig and Philip Osment
Weekend
workshops by the sea for every writer
Arthur
Miller's play Death of a Salesman takes
the small story of a family and through it examines
the great matter of the American Dream.
In her play Light Shining on Buckinghamshire,
Caryl Churchill reveals the historical routes
of the English opposition to authoritarianism.
Bertold Brecht's Threepenny Opera exposes
the collusion between organised crime and corrupt
politics.
What
are the new plays today that have such breadth
of vision? How can playwrights and theatre
makers approach the challenge of creating work
that addresses the great questions of the day?
How do small individual stories throw light on
our collective experience? In a society
with deep divisions, is it possible to write the
'state of the nation play'?
The
weekend will explore such questions, through a
stimulating mixture of practical writing, examination
of extant work and tutor-led discussion.
As well as for committed writers, it is also recommended
to people involved in developing work with community
groups, youth groups and students.
Supported
by New Writing South
Cost:
£175
Venue:
Royal Hotel, Deal, Kent
Bookings:
01304 367625 or info@dealingwithwriting.com
Website:
www.dealingwithwriting.com
DO
YOU HAVE SOME NEWS YOU'D LIKE TO SHARE WITH THE
SCRIPT MEMBERSHIP? If so, then e-mail
info@scriptonline.net by the end of the month
and it will go into the following month's Newsletter.
Script
asks you to note: These listings are drawn from
varying sources, all current at time of publishing.
Script
endeavours to investigate and validate all information
and opportunities listed here. We advise you to
make contact with companies before submitting
scripts.
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