Deadline: August 5, 2021
Applications are open for the Women Write Now Comedic Screenwriting Fellowship 2021 for Black Women. Over the course of two weeks in September, the selected writers will develop their short comedic scripts, receiving feedback and guidance from some of the biggest names working in comedy and entertainment.
During the Fellowship, the selected writers will attend workshops on how to thrive in the business, pitch, get to the greenlight, market themselves and their work, create an artful punchline, and more! Selected writers will also participate in one-on-one creative development meetings and receive screenplay feedback in order to get their short film screenplays production ready. All aspects of the fellowship program and the specific activities and benefits to be provided to the selected writers will be determined by Laugh Out Loud (LOL) Studios in its discretion and are subject to change.
Benefits
- Participation in the Fellowship with individualized mentorship and creative and professional development opportunities.
- A stipend for the duration of the Fellowship which shall include:
- US$5,000 upon acceptance into the Fellowship;
- US$5,000 upon delivery of final approved script;
- Writing and Creative Producing credit in the writer’s respective short film.
- Virtual or in-person set visit (to be determined by Laugh Out Loud) and a four-night trip to the 2022 Sundance Film Festival including flight, per diem, accommodations for writers only, and festival tickets. Such travel (if any) in connection with in-person set visits and Sundance shall be capped at US$5,000 in the aggregate.
- A First Look Deal with Laugh Out Loud.
Eligibility
Applicants must
- Identify as Black or African American;
- Identify as female;
- Be 18 years or older at the time of application;
- Be an emerging non-union writer;
- Be based in the United States and legally authorized to work in the United States.
Selection Criteria
Submissions will be evaluated with the following criteria:
- Story: The screenplay must effectively convey a rich, compelling, and comedic short-form story.
- Characters: The story must introduce interesting, nuanced, and authentic characters that are grounded within the world the writer has crafted.
- Originality: The characters, structure, and ideas must feel unique with a sense of boldness and risk.
- Comedy: Above all else… MAKE THEM LAUGH!
Application
Applicants must fill out the online application and submit a short screenplay between 5-10 pages (page count does not include the title page). When produced, the short films will be under 10 minutes in length.
For more information, visit Women Write Now.
