World Conference of Screenwriters Report

Last weekend a delegation representing the Irish Playwright and Screenwriters Guild attended the historic first World Conference of Screenwriters in Athens, Greece. It consisted of David Kavanagh, Chief Executive of the IPSG, Audrey O'Reilly, Chair of the Board of Directors, and screenwriters Mark O'Halloran and Lauren Mackenzie.

The event brought together all of the members Guilds and Unions of the Federation of Screenwriters in Europe (FSE) - who initiated the project - and the members of the International Affiliation of Writers Guilds (IAWG). Approximately 160 people attended the two-day event, from countries as far apart as Israel, Canada, New Zealand, and Brazil.

The conference tackled its subjects with intense energy, even when faced with intimidating issues such as bi-lateral trade agreements.

What quickly emerged is that while screenwriters in other countries may operate under different agreements with producers and directors, there is a commonality of experience which bridges the cultural divides.

In particular, most screenwriters and Unions encounter issues to do with how credit is attributed to the writers of films; the process of writing treatments and drafts and the manner in which they are subjected to critique; coping with the advent of digital media; the globalisation of the industry and the rights that multinational corporations are attempting to co-opt; and finally the hope writers have for their future based on being the creative source for a good script.

Sometimes the mood in the room became despondent or strained, as people from various groups tried to communicate their frustration and fears, but in the end it was overtaken with a serious determination for screenwriters to remember their strength as the originators of material, and the power of collective action. Screenwriters are not powerless, and it's not impolite to ask for fair treatment. As the American screenwriter Frank Pierson said, in a video clip to the audience: "Take it easy, but take it."

When the conference concluded the FSE and the IAWG issued a joint Declaration, and also a Joint Activity Programme.

The conference was a good first start, and already there is a suggestion of another meeting in two year's time to carry on the action, and conversation.

Douglas Hyde Conference 2009

The Irish Times reported yesterday on the Douglas Hyde Conference 2009 that took place last weekend in Roscommon. Its theme was Culture and the Economy: Creativity and Innovation in Post Boom Ireland

The piece quotes from several of the conference speakers, such as Garry Hynes, founder and director of Druid Theatre Company, poet Alice Lyons, and our own David Kavanagh, chief executive of the Irish Playwrights and Screenwriters Guild.

Create n Innovate

Create 'n' Innovate '09 is a conference going on in Belfast from 11-12 November 2009 that will include presentations, panels and workshops highlighting and exploring ideas and good practice in creativity and innovation, and its importance for our future.

Speakers and panellists from across the UK - keynote from Feargal Sharkey, CEO of UK Music, and panel discussions with creative practitioners, representatives from the business sector, educators, researchers and policy makers.

An amazing array of 12 workshop and presentation sessions where you will be stimulated and challenged – led by people such as Baba Israel, New York hip hop emcee, poet and beatboxer who now runs Contact Theatre in Manchester; Cathy Hunt from Australia who will present the development of Australian indigenous art; Stephen Feber who will be creative about the amazing new Heartlands development project in Cornwall; Marek Banczyk who has worked on a development strategy for Poznan, a "second city" in Poland; Jan Runge, one of the authors of the recent "Creativity in Europe" report; Venu Dhupa who will challenge us on our understanding of what these words mean; Sharon Taylor who will look at the relationships between creative professionals in schools; Raj Isar who will take examine some of the assumptions sometimes made about the successes and failures in this area; and Pia Alebrad from TILLT in Sweden which works on projects where artists are based in everyday workplaces.

Information on how to join the conference is available on the web site.

Douglas Hyde Conference 2009

The Douglas Hyde Conference 2009, called "Culture and the Economy, Creativity and Innovation in Post Boom Ireland", is taking place 16 - 18 October, in the Abbeyfield Hotel Conference & Leisure Centre in Ballaghaderreen, Co. Roscommon.

While creativity is most evident or pronounced within the arts sector, in any sphere it is the characteristic essential to the development of new solutions. The lateral thinking, multiple intelligences and problem solving skills central to the arts and all the creative industries represent the same creative thinking employed in technology, the environment, education or industry - creativity is the quality that allows the next new step to be conceived.

Not only is it important that we continue to value the creative sector, but perhaps now, in the current climate, it is vital that we look to the creative sector and better examine the benefits culture, creativity and innovation can bring to our society, and to our economy.

The Douglas Hyde Conference brings together thinkers, academics, artists and political leaders to investigate the potential of the Creative Economy.

Some of the speakers include Martin Cullen, Minister for Arts, Sport & Tourism; Mícheál Ó Súilleabháin, Chairperson, Culture Ireland and Director of Irish World Academy of Music & Dance; Una McCarthy, Head of Festivals, Street Arts & Spectacle, The Arts Council; Sarah Glennie, Director, Irish Film Institute; Garry Hynes, Director, Druid Theatre Company; and Alice Lyons, Poet and Visual Artist

Details on fees and the application process are available on the web site.

Berlinale 2010

The online application system for the Berlinale Talent Campus (February, 13 - 18, 2010) is now open.

The Berlinale Talent Campus is a creative academy and networking platform for 350 up-and-coming filmmakers from all over the world that runs alongside the Berlin Film Festival. It offers a variety of activities, including workshops and hands-on training, for emerging talent within the film industry.

Read the qualifying criteria carefully before applying.

Applicants can edit their data at any time until the deadline of October 7, 2009.

Podcast Direction

Those of you who couldn't attend the recent "Give Me Direction" screenwriting conference organised by the Bord Scannán na hÉireann/the Irish Film Board will be delighted to know that the IFB has released podcasts of four panel discussions, which can be downloaded from the web site.

Theatre Forum Videos

Theatre Forum has its own YouTube Channel, which includes videos of interviews, discussions, and panels from its annual Conference last month, which had as its subject "The Way Through".

Conference Update

Today's events at the Give Me Direction conference have been cancelled.

Due to unforeseen circumstances, Mr. Shane Black, who was expected to attend the screenwriting conference GIVE ME DIRECTION today, is unable to attend the event due to issues with his passport in LA airport yesterday.

Mr. Black was scheduled to give a public interview this evening at 5.30pm in the Light House Cinema which has now unfortunately been cancelled. Both Bord Scannan na hÉireann/the Irish Film Board and the Jameson Dublin International Film Festival would like to take this opportunity to apologise for any inconvenience caused to those who had purchased tickets for this event. Registration for the conference will now take place on Friday morning at 9.15 in the Shelbourne Hotel.

Commenting on these unfortunate circumstances Mr Black said "I've been working on the planning end of many a similar conference, and am all too aware of the inconvenience that a no-show guest inflicts upon the people who've been kind enough to sponsor his trip. This error on my part, though inadvertent, shows a terrible lack of forethought. I call upon what remains of your goodwill and please convey my apologies to those that bought tickets to attend."

We hope to work with Mr. Black in the future and should another event be organised at a later stage, those that had tickets for this event will be prioritised with regard to ticket allocation.

Get Direction Today

The final line-up of the Give Me Direction screenwriting conference, which starts this evening, has been announced. The even is organised by Bord Scannán na hÉireann/the Irish Film Board (IFB) in partnership with the Jameson Dublin International Film Festival (JDIFF) focusing on the how and why of writing for the screen. Both the Huston School of Film & Digital Media and the IADT are also sponsoring panels at the conference.

Confirmed international and Irish guests for the event include Hollywood legend Shane Black (Lethal Weapon), Paul Fraser (A Room for Romeo Brass, Somers Town), Eran Kolirin (The Bands Visit), Jim Sheridan (In The Name of the Father, Get Rich or Die Trying), Conor McPherson (The Eclipse), Damien ODonnell (East is East, Heartlands), Tanya Seghatchian (UK Film Council), Pat McCabe (The Butcher Boy, Breakfast on Pluto), Roddy Doyle (When Brendan Met Trudy), Kirsten Sheridan (In America) and Mark ORowe (Boy A, Intermission). Actors Michael McElhatton (Whistlerblower, Spin the Bottle) and Eileen Walsh (Eden) will also take part in a showcase of new Irish cinema, reading scenes from Memorabilia written by Kevin Barry and currently in development with the IFB.

GIVE ME DIRECTION will champion great and original writing for the screen, and is an opportunity to deepen the IFBs engagement in addressing industry concerns. The conference will follow an informal, mixed format of sessions, screenings and interviews: plus a preview screening and rehearsed read-through.

The event will include a public interview with Shane Black, plus a wide-range of informal discussions and sessions. Amongst them we have DONT GET WEIRD ON ME: a debate on the limitations and realities of arthouse and commercial cinema; LIVE LONG & PROSPER: a hard headed discussion on making a living as a scriptwriter: GRAB EM BY THE THROAT: a focus on how to get the best out of your collaborators; and MONGRELS: a conversation on what it takes to move between formats as a writer with input from a range of writers with a background working in of theatre, film, and TV.

A full list of the schedule is available on the web site.

Tickets for the event are sold out.

Extra Direction

Bord Scannán na hÉireann/the Irish Film Board (IFB) in partnership with the Jameson Dublin International Film Festival (JDIFF) have added extra tickets to their screenwriting conference entitled Give Me Direction due to popular demand.

Confirmed guests to date include Shane Black (Lethal Weapon), Shane Meadows and Paul Fraser (A Room for Romeo Brass, Somers Town), Eran Kolirin (The Band's Visit), Conor McPherson, Neil Jordan, Pat McCabe, Roddy Doyle, Kirsten Sheridan and Mark O'Rowe.

The conference runs from 4-5 June, and the mix of screenings, talks and panels will take place at the Light House Cinema and the Shelbourne Hotel. A ticket costs €40.

Theatre Forum Conference

The Theatre Forum's Annual Conference is taking place from 10 - 11 June in the Wexford Opera House. Curated by Belinda McKeon, the theme of this year's conference is "The Way Through."

The conference schedule and booking forms are available via the web site. Payment must be submitted to Theatre Forum by Friday 5 June to guarantee a place at the conference.

CBI Conference

Those writing for children should mark on their calendars the annual conference by Children's Books Ireland, which takes place from 16-17 May in the National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin.

Tackling the pertinent theme of Challenge and Change in Children’s Books, this year’s speakers will bring a huge wealth of knowledge and expertise to the table, promising an exciting weekend of discussion and debate.

On the home front, Ireland is well represented by the talents of Celine Kiernan (The Poison Throne), Andrew Whitson and Caitríona Hastings (An tSnáthaid Mhór), Orla Kenny & Mary Branley (Kids' Own) and Eoin Colfer (Artemis Fowl, Airman), who will close proceedings on Sunday in conversation with Robert Dunbar.

From the UK, CBI is delighted to welcome illustration expert Martin Salisbury (Play Pen), award-winning authors Patrick Ness (The Knife of Never Letting Go) and David Almond (Skellig, Jackdaw Summer), as well as writer and publisher Verna Wilkins (Tamarind Books), who will present this year’s Ibby Ireland session.

Making perhaps the longest commute ever in the history of CBI conference speakers will be the celebrated Australian author and illustrator Shaun Tan (The Arrival, Tales from Outer Suburbia) who makes his first visit to Ireland especially for the conference.

Give Me Direction

Bord Scannán na hÉireann/the Irish Film Board (IFB) in partnership with the Jameson Dublin International Film Festival (JDIFF) have announced a new screenwriting conference entitled Give Me Direction.

Attended by a mix of Irish and international guests, GIVE ME DIRECTION will be an opportunity to champion great and original writing for the screen and to deepen the IFB's engagement in addressing industry concerns. The conference will follow an informal, mixed format of sessions and interviews: plus a rehearsed read-through and a preview screening.

Confirmed Guests:

• Shane Black (Lethal Weapon)
• Shane Meadows and Paul Fraser (A Room for Romeo Brass, SomersTown)
• Eran Kolirin (The Band's Visit)
• Conor McPherson (The Eclipse)

More guests and further details on the sessions will be announced shortly

Book your places on the JDIFF web site now. Places are strictly limited and tickets will be issued on a first-come, first-served basis.

When: 4th—5th June 2009

Where: The Light House Cinema & The Chester Beatty Library

Time: 4th June 16.30—21.00 / 5th June 9.30—18.00

Tickets: €40

Gender Conference in UK

The Stage reports that the Sphinx Theatre Company in London is hosting a conference entitled "Vamps, Vixens and Feminists - The Elephant in the Room" to debate issues around the employment and representation of women in theatre, film and television.

It's funded by the Arts Council England, and is being organised in collaboration with industry bodies, including Equity and the Writers' Guild of Great Britain.

Sue Parrish, artistic director of Sphinx, said the introduction of the Gender Equality Duty in 2007 - which states that public bodies must take steps to pro-actively promote equality between women and men - had presented an “opportunity to raise these issues and be heard”.

She said two years since the directive came into force, ACE was still in the process of implementing the Gender Equality Duty, and added: "The event seemed like a wonderful opportunity for professionals from different parts of the industry to get together and really discuss what is going on and what might be done."

The conference will feature contributors such as playwright Tanika Gupta and Katherine Rake - the chief executive of gender equality campaigning body the Fawcett Society.

Parrish said that she had deliberately avoided inviting political figures, including Equality and Human Rights Commission chair Trevor Phillips, because she did not want to hear "a lot of empty rhetoric from politicians who are having to make a fairly bland statement".

The conference will be made up of a number of panels, including one that will address cultural and historical female stereotypes, led by Manchester University professor Vivien Gardner. Other panels will focus on writers, with contributions from Writers’ Guild president David Edgar and screenwriter Tracy Brabin, and actresses, led by Kate Buffery, who has been at the forefront of an Equity campaign to address the inequalities faced by older female performers.

The conference will take place in the Olivier Theatre at the National on Tuesday, June 16 from 10am until 1.30pm. Places are free and can be booked by emailing info@sphinxtheatre.co.uk or by calling 020 7401 9994 by Friday June 5.

Screenwriting the Future

De Montfort University in Leicester is hosting a one-day seminar on TV screenwriting on Saturday 7th March 2009 at the Leicester City campus, and the focus will be on Fantastic Writing - science fiction, fantasy and magic: Writing the future, the past and other worlds.

Confirmed guests include James Moran (Doctor Who, Torchwood and Spooks), Phil Ford (Sarah Jane Adventures, Dr Who and Torchwood), Stephen Volk (Afterlife) and Graham Joyce - winner of the World Fantasy Award, the British Fantasy Award, the Angus Award and the O Henry short story prize. Graham has also written screenplays for Hollywood studios and is currently commissioned to work on the story line for the computer game DOOM 4.

Stephen Volk created and was lead writer of the award-winning ITV drama series Afterlife starring Lesley Sharp and Andrew Lincoln, called 'terrific television' (The Guardian) and 'Unmissable' (Mail on Sunday). A BAFTA-winning screenwriter, his TV and movie credits include Ken Russell's Gothic, Octane, Shockers and the notorious, almost legendary, BBC 'Halloween hoax' Ghostwatch.

Event organiser and course leader for the unique MA, Christopher Walker says "This is a rare opportunity for scriptwriters of all levels, from complete beginners through to those who have already had some success in the industry, to hear from industry professionals - there are two keynote speakers and two question and answer panels. Events like this are usually restricted to London so it's a way of giving opportunities to writers from the East Midlands to meet with industry professionals, network and get inspired to boost their writing careers."

A place on the course costs £65 per person including lunch, refreshments, and parking, and can be booked via the web site.

Austin Round-Up

IFTN has posted the diary of new screenwriter, Eilis Mernagh, from her time pitching and networking at the Austin Film Festival.

Screenwriters who are considering attending Austin's four-day conference — which provides access to A-list producers, studio executives, agents and managers, screenwriters, and filmmakers — will find the article useful.

New Media, New Audience?

The Irish Arts Council has organised a working seminar, entitled New Media, New Audience?, on November 25th in Dublin Castle. The event is designed to discuss how new social networking technologies can help promote the arts.

"The Arts Council is pleased to bring together national and international experts from the arts, social media and broadcasting in this one day working seminar to explore the ways in which artists and the public are adapting and adopting new ways of producing, presenting and promoting the arts.

This seminar is open to artists, organisations and policy makers interested in the potential that new media has on the way in which they work, and in the way it can attract and broaden audiences.

The event is free, but registration is essential, and must be completed via the web site.

Maura McHugh, the webmaster and blogger for the Irish Playwrights and Screenwriters Guild, will be participating at the seminar.

Berlinale 2009

The deadline for applications for the Berlinale Talent Campus 2009 (7-12 February) is the 8th October, 2008.

Since 2003, the Berlin International Film Festival has encouraged young filmmakers from all over the world and all professional fields to apply to the Berlinale Talent Campus. Over 350 of them are invited to Berlin each year to reflect on their ideas about film in lectures, ateliers and panel discussions, and to work on their projects in specialized hands-on workshops.

Tapping into the unique atmosphere of a great film festival, the Campus takes place simultaneously with the Berlinale. It brings together aspiring talents and experienced film professionals for a six-day program that touches on essential issues of filmmaking such as story development, cinematographic styles, production models and new markets.

To qualify you must be able to answer yes to the following questions:

• Have you worked on a short film that was awarded a prize?
• Has your work screened at an international film festival?
• Have you worked on a film of at least 60 minutes in length?
• Are you a film student in your final year or in a post-graduate programme?

Applicants can also opt to apply for intensive training during the Berlinale, such as the Script Station.

This is a hands-on training programme for screenwriters participating in the Berlinale Talent Campus To be considered for this project, complete the online application to the Berlinale Talent Campus here. The application deadline is October 8, 2008.

For the Script Station, 10-12 feature film projects are selected. The screenwriters participate in one-on-one feedback sessions with internationally renowned script consultants. During the Berlinale Talent Campus, personal sessions with these experts are arranged to provide you with concrete feedback and guidance and help you to further develop your script and its presentation.

The application process is entirely online, and further information is available on the Berlinale web site.

BCI 2008 Conference

The Broadcasting Commission of Ireland (BCI) has announced details about its National Conference, which will take place from Wednesday 17th - Thursday 18th of September, in the Croke Park Conference Centre, Dublin 3.

Entitled "Does the Medium Matter?" and chaired by broadcaster and journalist Claire Byrne, this year's conference will address the themes of digital and new media from a variety of standpoints. A host of national and international speakers will explore the challenges of content delivery across increasingly diverse platforms and will examine the implications for providers and consumers.

On the theme of digital delivery, speakers in the session include Lucy Gaffney, Chairperson, Boxer DTT; Alex Pumfrey, Programme Director, Digital UK and James Cridland, Head of Future Media and Technology, BBC Audio and Music Interactive.

The area of new media has been a source of consideration and debate for practitioners and citizens alike, particularly in terms of how emerging and emergent technologies can and do interact with more traditional media forms. Speakers for this session include Jonathan Marks, media anthropologist; and Philip Macartney, Head of Sales, Bebo Ireland.

2008 also marks the 20th anniversary of the 1988 Radio and Television Act, which heralded the beginning of commercial radio and television in Ireland. This year's conference will look at the growth of radio and television in Ireland in the intervening years and examine the future implications for the sector through a panel debate. A number of workshops linking in with the conference theme will complete the conference line-up.

Information on how to register your interest in the conference is available online.