Echuca-Moama author Fleur Ferris is one of just 10 screenwriters selected for the prestigious Screenworks annual writing for TV intensive program.
You can only apply for the sought-after two-day workshop by submitting a screenplay for assessment, and the selection process is severe as the very few who make the cut will follow in the identifiable pathways to careers within the industry.
The intensive workshop, to be held in Byron Bay on September 21 and 22, will support these screenwriters to develop their TV concepts in a collaborative writer’s room environment guided by multi-award-winning screenwriter and script producer Alexa Wyatt.
She will work with the participants to enhance their scripts as well as passing on her insights into crafting TV dramas which engage audiences and have commercial appeal.
Fleur says she was “stunned to receive the email advising of my selection” because the calibre of those who have previously done the intensive has been so high.
She says they include Cassandra Nguyen, who wrote for the ABC series The Heights, Clare Sladden, who was in the script development program for NCIS Sydney, Nicole Sullivan, who now has development funding for her TV drama Unsettled, and multi-award winner Tanya Modini, who wrote The Moths Will Eat Them Up.
“Two of my six books have already been optioned for film and TV series and we are in negotiations over a third title,” Fleur said.
“Nullaboo Hullabaloo has been taken up by Astro-nomical Entertainment in Hollywood (they have recent hits such as The Nut Job and are soon to unleash Mean Margaret) and the book is set on our family farm at Bunnaloo.
“Black has been picked up by an Australian production company for a TV series adaptation, and I have had a go at writing the pilot episode. Writing for the screen is a whole new way of writing. When I write a book, I’m the only one responsible for painting the picture in the readers’ minds but in a screenplay, other creatives such as directors and actors have input to what a viewer sees and hears. A screenwriter has to allow for this.”
Screenworks’ chief executive Lisa O’Meara says they are “always impressed by the calibre of applicants for our writing program”.
“This annual initiative has consistently unearthed talented regional screenwriters and this year is no exception,” she says.
“We look forward to supporting the professional and project development for this group of regional writers and seeing where this opportunity will take them.”
Fleur says she sees screenplays as the next big step in her writing career.
Already the winner of numerous awards — the most recent being last month’s Davitt Award for Seven Days — Fleur is also working on a screenplay for a US studio on a book she didn’t write.
“Unfortunately, that project is moving slower than I’d like, but I look forward to the next stage of the process that spurs things along. There is a great team of experienced creatives attached who are a pleasure to work with,” Fleur says.
“It’s so exciting to be part of a global movie project, and I have already learnt so much, not just about writing screenplays, but also about the collaboration process with producers and directors.
“Like publishing, the screen industry is a tough one to crack. You have to develop a thick skin, but when you’re suddenly working alongside or consulting with people who have created movies or TV shows you love — that’s a real buzz.”