WGI Mentorship for Black Irish Screenwriters
As part of our commitment to develop diverse writing talent the Writers’ Guild of Ireland, with the support of Fís Éireann’s Screen Stakeholders Funding Scheme, are pleased to announce the WGI Mentorship for Black Irish Screenwriters scheme.
The scheme is an opportunity for six emerging diverse script writers who aspire to work in the feature film and television sectors to receive one-on-one mentoring over six months. The mentors will be Celia Morgan (EastEnders), Amanda Farley (BBC, Sky) and Erika Clark (ACLU).
WGI are looking for emerging talent with demonstrable ability to participate in the inaugural scheme. The six chosen writers will receive:
- Six hours of one-on-one mentoring over 6 month period
- One session on pitching and networking delivered by Chair Jennifer Davidson
- 1 Year’s free membership of Writers’ Guild of Ireland
- Priority access to WGI events and workshops
Each of the six selected mentees will be mentored over six months in one-on-one sessions with a highly experienced industry mentor. Each participant’s mentorship sessions will be tailored to their own needs and the goals that they set with their mentors. The emphasis of the mentorship will be on career and creative ambitions, rather than only focusing on specific project development.
As well as their individual mentorship calls, the scheme will include group sessions from industry speakers and valuable networking opportunities.
The Mentors
Lead Mentor:
Celia Morgan is best-known for EastEnders, Horrible Histories, Biff & Chip and Jamie Johnson FC. Celia has a Master’s degree in Writing for Stage and Broadcast Media from Central School of Speech and Drama. She also completed the Writing the TV Pilot Short Course at the NFTS Scotland where she wrote her popular pilot script SANDRA’S GIRLS.
Celia won the Triforce Writerslam, in association with Amazon Studios, in 2019 and subsequently gained coveted places on the Channel 4 Screenwriting Course in 2020 and the BBC TV Drama Writers’ Programme in 2021.
Celia has written episodes for shows on CBeebies, CBBC, BBC One, Sky Kids and Netflix. As well as working on existing shows, Celia has a number of original dramas in development.
Amanda Farley is an Assistant Producer and Assistant Script Editor working across scripted content, with a focus on drama and comedy. Consistently regarded as a creative and versatile team player with over five years’ experience of nurturing and developing writing and performing talent for broadcast. Passionate about diversity and creating compelling and exciting content that reflects different sectors of society.
Erika Clark is a storyteller who creates content meant to inspire and engage global audiences. She has written, packaged, and sold to major Hollywood television and film production companies. She served as the Director of Communications for the largest affiliate of the ACLU where she produced and directed several multi-media projects for state-wide and nationwide audiences. She is a Magna Cum Laude graduate of Amherst College and a distinguished graduate of the American Film Institute (AFI) Masters of Fine Arts screenwriting fellowship program. Erika has a lifelong love for storytelling that inspires positive social change.
Who can apply
Applicants must be 18 years or older.
Applicants do not need to be a member of WGI.
The scheme is aimed at Black/Black Irish writers who feel they could benefit from the mentorship scheme.
Applicants do not need any scriptwriting credits and should have no more than three produced credits.
Applicants must be resident in Ireland.
The writer’s potential to benefit from this mentorship at this point in their career will be a key part in the decision making process.
The scheme will run from April to September so please ensure you have availability to participate in the scheme during these months.
To apply
Please submit the below documents to [email protected] by 5pm on March 7th.
A one-page synopsis of an idea that you would like to develop. (PDF format)
A sample of your writing up to 5 pages. (PDF format)
A personal statement (500 words max) which tells us why you want to do the scheme and what you hope to get out of it. Please include name, email address and mobile number in this document. (PDF format)
Please include WGI Mentorship for Black Irish Screenwriters scheme in the subject line.