Writers Lab, Funded by Meryl Streep, Returns with New Female Filmmakers for 2016

Established for women screenwriters over the age of 40 by New York Women in Film & Television (NYWIFT) and IRIS, The Writers Lab returns in 2016 once again with funding provided by Oscar winner and NYWIFT Muse honoree Meryl Streep. The Writers Lab 2016 has selected seasoned filmmakers to provide exclusive mentorship and increase opportunities while cultivating more content made by women.

The mentors attached to The Writers Lab 2016 will include: Academy Award nominee Meg LeFauve ("Inside Out"); Gina Prince-Bythewood ("The Secret Life of Bees," "Love & Basketball"); Caroline Kaplan ("Time Out of Mind," "Personal Velocity"); Mary Jane Skalski ("Win Win," "The Station Agent"), Darnell Martin ("Cadillac Records," "I Like It Like That"), Kirsten Smith ("Legally Blonde," upcoming "Expendabelles") and Gurinder Chadha ("Viceroy's House," "Bend It Like Beckham").

The Writers Lab 2016 will take place from Thursday, September 22 - Sunday, September 25, 2016 and will include twelve selected female screenwriters over 40 for a four-day intensive script development retreat with acclaimed mentors.

"After the overwhelming support we received from last year's inaugural launch, it is clear The Writers Lab is a vital step in shaping a new landscape for women," said Terry Lawler, Executive Director of New York Women in Film & Television.

"Last year's selected screenwriters are finishing rewrites under the guidance and mentorship provided by the lab, while a few scripts are currently in development," said Nitza Wilon, co-founder of IRIS. Wilon continues, "The Lab has manifested what most of us already know: Women draw limitless strength and creative power from one another. Now that's a natural sustainable energy source."

The selected female screenwriters will be announced on August 1. Submissions must be feature-length, fictional narrative scripts of any genre written by women over the age of 40, who are American citizens or permanent residents of the U.S.

The Writers Lab was created in 2015 as the only program of its kind in the world to provide script development for women writers over the age of 40, while granting a springboard to the next stage of production and expanding the boundaries of narrative film.

For more information and to submit, please visit www.thewriterslab.nyc

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