First year SFTV students were recently treated to an engaging workshop on “Writing With Partners,” organized by Karol Hoeffner (Director of Graduate Screenwriting) and Beth Serlin (Associate Professor, Screenwriting) in cooperation with alumna Melissa Blake (Film and Television – B.A. ’95) and her husband, writer/producer, Roberto Orci (Sleepy Hollow, Star Trek franchise). The workshop featured a panel of writers and producers from across the television landscape. Sam Chalsen (writer) and Nelson Greaves (writer) from Sleepy Hollow, and Veronica West (co-executive producer/writer) and Sarah Kucserka (co-executive producer/writer) from State of Affairs discussed television writing, the writer’s room environment and the collaborative nature of writing with a partner. Following the discussion, students broke into small group sessions where they pitched their original ideas for feedback from the industry guests. They received notes on both pitching technique and the ideas themselves.
Feedback from the students was overwhelmingly positive:
Zoe Smurr (Production – M.F.A. ’17): “I loved it–right up my alley. I even got to pitch to Bob Orci! One of the best events/workshops I’ve been to at LMU thus far.”
Alexis Franklin (Screenwriting – M.F.A. ’17): “Thank you for bringing in Veronica West and Sarah Kucserka! I especially enjoyed their open and honest dialogue surrounding women in the industry. Meeting such strong minded and dynamic women who have been through challenges that I will soon face when trying to break into the industry gives me hope that if I work hard enough, I can make it too.”
Big thanks to the industry guests for enriching our program and volunteering their time to teach our students. Learn more about the SFTV Screenwriting Program.