News

1497 has selected three finalist for their Features Lab.

The Lab’s first year was held virtually, and the second year was hybrid, held virtually and in-person. For its third year, 1497 is conducting the Lab as an in-person, immersive, artistic retreat in Malibu, California, during which each Mentee will be paired with a pod of four Mentors from whom they will receive script feedback and career guidance. Mentees will also work with filmmaker and veteran script consultant Adrienne Weiss to further develop their scripts, with a particular emphasis on the emotional journey of their stories.

“We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: we started the 1497 Features Lab to empower writers in the South Asian diaspora to tell whatever stories they want to tell, regardless of the societal, industry, or stereotypical expectations that so often confine writers in our community to certain genres and cultural storylines,” Ahmed, Khan,...

1497 has revealed the finalists of its third annual Features Lab. See their bios below.

The lab is designed to elevate and develop screenplays by writers of South Asian descent, while providing career support. It aims to empower writers in the South Asian diaspora to write whatever stories they feel compelled to tell, unbounded by genre, cultural content, geographic location, or any other stereotypical expectation.

Established in 2020 by Adeel Ahmed, Lipica Shah, and Kamran Khan, 1497 has been steadfast in its commitment to championing and empowering South Asian talent, countering their historical marginalization and year preceding colonization in what is now recognized as South Asia.

Sponsored by Final Draft, the 2023 Features Lab will guide three Mentees through a comprehensive, multi-tiered journey during a five-day retreat in Malibu. This transformative process will begin with working with Sundance filmmaker and seasoned script consultant Adrienne Weiss, to bolster the refinement of their feature film scripts.

1497, the nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting South Asian filmmakers, has enlisted Mira Nair, Geeta Malik (India Sweets and Spices)and Minhal Baig (Hala) as mentors for its third Features Lab. Baig is returning after having also served as a mentor for last year’s lab, held virtually and in-person in New York.

The 2023 edition will move cross-country to Malibu for the first time, taking place Oct. 18 through 23, wherein a newly structured format each of the three Lab participants will be given a dedicated pod of experts — a filmmaker, a producer, a representative and a Lab alum — to help them with script development and career guidance. In addition, they will receive (along with seven other finalists) the latest version of software from Final Draft, which is returning as Lab sponsor.

1497 has assembled a team of industry figures descended from all eight officially recognized South Asian countries — Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, The Maldives,...

Moving Bangladesh wins $20,000 Sloan Fast Track Grant.

Projects from the UK, Bangladesh, Greece and Trinidad & Tobago were among 15 selected for Film Independent’s 19th Fast Track Film Finance Market that took place online from November 15-18, the organisation said on Friday.

The four-day programme connected participating filmmakers with financiers, production companies, agents, managers and other film industry professionals from, among others, A24, Decal, Maven Screen Media, Searchlight Pictures, Venice Film Festival, and Hollywood agencies.

Recent Fast Track projects completed include Bing Liu’s 2019 Oscar-nominated documentary Minding The Gap; Hikari’s 2019 Berlinale jury prize and audience award-winning debut 37 Seconds; Kirill Mikhanovsky...

Creative advisors include Andrew Ahn, Derek Cianfrance, Javier Fuentes Leon, Ellen Shanman.

Film Independent on Wednesday (May 5) announced the five screenwriters selected for the 23rd annual Screenwriting Lab, with four coming from underrepresented communities and half being women.

Iesh Thapar with Alien Kulture; Jing Ai Ng (Forge); Anna Greenfield (h.g.o.p.), Alfonso Johnson (The Legend of) Man-Child Kenny); and Rochée Jeffrey (Not Your Average Queen) will take part in the programme designed to provide story and career development for emerging screenwriters with fiction feature screenplays.

Film Independent is also presenting the Loyola Marymount University School of Film and...

Creative advisors include Andrew Ahn, Derek Cianfrance, Javier Fuentes Leon, Ellen Shanman.

Film Independent on Wednesday (May 5) announced the five screenwriters selected for the 23rd annual Screenwriting Lab, with four coming from underrepresented communities and half being women.

Iesh Thapar with Alien Kulture; Jing Ai Ng (Forge); Anna Greenfield (h.g.o.p.), Alfonso Johnson (The Legend of) Man-Child Kenny); and Rochée Jeffrey (Not Your Average Queen) will take part in the programme designed to provide story and career development for emerging screenwriters with fiction feature screenplays.

Film Independent is also presenting the Loyola Marymount University School of Film and...

BAFTA La is expanding its longstanding Newcomers Program for Brit arrivals in the city to include talent and industry professionals from international territories.

In its first year of expansion the support program will welcome professionals from Poland, South Africa, Australia, Israel, Korea, France, Turkey and Hong Kong. A full list of participants can be found below.

Each participant receives access to BAFTA membership events and initiatives aimed at supporting career development and the transition to living and working in the U.S.

This year’s 55 participants include 19 actors, 15 directors, nine producers, three screenwriters, two art directors, two executives, two composers, one cinematographer, one production designer, one agent and one publicist.

“As BAFTA extends its helping hand globally, we are thrilled that after 10 successful years supporting British talent in Los Angeles, the Newcomers Program now expands to include international talent,” said New Talent Committee Chairs, Sandro Monetti and Peter Morris.

“As our industry becomes increasingly global,...

Newcomers Programme to feature 31 UK professionals who have relocated to Los Angeles.

The British Academy of film and Television Arts Los Angeles (BAFTA Los Angeles) has announced the participants of its 2017-2018 Newcomers Programme.

Now in its 10th year, the programme aims to foster new global collaborations by supporting rising talent from the UK who have recently moved to Los Angeles to expand their knowledge, develop their skills, and expand their network of peers.

This year’s group contains 31 participants: eight actors, seven directors, six producers, three composers, two art directors, two screenwriters, one agent, one executive and one publicist.

These participants are divided into two groups – one that is entering their first year in the programme, and the other entering its second.

BAFTA La sees its Newcomers as the next wave of film, games, and television professionals who will go on to continue the tradition of successful collaborations between the Us and UK industries.

The Newcomers...