Here’s what going on, socially and professionally, at the Writers Guild of America West this month:
March 2021
Members must RSVP in advance to receive access info to participate in online events.
Events listed are current at time of publication. Dates and details are subject to change during the month.
Unless otherwise states within the event, committee activities and events are open to WGAW Current, Post Current, Associate, and Associate Caucus members in Active status. If you have questions about your member status, please contact the Membership Department or call (323) 782-4532
To see the live calendar, click here. (Member Login required for that, sorry.)
Monday
01
Writers with Disabilities Committee Meeting
7-9 p.m. – Zoom
Category: Inclusion and Equity Committee Meetings
RSVP: WDC 03-2021. This Committee seeks to enhance the visibility and employment of writers with all types of disabilities, and encourage, celebrate, and endorse accurate portrayals of the disabled in all areas of the media. We also serve as an expert resource for all issues related to the disabled community. You will be emailed the Zoom ID and meeting logistics on the day of the meeting.
Wednesday
03
The State of the Fourth Estate
1-2:30 p.m – BlueJeans
Category: Genre
RSVP: Genre. Presented by WGAW’s Genre Committee, this timely panel brings together a diverse group of those who work in journalism and those who adapt news for film/TV to discuss the role of the Fourth Estate in media and entertainment, covering topics like: What role do real-life stories play in the arts – and what responsibility, if any? How important is truth? And how can stories be adapted and changed for dramatic effect? How do you balance news/social issues with entertainment? What’s the role of the journalist/editor/news person as protagonist? With police stories being re-examined, are newsmen/women the new heroes? How has social media helped, hindered or polluted the role of the journalist? What is the role of the amateur journalist in today’s media landscape? Panelists: Screenwriters Mark Boal (Zero Dark Thirty) and Liz Hannah (The Post), writer Theo Travers (Billions), journalists Joshuah Bearman (Epic Magazine) and Azam Ahmed (New York Times) and Elizabeth Haggard (Vice President of Narrative Film, Participant). Moderator: Writer Jesse Peyronel (Dig).
Wednesday
03
Career Longevity Committee Meeting
7-9 p.m. – Zoom
Category: Inclusion and Equity Committee Meetings
RSVP: CLC 03-2021. The mission of the Career Longevity Committee is to advocate for writers of all ages to obtain equal access to the job market with equal opportunity for sustained professional growth. You will be emailed the Zoom ID and meeting logistics on the day of the meeting.
Tuesday
09
Native American & Indigenous Writers Committee Meeting
7:30-9:30 p.m. – Zoom
Category: Inclusion and Equity Committee Meetings
RSVP: NAIWC 03-2021. This Committee represents the professional and creative interests of Native American & Indigenous writers. It works to mentor, encourage, empower and increase the visibility and employment of writers of Native American & Indigenous heritage, and serves as a cultural and educational resource for all Guild member-writers seeking to portray Native American & Indigenous Peoples in their work. You will be emailed the Zoom ID and meeting logistics on the day of the meeting.
Thursday
11
Beyond Words 2021
4-6:15 p.m. – Zoom
Category: Writers Guild Foundation
RSVP: WGF. The Writers Guild Foundation and Writers Guild of America West, in partnership with Final Draft and Variety, present Beyond Words, our annual celebration of Writers Guild Awards screenwriting nominees. Join us for two back-to-back live virtual panels about this year’s acclaimed films. The first starts at 4:00 PM and features Original Screenplay nominees Will Berson & Shaka King (Judas and the Black Messiah), Darius Marder & Abraham Marder (Sound of Metal), Andy Siara (Palm Springs), and Aaron Sorkin (The Trial of the Chicago 7). The second panel starts at 5:15 PM and features Adapted Screenplay nominees Ramin Bahrani (The White Tiger), Sacha Baron Cohen (Borat Subsequent Moviefilm), Paul Greengrass (News of the World), Kemp Powers (One Night in Miami), and Ruben Santiago-Hudson (Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom). WGA members: Click on “WGA Member Ticket” button for your complimentary ticket to both panels.
Monday
15
Young Black Women Facing Racism, Bias – and Breast Cancer
4-5:30 p.m. – Zoom
Category: Hollywood, Health
RSVP: Young Black Women or to hhs@usc.edu. Hollywood, Health & Society presents a panel about young Black women facing racism and bias, and how this results in health disparities including breast cancer. The panel will explore how TV storylines have addressed this issue, and what more can be done. Panelists include Zoanne Clack, Executive Producer, Grey’s Anatomy; Angela Nissel, Co-Executive Producer, Mixed-ish; Tameika Fairley, Health Scientist, CDC Division of Cancer Prevention and Control; Dr. Katrina Armstrong, Physician-in-Chief, Department of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital; and Shonte Drakeford, breast cancer survivor.
Tuesday
16
LGBTQ+ Writers Committee Meeting
6:30*-9:30 p.m. – Zoom (*early start time to accommodate guest speaker on the East Coast)
Category: Inclusion and Equity Committee Meetings
RSVP: LGBTQ+ 03-2021. Open Meeting: Members can invite up to one non-WGA guest. The Writers Guild of America West’s LGBTQ+ Writers Committee seeks to utilize its constituency as a resource to all writers who include LGBTQ+ characters in their work. Its members also wish to provide cultural and educational opportunities for WGAW members to nurture an understanding of how sexual orientation and gender identity affect the lives of writers; endeavor to provide networking and social activities enabling the WGAW membership to better know one another and create a greater demand for the writing services of LGBTQ+ WGAW members; and strive to generate a greater awareness within the Guild of sexual orientation (and gender identity) as a minority and, where appropriate, to identify and advocate against instances of homophobia, transphobia and/or discrimination within our industry. You will be emailed the Zoom ID and meeting logistics on the day of the meeting.
Wednesday
17
Write Inclusion: People with Disabilities
6-7:30 p.m. – BlueJeans
Category: Writers Ed
RSVP: Inclusion. In partnership with the Think Tank for Inclusion and Equity and Storyline Partners, join us for the latest virtual panel event in the Guild’s multi-part series to unpack cultural narratives surrounding TTIE’s #WriteInclusion: Tips for Accurate Representation factsheet initiative. These talks will delve into authentic and nuanced storytelling in practice, not just in theory, examining culture creation and how we shape stories. How do content creators find the balance between creative expression and lived reality? We will also discuss the benefits of using consultants to help ensure accurate and authentic and narratives in film and TV. This panel will focus on the portrayals and representation of people with disabilities in front of and behind the camera. Panelists and moderator TBA. Presented by WGAW’s Writers Education Committee.
Thursday
18
Writers Education Committee Meeting
6-7:30 p.m. – Zoom
Category: Writers Ed
RSVP: WritersEd. This WGAW Committee brainstorms and develops events and programs, which provide WGA members with practical, inside knowledge about how the industry works and how it is changing, emphasizing tips and tools to help writers succeed. We strive to provide working knowledge for writers and invite you to contribute your ideas.
Thursday
18
Invisible No More: The Need for Intersex Stories
8 p.m. – BlueJeans
Category: Inclusion and Equity
RSVP: Intersex. Presented by the WGAW LGBTQ+ Committee. Come learn more about the next frontier in LGBTQ+ storytelling! Currently there are zero intersex characters on television. ZERO! This is a shockingly low number considering being born intersex is as common as being born a red head. Nationwide, intersex people are raising their voices, demanding to finally be heard and seen. Come hear what it means to be intersex from the leader of the largest intersex organization in the country and a diverse panel of intersex artists and storytellers. Showrunner Carter Covington, whose series Faking It on MTV featured television’s first intersex series regular character, will moderate the interactive Q&A. Panelists include Kimberly Zieselman, author and Executive Director of interACT: Advocates for Intersex Youth and artists and activists Emily Quinn, River Gallo, and Seven Graham. WGAW members plus one guest.
Monday
22
Latino Writers Committee Meeting
7:30-9:30 p.m. – Zoom
Category: Inclusion and Equity Committee Meetings
RSVP: LWC 03-2021. This committee actively represents the professional, creative, social and economic interests of Latino Guild members. Its mandate is to encourage Latino writers to become more active within the Guild; and to raise the profile and perception of Latino writers in the industry at large by creating forums that foster networking, collaboration, education, information exchange, employment opportunities and creative expression. You will be emailed the Zoom ID and meeting logistics on the day of the meeting.
Thursday
25
Money Matters: Changing the Story of Poverty, Prosperity & Opportunity
4-5:30 p.m. – Zoom
Category: Hollywood, Health
RSVP: MoneyMatters or to hhs@usc.edu. Hollywood, Health & Society presents a panel on narratives of poverty and prosperity in popular culture. We will explore new research on the topic, featuring Erica Rosenthal, Director of Research, Norman Lear Center; and Riki Conrey, Science Director, Harmony Labs; and how these topics have been, and might be portrayed in TV storylines. Panelists include Erika Green Swafford, producer, New Amsterdam (NBC); Marvin Lemus and Linda Yvette Chavez, co-creators, Gentefied (Netflix); Steven Canals, co-creator and executive producer, Pose (FX); and Anthony Sparks, executive producer, Queen Sugar (OWN).
Thursday
25
Changing the Narrative: Foster Care in TV and Film
6-7:30 p.m. – BlueJeans
Category: Writers Ed
RSVP: Foster. Presented by WGAW’s Writers Education Committee in partnership with FosterMore, a coalition to improve the future of youth in foster care, this virtual panel aims to create an increase of understanding and empathy by promoting more accurate portrayals of foster care and foster youth in TV and film. The discussion will feature writers of foster care-centric TV programming and films, not only to highlight foster care-centered storylines and characters in TV and film, but to spotlight the foster care system to Guild members, which can have a positive impact both on-screen and in real life. Panelists: Foster documentary screenwriter-director Mark Jonathan Harris, The Fosters co-creator Peter Paige, writers Michael Perri (The Blacklist) and Lia Prewitt-Martin (Family Reunion), and foster care LGBTQ+ youth advocate Rob Woronoff; additional panelists TBA; moderated by FosterMore Co-Founder Jennifer Perry.
Tuesday
30
Conversations in Genre: From Murphy Brown to Everybody Loves Raymond – An Evening with Diane English and Phil Rosenthal
6-7:30 p.m. – BlueJeans
Category: Genre
RSVP: Genre. Join us for a special evening featuring two of comedy television’s most iconic and successful writers – Murphy Brown creator Diane English and Everybody Loves Raymond creator Phil Rosenthal – who will share their experiences, discuss their careers, and the process behind some of their most memorable works, as well as offer advice for writers in navigating today’s entertainment industry. This virtual conversation will explore their own paths toward long-running careers in network TV comedy writing, creative inspirations, and how they discovered their love of comedy. Moderated by Genre Committee Vice Chair Kelly Jo Brick. Presented by WGAW’s Genre Committee.