I once again joined the National Screenwriters’ Conference, held for a second time on Victoria’s spectacular Mornington Peninsula, as a mentor in the micro-mentorship program. Run by the Australian Writers’ Guild, the conference provides an inspiring forum for emerging and established screenwriters to meet and discuss current trends in the industry. This year’s guest speakers included: SHAMELESS creator Paul Abbott; Oscar-winning screenwriter of DEAD POETS SOCIETY, Tom Schulman; Oscar-nominated screenwriter of SHINE, Jan Sardi; and writers of Oscar-winning films MASTER AND COMMANDER, John Collee; and MOULIN ROUGE, Craig Pearce.
The local line-up includes Tony Briggs, Keith Thompson (THE SAPPHIRES) and Kris Wyld (DANGEROUS REMEDY) who will speak about adapting fact into fiction, Rick Kalowski (AT HOME WITH JULIA) hosts a session on how not to write a sitcom, Michael Cordell (GO BACK TO WHERE YOU CAME FROM) examines how to craft compelling factual television, and Andrew Knight (RAKE) and Debra Oswald (OFFSPRING) will look at the rise of comedic drama.