Race/Ethnicity (categories taken from 2017 census)

BIO -- Who you are as a writer -- what you've experienced and what you care about -- is more important than what you’ve worked on (limit 225 words)

LISTEN TO YOUR VEGETABLES & EAT YOUR PARENTS (half-hour kids' comedy; staff writer); THE ROOKIE (hr-long dramedy; staff writer); FIRSTS (comedy; writer - 4 episodes)

QUANTUM LEAP, COLUMBO, THE OFFICE (UK), BREAKING BAD, BUFFY

I like underdogs, strivers, and outsiders -- in stories and in life. Big on representing the unrepresented. I tend to write towards a darkly comedic bend, and I prefer stories that explore rippling repercussions. Also a fan of true-crime and probably watch too much FORENSIC FILES

Karol@karolruthsilverstein.com

Independent Writers Caucus (IWC) Member

This is Us, The Village, Bizzardvark, The Monkeeys, M*A*S*H

Karol Ruth Silverstein grew up in Philadelphia and moved to Loa Angeles to attend the American Film Institute as a Producing Fellow. A writer and screenwriter, she is happiest while writing in her home office (generally in her PJs) but can occasionally be convinced to leave the house for karaoke nights with her writer friends. She is a member of the WGA Writers With Disabilities Committee and sits on the board of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators-Los Angeles Regional Chapter.

Her debut novel Cursed is loosely drawn from her experience of being diagnosed with juvenile arthritis diagnosis at 13. She lives in West Hollywood, CA with her two exceptionally fluffy cats, Ninja and Boo.

Active (Full) WGA Member in Good Standing

Writers Room Experience, Script Coordinator Experience, Production Assistant / Writers Assistant Experience, On-Set / Production Experience, Acting Experience, Teaching / Public Speaking Experience

Katherine Beattie has been working in television for over a decade. She started her career at The Ellen DeGeneres Show, but quickly realized her heart was in scripted, so she quit her stable job to become a background actor. She made a real name for herself playing blurry nurses, party guests and restaurant patrons while working her way through the UCLA Extension Television Writing Program. She held various assistant jobs on series for Showtime, ABC and Freeform before landing at NCIS: New Orleans where she served as the Script Coordinator for the first 3 seasons, becoming a writer in season 4. Katherine is one of the rarest sights in any TV writers’ room – a Los Angeles native. She’s also disabled. Though she's always had Cerebral Palsy, Katherine did not have access to disabled culture or community until she was in her twenties due to negative perception of disability by those around her. As such, she's incredibly passionate about destigmatizing disability through authentic onscreen representation. When she’s not writing Katherine enjoys extreme sports like surfing and skateboarding. She is one of only a handful of competitive female WCMX riders, and is semi-internet famous for becoming the first woman to land a backflip on a wheelchair.

EileenGrubba@gmail.com

Not WGA - but part of SAG, DGA, or PGA

Spinal Cord Injury Walker, rebuilt ankle, neuropathy, neurogenic bladder, chronic bone pain, Genetic cancer syndrome

As a writer: Sold 1st screenplay (psychological thriller). Was hired to write two dramatic features. Published writer for Ability Magazine, and The Hollywood Journal. As an actor: credits include the upcoming Netflix Ryan Murphy series The Politician, HBO’s new series The Watchmen, NBC's Game of Silence, Sons of Anarchy, Criminal Minds, Bones, Fear The Walking Dead, HBO’s Hung, and many more. Film credits include the comedy Wild Oats, opposite Jessica Lange and Shirley MacLaine, and The Five Year Engagement opposite Emily Blunt.

Mary Austin Excellence in Screenwriting Award, multiple festival awards for writing, acting and producing. Nominated three times for Best Actress awards for Indie films, with three wins for Best Ensemble Cast in the female lead. My recent film Take My Hand just won four festival awards, including best film, best screenplay, and best ensemble cast. Won Art scholarship to college. Was awarded "Most Spirited Cheerleader" as a child, even with a disability, and won many awards for cheerleading through High School. Recognized by the FBI in 2018 for being an influential community leader and advocating for the inclusion of people with disabilities in the work force. Named Brand Ambassador for Global Disability Inclusion 2019, was on a judging panel with Stephen Hawking in 2016, and on the cover of two national magazines: Inspiring Lives 2018, and Ability Magazine 2017.

The Bionic Woman, The Equalizer, Criminal Minds, Law & Order SVU, My Crazy Ex Girlfriend, Stranger Things, Seinfeld, Cheers, Sons of Anarchy, The X-Files

I am an actress, writer, public speaker, and producer, with many years of experience in casting, have directed theater and films, and have been hired to write screenplays with strong female leads. I have been a working actor for 28 years, Lifetime member of The Actors Studio, and an advocate for the inclusion of PWD's in entertainment. I serve on the SAG/AFTRA National PWD Committee, and am Brand Ambassador for Global Disability Inclusion. A fighter all my life, I strive to create equal opportunity for PWD's and believe inclusion in entertainment will create a world of greater acceptance for everyone.

I was paralyzed from the waist down at age 5 after a C1-C4 spinal injury due to a vaccine, and later beat cancer caused by radiation exposure during medical battles. I also have a genetic cancer syndrome, so have mastered the art of beating cancer and want to share that hard-earned wisdom with the world.

I have 20 projects I've created in my computer! Comedy and drama. And am anxious to show audiences what REAL survivors look like, what real challenges look like, and how strong women actually behave. I dream to be a showrunner.

langleymcarol@gmail.com

Not WGA - but part of SAG, DGA, or PGA

Californication, It’s Always Sunny, 30 Rock

I’m a childhood cancer survivor, raised by a single mother in a low income home, orphaned as a teenager and spent time in several foster homes. I’m a dedicated artist with more life experience to draw from than the average person my age. I grew up watching and being influenced by John Ritter, Tom Hanks, and Michael J. Fox. I began acting at a young age, but didn’t start studying until college. I started writing as a way to create my own work, but found a passion for television writing. I’ve written over a dozen pilot scripts, short scripts that have been produced, sketch comedy, and a few features in various drafts.

Hard of hearing (deaf/cochlear implant); arthritis (hip replacements)

"Women Behind the Camera" - 4 Best Documentary Feature awards (http://womenbehindthecamera.com); "Let Them Eat Cake" - "Best Documentary Feature" Paris Independent Film Festival; author, "Great Adaptations: Screenwriting and Global Storytelling" (Routledge: NY/London, 2018)

Lifetime achievement award, Gdansk DocFilm Festival; Tribute Award "For Achievements in Independent Cinema," San Francisco Women's Film Festival. "Best International Documentary," WOW Film Festival (Australia); "Best Documentary Feature," Moondance Film Festival; "Best Documentary Film, Female Eye Film Festival (and others)

Ernie Kovacs, "black-ish," "Downton Abbey," the original "Twilight Zone," "Masterpiece Theater" (-- "Pride and Prejudice," "Les Miserables," etc.)

I've taught "Screenplay Adaptation" (--my specialty) as a Professor of Screenwriting at California State University, Northridge for many years; I gave a five-day workshop in screenplay adaptation in Bangladesh last winter; I once tried selling encyclopedias as a door-to-door salesperson in West Memphis, Arkansas while writing and directing "Beale Street" in Memphis.

I was born in Alaska, survived sexual assault at gunpoint, know what it's like to be completely deaf, hitchhiked cross-country in a Black Panther Solidarity jacket, traveled to over twenty countries, and have taught screenwriting for over two decades. I'm also the author of the novel "Sex and the Cyborg Goddess" (about sexual harassment during the era of sexual liberation - winner of the 2018 Irwin Award for "Beat #MeToo Novel of the Year") and the book "Great Adaptations: Screenwriting and Global Storytelling" (Routledge 2018). My passion is writing adaptations for film and television. I also care about freedom, social justice, equity issues, and everything that inspires poetry. (I also have to admit to my love of food - not just my love of pursuing social justice for food industry workers. Both fueled my writing and directing of "Let Them Eat Cake," filmed in twelve countries, which included both the finest pastry-makers of Paris as well as the sugar cane workers of India.) As writer/producer, my global feature documentaries won five Best Documentary awards and are available through Amazon Video Prime. If you're looking for a disabled writer, I started losing my hearing when I was a teenager and have run the whole gamut from deaf to cochlear implantee; my hips started going out and I've also experienced hip replacement surgery, with lots of stories to tell.

WGA Annual Award, 1985; WGA Joan Young Award, 2005; Columbia du-Pont Journalism Award; CableAce Awards, 1985 and 1997; others on request.

ALLEN RUCKER grew up in Bartlesville, Oklahoma and went to Washington University, St Louis, the University of Michigan, and Stanford. In the 1970’s, he co-founded the pioneering video group, TVTV, winning the Columbia-duPont Journalism Award. In the 80’s he wrote sketch comedy with Martin Mull, Harry Shearer, Fred Willard, and others, winning the WGA Annual Award for Comedy and two CableAce Awards. In 1996, he became paralyzed from the waist down via the rare neuroimmune disorder, transverse myelitis. Post-paralysis, he has written three books on “The Sopranos,” including a #1 New York Times bestseller, and a memoir of life after paralysis, ‘The Best Seat in The House.” He is currently working on a book with network programming legend, Fred Silverman. He is also chair of the WGA Writers with Disabilities Committee and the annual Media Access Awards and writes regularly for New Mobility magazine and the Christopher Reeve Foundation web site.

gissellelegere@gmail.com

Sundance Fellow (2015), Disney-ABC Writing fellow (2017), nominated for Women's Image Award for my episode of QUANTICO, "No Place is Home"(2019), best screenwriter nomination at the Miami Life Awards (2014)

Epidemiologist. Worked in biodefense. Crisis response and intervention. Biological, chemical and radiological weapons response training. Black belt in judo. Former ballerina.

The child of political refugees from Cuba, her family's history inspired a passion for human rights and politics. Gisselle also lost most of her hearing to an adverse reaction to a childhood vaccine.
Growing up deaf in a hearing world gave Gisselle many opportunities to hone her observational skills, which helped her as she moved through various careers...as a ballerina, then as a judo competitor, and eventually, as a scientist.
As a field epidemiologist, she spent a decade working in biodefense and chasing disease outbreaks across the globe. This hands-on knowledge of medicine and research shapes the scientific speculation that set her stories apart.

wordwranglet@yahoo.com

"PH*reaks: the hidden history of people with disabilities", play, co-writer\performer at Mark Taper Forum Other Voices project; "Redemption: stories from the edge", anthology, contributor; several of my plays and Readers Theatre scripts have been performed, and many of my stories have been published in writers group anthologies; various newspaper columns, letters, political and social doggerel poems.

Turner Classic Movies, limited satirical series, British\Australian crime dramas, comedy crime series, Hallmark Mysteries

Research (retired reference librarian and teacher;) voice over radio acting and Readers Theatre scriptor and director;

Have written several full length filmscripts, one with a disabled character but reader said he didn't go through some form of change such as overcoming his limitations. I won't do inspiration porn. Just as when I was an Equity actor trying out for film but a director said he didn't know how he would shoot me. When i tried out for Jeopardy years ago I won all the preshow games but those I beat got on and I didn't because, as a producer explained to me later, they can't dare put anything "negative" on air that would disturb the viewers, (My head does not move and my motions are limited. I was fully bent over for fifteen years before surgery at UCSF broke my spine on purpose and straightened me up.That made me the first man to go to San Francisco to BECOME straight.) Was in Theatre classes at Sacramento State with Tom Hanks but no longer in touch much. Currently at work on third novel (none published - haven't sought agents,) which has a disabled protagonist with my specific disability. It is magical realism story with socio-political overtones. Many of my previous works involve fantasy but not the Game of Thrones kind, more often lighthearted old Twilight Zone style. In one script Sherlock Holmes and Watson team up with H.G. Wells to go back in time to discover who really wrote Shakespeare's plays. (He was fronting for Marlowe.) In another I imagine that Jean Harlow faked her death and hid away to write romance novels, but all the parts of that script are played by actors pretending to be real movie stars of the 1930s. This was to be a limited series with follow up seasons using stars of the 1940s and then the 1950s. And Clarence Oddbody, the angel from It's a Wonderful Life comes back to get his last descendant, a disabled man, married to extend the line. Also have one involving bureaucratic wizards helping kids overcome Soulsuckers during the McCarthy Era.

The Simpsons, Seinfeld, Arrested Development

I’m a TV comedy writer who specializes in oddball characters with big personalities. Growing up, I was the clear oddball in my traditional Korean family. Not only am I the only one with dwarfism, but I’m also the only one who’s bad at math. On the bright side, my dwarfism meant that I was spared playing classical piano or violin like my siblings. Instead, I got to stay home and watch my favorite TV shows. But I truly fell in love with comedy in the 5th grade when I joined an afterschool improv program. Our troupe ended up performing at local schools and community centers, and it felt so good to have people laughing with me instead of at me. But before I could pursue a career in comedy, I had to go to Harvard, where I graduated with a ton of loan debt and a useless degree in English Literature. My saving grace was The Harvard Lampoon, where I served as a writer and editor while learning to write comedy collaboratively. After moving to Los Angeles, I won a contest with The Tracking Board that landed me my first manager, and since then I’ve set up comedy projects with directors and producers alike. More recently, I received the prestigious 2019 CAPE New Writers Fellowship.

Writers Room Experience, Script Coordinator Experience, Production Assistant / Writers Assistant Experience, On-Set / Production Experience, Acting Experience, Directing Experience, Teaching / Public Speaking Experience

Numerous Best Comedy awards internationally for a short, Whitney's Wedding, Women in Animation Mentee for Development, Top 10 Comedy Pilot UCLA, storytelling for KPCC and Buzzfeed

By show - Episodes, Frasier, Shameless, The Flintstones, Threes Company

Medical transcriptionist, xray tech, EKGs, extensive terminology, produce a Southern storytelling show with banjo and all.

Sober 4 years, fully raised a kid solo, badass women on TV, disability is a regular Jane - girl next door, etc. Edgy, metal, raised in the South - which reflects a lot of the settings in my scripts.

Tetralogy of Fallot (series of congenital heart defects)

Deadwood, the Wire, the Sopranos, the Simpsons,

When I moved to LA in 2001, I wrote a Curb Your Enthusiasm spec wherein Larry lies about having read Infinite Jest, then finds himself with 24 hours to write a treatment for an adaptation of David Foster Wallace’s 1,000-page tome. Suffice it to say it does not go well, and Larry winds up ruining the movie deal and knocking Wallace off the wagon. A friend suggested I send Wallace the script, which I did—merely addressing it to his office at Pomona College. I soon received a response printed in tiny font, on a small cutout piece of paper. Wallace said he’d sue me if it were produced. (I had clearly explained what a spec script is.) He added, however, that if I did insist on producing it, he’d like to suggest who should portray him: Michael K. Williams, aka Omar from the Wire.

I care about trying to foster and facilitate deeper connections among people, myself very much included. Orson Welles said, “That which resembles me the most interests me the least,” and I think this also guides my approach to writing. I think empathy is the foundation of being a decent person, but it’s also the lifeblood of art.

aliontheairblog@gmail.com

Not WGA - but part of SAG, DGA, or PGA

Barry, Killing Eve, You're The Worst, Veep,

Ali MacLean is from Boston but now lives in LA. Ali’s scripts have been a semi-finalist at Chesterfield Writer’s Project, Scriptapalooza, and WeScreenplay, and a finalist at IFP Filmmakers Program and the Orchard Project. Ali won the 2018 Writers For Writers fellowship, founded by Script Pipeline. She was also part of the 2015 Women in Film Mentorship program. Ali has written (mostly broad) comedy for MTV, Vh-1, POP and FOX. Her dark comedy pilot, Lady Killer, is described as Making A Murderer meets Waitress - a black comedy about women who date men in prison. Ali is also an award-winning playwright. The plays are, 'like way serious', her friends tell her. Her play She’s Not There, described as Annie Hall meets The Babadook, tackles how mental health issues can affect a relationship. It was a semi-finalist in the Screencraft Stage Play competition, has been selected for the 2019 SHE NY Summer Arts festival, and just debuted in London . She’s Not There is the recipient of the 2018 John Gassner Playwrights Award. Her play Wolves At The Door, about a family grieving after an incel fueled mass shooting, was part of the Ensemble Studio Theatre’s Winterfest and is a finalist for the O’Neill National Playwright’s Conference.

shoshannahstern@gmail.com

Media Access Award Producers Guild of America winner, GLAAD Best Comedy nominee, Peabody nomineee

My So-Called Life, Queen Sugar, Big Little Lies, Catastrophe, Sharp Objects, American Crime Story

As a writer/creator I am passionate about shining a light on underrepresented communities. I believe that representation, as important as it is in front of the camera, is just as, if not more, important behind the camera. The strides we have made with representation in front of the camera doesn’t justify the grave imbalance behind the camera. Because of this, I made sure to employ 17 deaf people in front and behind the camera over the course of Season One of This Close and Season Two will have more. As a female member of a minority community, I’ve learned that we cannot wait for other people to tell our stories. We must tell them ourselves. I believe that people gravitate toward entertainment because they want a window into someone’s life. However, if the storyteller doesn’t share the specific experience with the story they’re telling, often those stories end up focused on the storyteller’s own reflection in the glass rather than the life that is actually happening beyond that glass. Even when we have representation on the page, it’s still only two dimensional. It’s only when it is pulled off the page and made into a living, breathing world that exists all around the camera that we can call it three dimensional. It is my mission a a writer and creator to create that world.

Married with Children, The Good Place, SNL, In Living Color,, Friends, Insecure

I'm a news producer at NBC Los Angeles and a former long time hip hop morning radio host

Pavar Snipe is a comedy writer with a quick wit, dry twist and a little bit zany all in one. A writer for the 2018 CBS Diversity Comedy Showcase, Pavar enjoys creating characters with a comedic dark take on pop culture, politics and society. Her pilot Hollywood and Legal was a semifinalist in the 2017 Austin Film Festival. Besides writing comedy, Pavar is a stand-up comedian and has a long-accomplished media career. She is currently a news producer at NBC Los Angeles.

Independent Writers Caucus (IWC) Member

Twin Peaks, Game of Thrones, Sopranos, Lost, Catastrophe

The son of a former Catholic priest and nun, Michael is a Jesuit-trained Irish New Yawkuh, who grew up at a table where religion and movies were the soups du jour. He has had brain surgery ten times, twice involving a power drill to the skull, which may explain his ambivalence toward the medical profession, but also his love of horror movies and black comedy. A world traveller, Michael has cage-dived with Great White sharks, ridden an elephant through a rubber tree forest, kissed the grave of Oscar Wilde, and climbed two mountains on two separate continents - on crutches. His love of art, particularly Frida Kahlo’s, has led him from drawing to modeling, giving way to a greater empathy of how we see ourselves and how others see us. He’s learned everything about love from Charlie Brown’s pining for the Little Red-Haired Girl, everything about courage from his Uncle Peter, the only FDNY chief ever killed in the line of duty, and everything else from Samuel Beckett’s “Waiting for Godot”, which confirms Michael’s greatest belief, “If we’re all going over the edge, and we are, shouldn’t we hold hands on the way down?”

marcmuszynski@gmail.com

Legally blind - Stargardt's Macular Dystrophy

Writers Room Experience, Script Coordinator Experience, Production Assistant / Writers Assistant Experience, Acting Experience, Directing Experience, Teaching / Public Speaking Experience

I'm loving The Good Place, Veep and Catastrophe right now. I'm also a sucker for Mystery Science Theater 3000

Computer programming/web development. Is Dungeons and Dragons a skill? In college, I was a nude model for art classes until one of the students had a garage sale and all my friends bought embarrassing drawings of me.

Marc is a writer, comedian, game designer and Duolingo Spanish attempter who, despite being legally blind, once convinced someone to let him fly an airplane. He most recently wrote an episode of ABBY'S (NBC/Mike Schur) while working as the writers' assistant. Before moving to LA, Marc toured the country performing comedy and eating BBQ. His videos for BuzzFeed, Funny or Die and Honest Trailers have over 40 million views, mostly from his mother. He loves history podcasts and being the positive one in the escape room.

I have paid scriptwriting experience writing short scripts for kids and teens for The Arts and Learning Conservatory, a children's theatre company in Orange County.

NBCUniversal Media Scholarship Recepient (2018)
My short script FILTER placed in the Austin Film Festival (2015) and Fresh Voices Screenplay Competition (2016). My TV pilot SPOKES OF LOVE placed in Screencraft's Bahamas Screenwriters' Residency Program.

The Secret World of Alex Mack, So Weird, Tru Calling, Haven, Black Mirror, Sense8, Once Upon a Time, 12 Monkeys, This Close, Interrogation (web series), American Gothic (1995 version)

When I was 10 years old, Thomas Lynch put me behind the camera and let me film a few scenes on Nickelodeon's The Secret World of Alex Mack during the series finale. That influenced my decision to pursue TV writing many years later. Living in Canada and Poland as a young teenager for various physical therapy programs has also influenced who I am. As a queer disabled writer, I am drawn to writing supernatural/sci-fi/fantasy TV dramas (and sometimes thrillers) that reflect a multifaceted, intersectional disability experience. I am passionate about creating three-dimensional queer disabled characters that are devoid of trite stereotypes.

Independent Writers Caucus (IWC) Member

Project Involve Fellow (Film Independent), Anderson Center Fellow, Rotary International Ambassadorial Scholar, BBC Radio/Graeae Theatre's New Writers Residency (England)

Grey's Anatomy, Sopranos, Alias, Special, Master of None, Broad City

ASL coach (film, TV, & stage), water aerobics instructor, exercise physiologist, logistician (Outward Bound), barista & cook, actor, producer, British Sign Language consultant for CONSTELLATIONS, expert body language reader, public speaker, community college teacher, screenwriting & playwriting instructor

I am a writer/actor. Growing up Deaf in a hearing world has endowed me with a unique worldview. Deafness is a fascinating paradox because it can be considered a disability or culture, rich with its own language and customs. Therefore, I relate to cultural minorities and people with disabilities because I am part of both groups. As a writer, it is important to me to have authentic representation onscreen and it is my goal to help improve diversity and inclusion on-screen.

Jenn Lloyd & Kevin Bonani

Yes - Ehlers Danlos Syndrome, hypermobility type

The Golden Girls, Pen15, Police Squad, Get A Life, Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Amy Schumer, Sarah Silverman, Joan Rivers...

Jenn: Painter, artist, photographer, solo world traveler, double jointed oddity. I once worked in a chewing gum factory.
Kevin: Singer, guitarist, P90x enthusiast, cat lover with a very impressive T shirt collection and a vast knowledge of TV show trivia.

Lloyd & Bonani are passionate about inclusion and representation. Kevin grew up with his mother battling the effects of Lupus. The illness would sadly claim her life. Jenn also grew up with a chronically ill mother. Though her mother lived 63 years without a diagnosis. It was only when Jenn herself became seriously ill that doctors determined she, her mother and many members of her family suffered from the connective tissue disorder, Ehlers Danlos Syndrome. Given our experiences, we would love to shine a light on those living with chronic pain, chronic illness, disability and undiagnosed conditions. We aim to do this with humor, and show these characters and families as fully realized human beings with faults, humor, and empathy.

Jenn has traveled to 28 countries, 40 states and 6 continents. She’s passionate about dog rescue, having recently returned from Harbin, China where she helped rescue dogs from the meat trade. She accompanied 8 dogs on their freedom flight to Los Angeles to find forever homes.

noah.a.waters@gmail.com

Not WGA - but part of SAG, DGA, or PGA

Attention Deficit, Atelephobia, Learning deficient , PTSD, Anxiety, depression, diabetic

Jenji kohan , Kurt Sutter, Damon Lindelof

I am a filmmaker originally from Jacksonville, Florida. However, I can honestly say that I have been all around the world, literally. I have served in the US ARMY as well as a mercenary for multiple different private military outfits. I am a thirty-second-degree Master Free Mason, a knighted member of the Knights Templar, and a knighted member of both York and Scottish Rites. As a combat Vet I am member of Veterans in Film and Television (vftla.org/veteran/noah- waters-iii) Most people would say that I am pretty young to have done or experience all of that. But that was by design actually. You see I knew at a young age I was meant to tell stories, but I didn’t know what that meant. I did not come from an artistic family or part of the world/states. All I knew was that if I was telling a story, it helped if I was drawing from my own memories. So, I have purposely lived a life that would put me in the craziest of situations and give me a plethora of “Wow” experiences for my “memory pallet”, with which to paint my stories with.
I trained in Tallahassee Florida for Film and Theatre with a concentration in Directing actors and stage/screen writing. I have a education background in Writing and Directing for stage and screen, also I perform as a stand-up comedian. Suffice it to say my background is as diverse as it is sporadic.
Two of the most important things to me are professionalism and politeness. I pride myself on being intriguing, but more importantly someone people want to work with. I like to have a good time and making sure those around me are doing the same. I have found that actors on set and writers in the writer’s room work best when they enjoy the experience and as I have already indicated I love collecting experiences. I like to work with people who have a similar outlook.
Most of my stories deal with characters whom are facing some cognitive dissonance and I think that is because of my background and empathy for that life experience of making ethical and moral decision under extreme stress, I just have a knack and an empathetic approach to telling those stories with very emotional and personal details.
I love telling stories and I love working with positive, polite, and professionals whom are the same. Because of that I pray we can work tighter! Have a lovely day!

virtic@artiststudioprods.com

BREAKING BAD, SEX AND THE CITY, SNOWFALL, ALL IN THE FAMILY

I love writing genre drama, horror and procedurals. I write Indie features but ready to move into TV. My film LIGHT IN DARK PLACES just won Best Short in Vegas and will be premiering at LA at Outfest. Some of my writing and producing credits are HINDSIGHT, WILL UNPLUGGED and ON TOUR. Studied violin. My parents are from a small town in South Carolina. Sang in church & Philadelphia All Girls Choir. Graduate of Tisch (NYU). I’ve worked as a club promoter! Oh those party nights! First writing job was the short MINUTES ‘TIL TOMORROW (music by Madonna). Actress on THE SHIELD, WITHOUT A TRACE & ALL THAT. I was the Oscar Press Guide Manager for the Academy Awards responsibilities included the Red Carpet (Arrivals).

My film ON TOUR premiered at The 70th Venice International Film Festival library and was shot using the iPhone 3GS. I have a strong theater background. I am currently producing MOVING ON: THE 2019 ONE ACTS OF EST/LA, which runs through the month of May. I continue to work in theater and am a Board Member of the Classical Theatre Lab. I am a member of SAG-AFTRA . I was accepted into the CTDI, ABC’s inclusion database headed by DMA. I have original scripts and specs for TV.

The Wire, Breaking Bad, The Americans, Twin Peaks, The Twilight Zone, The West Wing, Sports Night, Community, 30 Rock

a little Spanish & Japanese, a smattering of Welsh

I keep writing about the marginalized. Multiple degrees and even a fair amount of praise for my work haven't overcome discrimination but I'd write about this regardless. The system is broken. I write a lot about broken systems and the people who have to survive them. Hypocrisy is my white whale, probably. My work mines the friction between the unspeakable truth and the norm that tries to bury it (perpetuating it when it's evil, punishing it when it's human). I let the issues face off and see where they lead, as long as the result is honest. Story is part of this but not all of it; great cinema illustrates some core thing we don't name, a dream in the mind of the audience that can move people and even change the status quo. That said, snappy dialogue a specialty. I was obsessed with the problem of narcissism a few years before it became a national discussion. That's "honor killings" as much as Hillbilly Elegy.

Feature specs: dictator-employed Dominican playboy (true story), single mother's American Nightmare (true story), 2 female psych students drawn into murder case, millennial werewolf comedy. Feature hires: woman's life with the Mafia, Pacific Islander horror movie. TV/web pilots: Always Sunny meets Timeless, TV news staff's secret Jewish-Muslim affair, adorable strike team, Being Human parody.

ronniewkonner@gmail.com

stroke-in a wheelchair-no cognitive deficits

Escape from Dannemora, I'm. Sorry, Pen15

Cook,arranged a home library according to size and color, principal for school of gang kids

My life can only. be explained as eclectic. Going to school after two kids, studying abnormal psychology, after a masters degree worked in a series of mental hospitals which prepared me for writing by giving me a unique perspective on Human behavior.

As a writer, Jonathan works with a single purpose: to entertain as many people as possible, understanding this is a privilege, something he respects more than anything. He writes without ego and can work in a group or alone, with the perspective that ALL films are collaborations that ultimately have one job, to entertain an audience. Writing primarily sci-fi and animated scripts, he loves to explore high-concepts that he then keeps grounded with dynamic characters. He finds his ideas from IP in public domain, like his newest script, Lily White, which is the story of Snow White’s daughter, or completely original ideas like the world in his graphic novel and script, Earic. Having written numerous scripts, he has won or advanced in more than a dozen screenplay competitions but continues to hone his craft everyday with the belief that it can always be improved.

thechrisfrisina@gmail.com

Cognitive (Congenital Aural Processing Deficit)

Recents: Ozark, Patriot, Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan, Gomorrah, Bodyguard, Atypical, Narcos Season 1, True Detective Season 1; Others: Homeland, Dead Wood, The West Wing, Sopranos, Justified, The X-Files

Former government contractor for DOD, CIA, DOS specialties included logistics, QRF, targeting, counter extremist messaging, Middle East/North Africa; Coach Softball, Soccer, Ice Hockey, Golf; Former CFO/Head of a digital video studio;

I got the screen writing bug in college when I studied under John Michael Hayes (To Catch A Thief, Peyton Place, etc.) I went on to the USC School of Cinematic Arts but left when I got an agent when HBO Films optioned my feature script “Hungry For Love” (sadly, it didn’t get made). Since then, I’ve produced 3 indie movies, had 2 films premiere at Sundance and got my chops in TV production starting in 2009 at Reveille Studios (Masterchef, The Office, etc.) where I helped establish their first in-house digital studio. From 2011-2015, I was CFO and Head of Production at an indie Hollywood studio where I produced 30+ cable TV and original digital series. From 2015-2017, I led strategy and content production for a pilot program at the US Dept. of State to create counter ISIL and terrorist messaging. My first job out of college was with a consulting firm as part of a small team who did the logistics for the 1991 Gulf War (located 550K US troops to Saudi Arabia and supported the coalition that expelled Iraqi forces from Kuwait.) Inertia led to becoming a contractor for various three letter government agencies. I’d planned on changing gears when my wife was pregnant with our second daughter in 2001, but then 9/11 happened and it was all hands on deck. So, I continued to beat up my mind and body until I pretty much broke down in 2008. That’s when I began pursuing a career in TV and film, in earnest. Today, I love coaching my kids’ sports teams and passing on what I’ve learned about being a good teammate. I married my (incredibly understanding) wife over 20 years ago and we’re doing our best to raise three kids in L.A. (18 in college, 17 at a full time tennis academy and 9 just chilling in 4th grade). I currently work with the National Technical Institute for the Deaf to advance deaf & hard of hearing talent & culture in Hollywood

The New Twilight Zone, story editor; Alien Abduction, writer/producer; Brothers, staff writer (Showtime); The Wedding Dress, writer-producer-director; Who's the Boss?; Amen; Perfect Strangers; Ringling Bros. Revealed, writer-director.

I've consulted for the Chilean Government and Australian film funds,;taught in Cuba, Venezuela, Italy, France, Spain; done everything in TV but put the iron oxide on the tape (though I don't use tape anymore), including field producing for reality shows; and taught thousands of aspiring writers that writers should write about something important. I mostly write about the relationships people have with others and what makes those happen and what makes those fall apart - and always with humor.

I'm a Harvard economist and corporate America refugee; I've had every weird job ever, including soliciting precious metal dental scraps from dental offices.

MA Arts Journalism, Thesis: The Social and Cultural Significance of A Different World

Not WGA - but part of SAG, DGA, or PGA

Futurama, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Psych, Scrubs, Rick and Morty, 30 Rock, Seinfeld, Parks and Rec

1. Military Technical Advisor (film and TV) 2. Former repo man 3. former private investigator (was licensed by the Department of Homeland Security)

Disabled Navy veteran; 9/11 NY & DC military 1st responder; OEF & OIF. Screenwriting mentorship alumnus and counselor for WGF's Veterans Writing Project. Specialize in IP/true story feature adaptation & 1/2hr comedy.

@jameyjean on Twitter, @swellonwheels on Instagram, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VphnswmMs2Q

I am a competitive WCMX rider (WCMX is like skateboarding, but for wheelchairs)

One year, I made more money in game show winnings than I did working

Favorite quote: “Disability is not a brave struggle, or ‘courage in the face of adversity.’ Disability is an art; it’s an ingenious way to live.” – Neil Marcus, disabled artist & activist

A Seattle native, Jamey Perry moved to LA to become an actor…and instead became a paraplegic. It was the death of one dream, but the birth of many more, even better dreams.

The first gift of Jamey’s disability was her discovery of the sport of WCMX, which is a combination of skateboarding and BMX…but for wheelchairs. And only a year after she first began to train, she become the first-ever Women’s World Champion in the burgeoning sport. WCMX is a stigma-destroyer for wheelchairs, and Jamey feels very lucky to have discovered it so early in her disability journey.

The other gift was that Jamey turned to writing as a coping method. And after a year working on commercials as maybe the only PA in town in a wheelchair, one of Jamey’s scripts was discovered by a production company who helped her develop and pitch it. In the midst of pitching, Jamey gained representation at Gersh. A few months later, Jamey was hired as the writers’ assistant on the NBC show, LINCOLN RHYME: HUNT FOR THE BONE COLLECTOR, where Jamey’s bosses rewarded her hard work with the opportunity to co-write episode 109 of the 10-episode series. The cherry on top? Going to set in New York as a writer, to cover the finale episode.

Jamey hopes to be officially staffed on a TV show very soon.

THE LIZZIE BENNET DIARIES, interactive series, producer/writer. SKIN&EARTH, scifi drama, co-creator/in development

2-time Interactive Emmy Winner for THE LIZZIE BENNET DIARIES (2013) and DIRTY WORK (2012). Sundance Fellow.

Star Trek, Battlestar Galactica, The Wire, The West Wing, Twin Peaks

I wrote one of the first Twitter novels in 2007. One magazine called me "The Epic Poet Of Twitter."

I original started in the theater, went to film school, and then took a left turn into interactive media, alternate reality games, and transmedia storytelling. I’ve worked a lot with public domain material, and its given me a lot of experience with IP development, adaptation, and worldbuilding. I love translating classic and beloved stories in new, surprising ways -- in both form, style and genre. I’ve learned that regardless of format, be it traditional or new media, story is the most important thing; it’s what engages people and keeps them coming back for more. I’m also keenly interested in the intersection of large scale worldbuilding with intimate, emotional stories. I love scifi and fantasy, and while the course of my career has taken me in a lot of different places, I find that I’m gravitating back towards it these days. I’ve only recently learned that I’ve had a learning disability that went undiagnosed for my entire life, and it’s changing my understanding of, well, everything. It makes sense that a lot of my work has concerned characters who feel out of step, disconnected from their society, trying to figure out how to find their place in the world and to feel more comfortable in their own skin.

wendy.jane.cohen@gmail.com

Independent Writers Caucus (IWC) Member

My email / phone: wendy.jane.cohen@gmail.com / (774) 994-7148. My Manager: Adréana Robbins, Bohemia Group, a.robbins@bohemiaent.com

My desire would be for my disability NOT to be listed publicly, but CONFIDENTIALLY, I am a writer with autism.

MAD MEN, the 1970s thrillers of Alan J. Pakula, Jordan Peele, MINDHUNTER, dark comedies like CORPORATE.

Research and detail-driven extraordinaire with encyclopaedic knowledge of 60s and 70s politics, civil rights, and the Watergate scandal.

Wendy Jane Cohen grew up a stone’s throw away from the Kennedy compound on the idyllic shores of Cape Cod Massachusetts, where her Nixon-sympathizing father encouraged her love of historical fiction, obsession with the Watergate scandal, and deep distrust of humanity. After attending Emerson College, she was hired as the first Writers PA on “Mad Men,” where she learned how to make screwdrivers and helped oversee the show’s research staff. She then served as a Development Assistant for The Black List, covering industry and awards Q&As throughout Los Angeles. A published poet, her work also has appeared in several literary journals.

A magna cum laude graduate of the prestigious screenwriting MFA program at the USC School of Cinematic Arts, she writes historical and political dramas about the corruption of power, because if the past has taught us anything, it’s that people never seem to learn from their mistakes.

She is repped by Bohemia Group.

Ayla Harrison grew up in the backwoods of Tallahassee, Florida, and her life was a series of near-death experiences from the moment she was born. A rare retinal disease caused her to spend three months in an ICU, and she lost more than half her vision before age one. Daughter to a disability rights activist father and a mother of Cherokee-Choctaw heritage, Ayla was a plain girl with a bad ten-dollar haircut. An easy target for bullies, she was once forced to eat a bug. Undeterred, Ayla spent summers learning to hunt deer. Expected to study medicine in college, Ayla chose to pursue theatre. After college she re-located to Washington DC where she taught inner-city youth a class on hip-hop and Shakespeare. She experienced a DC ER first-hand due to stopping a student fight—a chair was thrown across the room. Ready for a new challenge, Ayla moved to LA when she was accepted into UCLA’s MFA Playwriting program. But ninety miles outside the city, she flipped her Corolla in the middle of the desert. A barbed wire fence saved her life. Later, as a college professor, she survived going completely blind, stalking, and gun violence. As a result, Ayla tries to make every minute count.