Updates and News
LondonSWF 2018 Dates and Deadlines Announced
We have just updated all the dates and deadlines for the submissions and announcements for the festival in 2018. You can see them on
Feedback from the 8th London Screenwriters Festival #LondonSWF17
Each year we ask our delegates what their experience was like, and here’s what they shared this year. An incredibly motivating event –
‘Withnail and I’ Script to Screen with Bruce Robinson #LondonSWF
The absurdity of his desperation was not lost on him and he then and there began writing a fictionalised account of the life of
Big Vision: How To Attract Prolific Producers To Your Script #LondonSWF
With long term careers spanning decades in the industry, producing heavyweights, Ruth Caleb, John Lloyd and Tony Garnett joined TV legend Barbara Machin at this year’s London Screenwriters Festival to discuss how prolific producers select their ongoing work. These producer’s ‘Big Vision’ has broken the mould of established drama time and again, moving drama evolution forward through the decades. How we might attract such heavyweights to our own work often begins with understanding mindset of people who produce outstanding content and what they look for as they add to their body of work.
What Paul Abbott told me
Incubating Ideas and Mental Health with Paul Abbott from #LondonSWF on Vimeo. At LondonSWF I talked to Paul Abbott. Yes, the award-winning writer of
Die Hard Script to Screen with Jeb Stuart #LondonSWF
There is nothing quite like the London Screenwriters’ Festival live script to screen sessions. To get to sit together as a community and watch our favourite films alongside their film legend creators is a treat indeed. When they tell us in person just how it was done it’s also a huge learning experience if one can suppress awe long enough to take it in.
Die Hard is an action movie that’s not only is a great film in and of itself but which defined the genre for so many films that came after and solidified careers with it’s enduring success. Now a veteran action screenwriter Jeb Stuart joined us to talk us through the evolution of this, his first action screenplay produced, and the writing choices that made it work so very well on screen.
Why LondonSWF brings so many writers together and helps keep us attempting the incredible
The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.
~ Lao Tzu
It’s been more than a month since I’ve attended the London Screenwriter’s Festival. Time really does go by too fast.
Actors And The Script: How Actors Find Their Way To Your Work #LondonSWF
Both artistically and commercially, attracting the right talent to your project can make all the difference. Actors Rebecca Root, Sanjeev Bhaskar and Casting Director Manuel Puro sat down with Screenwriter Tom Kerevan about the process of attaching actors to a project and what people look for when seeking out screenplays.
The Unbroken Short Film Prize 2017, a mental health awareness festival
Let’s talk about mental health. As creative people, storytellers who are used to inhabiting other people’s lives and sharing both their stories and our own with the wider world, it should be easy, right? Perhaps not as easy as you’d think. Like anyone else, we can find it hard to be honest about how we’re really feeling when the answer is anything other than ‘fine, thanks’ or, if things aren’t going too well, the typically understated ‘not too bad’.
Six Things You Can Do Right Now To Beat Writer’s Block! #LondonSWF
Script Consultant and educator, Pilar Alessandra joined us early in the London Screenwriters’ Festival to talk about how, even among the most employed writers in Hollywood, writer’s block can stump our writing and freeze our creative motion. If you are finding yourself blocked and can’t get to the end of a script you are likely micromanaging. Speed drafting through using the following techniques will get your story to the end and then you can go back and perfect it.
Here’s six fantastic tips from the session that you can look at right now to get your writing moving again.
“Itches to be scratched” – 9 Cool Things from John August by Kosha Engler
My first London Breakfast Club was a cracker. At 2:30pm sharp I nabbed my front row seat at Phoenix Artist Club. Good thing too – it was packed.
Thirty minutes later John August appeared in the flesh. We went wild with applause for the great man of podcast fame and oh, one or two Hollywood films. And a musical. And a few novels. And a screenwriting app, which he designed. All “itches to be scratched.”
Producers Notes: Kill Your Darlings Without Killing Your Writing! #LondonSWF
Writers Danny Brocklehurst, Roland Moore and Ashley Pharoah, and Producer Angus Lamont came together with Script Editor Karol Griffiths at this year’s London Screenwriters’ Festival to talk about the process of receiving script notes, what it feels like, why it happens, how you cope and what you gain.
Why Accountability Is Important To Your Writing Career
Picture the scene: You have an idea for a script. Fantastic! You tell yourself you will write it. Brilliant! You daydream of all
Morning Pages – 18/09/2017 by Mark Salmon
Mark Sent me this brain dump the day after the festival closed and I asked if I could share this with others and he agreed… This is his personal experienced of LondonSWF’17…
The London Screenwriters Festival is over. By the end of it, I was exhausted. It tired me because I’m an introvert. It drains me to make that much effort with so many people over that length of time.
I really enjoyed it.
Joseph Lidster & Louis Savy: Top Tips To Write Great Sci-Fi #LondonSWF
Science Fiction has, perhaps above other genres, developed a reputation for polarising audiences. But it’s true that some of the largest grossing film and TV properties (not to mention books and games) are in the Sci-Fi genre and have expanded their reach into the global psyche. It’s been said that those Science Fiction ideas which have become reality were more inspiration than prediction and there’s a truth to that. Well written Sci-Fi is stimulating the future of our society by holding a mirror up to who we are, where we might be headed, and what we could become instead.
At this year’s Screenwriters’ Festival TV/Radio writer Joseph Lidster (who writes Sci-Fi titles for all ages inc. Torchwood, The Sarah Jane Adventures, Wizards Vs Aliens and Hetty Feather) joined producer & Sci-Fi London Film Festival founder Louis Savy and screenwriting professor Bob Schultz for an in depth chat about how well crafted Sci-Fi can resonate with audiences of all kinds and to tell us their top tips for making our Science Fiction writing meaningful.
Talent Campus Reflections by Danielle Wager… Apply next time!
Talent Campus 4.0 is now open for submissions HERE. I wasn’t supposed to apply for Talent Campus this year, never mind get into
Download all the photos from LondonSWF’17
We have an ongoing archive of all the photos from our events on Flickr HERE, but you can also get them via Dropbox
The British Screenwriters’ Awards 2017
This year or the fourth time the writing community gathered together to celebrate the best and brightest among us and laud our craft,
Christopher Vogler on Making an Introduction #LondonSWF
One person who needs little introduction at the London Screenwriters’ Festival is Christopher Vogler, author and story consultant known around the globe for his
Talent Campus 3.0: Licence to Write by Iris May
Talent Campus 4.0 is now open for submissions… HERE. You couldn’t have convinced me that four days would be nearly long enough to transform
Talent Campus 3.0… Facing my fears
Talent Campus is now open for submissions HERE. LSF 2016, John Yorke day. I was sat in the auditorium, minding my own business, when
Sherlock: In Conversation with Mark Gatiss, Steven Moffat and Sue Vertue
https://youtube.com/watch?v=GhXgs5z45gk%3Frel%3D0%26%23038%3Bamp Tuesday 12th September, 6.00pm for 6.30 start, Regents University. The prolific and brilliant minds who have redefined Sherlock Holmes, Steven Moffat and Mark
Talent Campus 3.0: View from one camper Gareth Meredith
Talent Campus 4.0 is now open for submissions HERE. Before the talent campus, I found myself in a rut and questioning my own ability.
Meet Christopher Vogler with Pilar Alessandra in the On The Page Podcast
Fantastic episode of the On The Page Podcast with Pilar Alessandra and legend Christopher Vogler. Both Pilar and Vogler are appearing at the London
Legal Cheat Sheet: A Brief Guide To Writing About a Real Person
If you are writing a story about another person, whether famous or not, there are different routes to achieving your aim and not falling foul of the law.
If the person is living then the best approach is to contact them and ask for their permission. This may give rise to the subject co -operating and giving you unique access to information. Further, they may agree for you to use terms to describe your script, such as the authorised story. However, the down side is that they may impose strict terms about the script and want payment. As a rough guide, the more famous they are the greater the sum, unless they have reasons for wanting to get their story out there.
Fifteen Feet of FEAR! Firewalk for Disabled Youth… Help us raise £3,000
https://player.vimeo.com/video/231549380 Last week we ran the Talent Campus… And that included a Firewalk (www.FirewalkExperiene.co.uk) where everyone present would walk the embers barefoot for charity.
Talent Campus Successful Applicants Announced
Congratulations to the selected entrants for this years Talent Campus 3: Total Immersion programme. They are (and not in alphabetical order)… Amii Griffiths Amy
A Look At The Spec Pile: What We Saw This Year in the Lab Submissions, by @Bang2write
So, the Script Lab participants for LondonSWF 2017 have been announced …
As ever, it was VERY difficult choosing who should advance this time, so no one who missed out should feel despondent. You were worthy opponents to each of the final six!
Here’s my annual look at the entries this year overall and the various impressions and conclusions I gathered from the pile (Philip Shelley selected his own participants) … Enjoy!
Congratulations to the writers who have been selected for the Actors Table Read at LondonSWF
Drum roll please for the talented writers whose screenplays will be brought to life by actors and a director at LondonSWF… Our team
LondonSWF – 1,000 screenwriters, filmmakers, execs, producers… It’s time to ignite!
LondonSWF’17 is almost here. It’s time to commit and buckle into the rocket that is the three day Screenwriters Festival in London from September
Will Netflix be the Phoenix arising form the ashes of Theatrical Distribution?
For better or worse (I would argue for much, much better), the growth of the Internet and subsequent worldwide reliance on it have fractured the route to market for entertainment content. Cinemas are fighting for their lives.
With very few exceptions (Wonder Woman, Guardians of the Galaxy 2), each release of the 2017 Summer season has been a lackluster blockbuster. Cinemas that cling to the traditional experience – with their high operating expenses and constant assault from other entertainment options – are on the tumble.
What I Got From The Talent Campus… Rachel Paterson
Talent Campus 4.0 is now open for submissions HERE. “It would be difficult to overstate how The Talent Campus and the London Screenwriters’ Festival
One killer tip to make you unforgettable in any pitch or casual industry meeting (and in a good way).
This is just one tip I picked up from Bob Schultz when I was on his one day masterclass on pitching. When you meet
How Christopher Vogler opened my eyes by Dorothée Kuepers
What sets Christopher Vogler apart from other screenwriting practitioners and ‘gurus’ is his approach.
I have had the privilege of attending a masterclass by Christopher Vogler at a film festival in 2013. Having studied his book, The Writer’s Journey for my dissertation, this was a real treat.
Clash of the Titans…? Why The Hero’s Journey CAN be non linear… By Linda Aronson
This is funny… As those of you who have attended the London Screenwriters’ Festival will know, it’s a very friendly, inclusive festival –
Tim Roth in ‘Tin Star’: Friday, we host possibly our best Breakfast Club ever
Sky Atlantic have given us unparalleled access to their new headline cop thriller starring Tim Roth, ‘Tin Star’. This Friday… two industry heavyweights, a
