A simulated television writer's room providing valuable insights into
how a show is developed.
In 2019, Cinespace was supported by Film Victoria to run the DIVERSITY WRITERS' ROOM program.
This simulated television writers' room experience provided an opportunity for emerging screenwriters identifying from diverse backgrounds to develop skills in show plotting, and to learn how to work collaboratively within a television writers' room environment.
Selected participants viewed the first season of a pre-existing television show before the workshop, and then during the workshop the writers' room storylined a hypothetical second season, and plotted story beats as an outline from which they could start to write the first episode of that hypothetical season.
This activity addressed the need to bring more people from culturally-diverse backgrounds with professional skills, knowledge and attitudes into the mainstream industry, as working screenwriters, to represent a more true and diverse reflection of Australian society.
Our Principal Partner is Film Victoria, through the Early Career Skills Development Program.
Showrunner Jane Allen
The Diversity Writers' Room will be facilitated by experienced television writer JANE ALLEN (The Secret Daughter, Love Child, Cleverman, Janet King, Crownies). Jane is one of Australia's most sought-after writer/producer/script editors working across network and premium cable television with more than 140 hours of crime, mystery, science fiction and drama to her credit. Jane has recently returned from a five-month fellowship in Antarctica as research for her latest project. In 2018 she was selected by Film Victoria to participate in the MediaXchnage Showrunner Program and in 2014, Jane was selected for the prestigious Scribe Showrunner initiative through Playmaker Media which resulted in her writing and script producing the second series of Nine Network's hit series Love Child.
