Meet the 2022 Episodic Writers’ Lab cohort
Eight Indigenous, Black and racialized writers will participate in the 2022 Episodic Writers’ Lab.
Raf Antonio, Eva Grant, Jason Ip, Amanda Lo, Alok Narekkattuvalappil Revi, Nick West, Letay Williams, and Shirley Yip will workshop their original drama pilot scripts with the support of industry mentors and special guest speakers.
Each writer will be paired with a senior writer mentor who will provide feedback and notes on their script, as well as supervisory support for their simulated writers’ room day. Upon completing this lab, they will have a clear understanding of how a writers’ room functions, how to confidently and effectively contribute to a room, how to communicate with their Showrunner and Producers.
Going beyond learning and mentorship, the program focuses on creating a safe and affirming environment for emerging to mid-career Indigenous and racialized creatives to hone their skills and build community.
The writers selected for this program represent the future of content creation. Their unique voices and fresh, original narratives imagine new worlds and introduce us to compelling characters that reflect the diversity of who we are and could be.
A highly demanded program
We were thrilled to see an overwhelming number of submissions for the second year of this program. There is an apparent demand for learning opportunities like this one to help give writers a needed boost to getting hired in a writers room.
Andrew Burrows-Trotman (ABT)
Participants in the 2021 edition, William Koné and T’áncháy Redvers, were subsequently selected for a paid 4-week placement in the writers’ room for CBC/CW drama series, Coroner.
This year, we’re offering additional support to our participants via our Mentor-in-Residence, Andrew Burrows-Trotman (ABT). The American Film Institute alumnus, writer and consulting producer (Utopia Falls, The Porter) will share his expertise with the participants through weekly office hours.
Participants will be able to book sessions to connect, receive feedback, gain some insight on the industry, and get advice on their work and career development.
Returning as mentors for the 2022 BIPOC TV & FILM Episodic Writers’ Lab are Adam Barken (Killjoys, Rookie Blue) and Jeremy Boxen (Orphan Black, Killjoys). They are joined by Noelle Carbone (Coroner, Wynonna Earp), Marsha Greene (The Porter, Mary Kills People), Ley Lukins (Pretty Hard Cases, Saving Hope), Duana Taha (Surrealestate, Degrassi: The Next Generation), Patrick Tarr (Saving Hope, Nurses), and Nathalie Younglai (Hello Again, Coroner). Past mentors include Aaron Bala, Natalia Guled, Shannon Masters, Adam Pettle, Bruce Smith, and Priscilla White.
Guest speakers for this year are Seneca Aaron, Lindsey Addawoo, Caleigh Bacchus, Aaron Bala, Adeline Bird, Amber-Sekowan Daniels, Naledi Jackson, and Ben Watkins — with more expected to join. To round out the simulated writers’ room will be Alberta-based emerging writer Misha Maseka, in the role of story coordinator.
Introducing our 2022 participants
Alok Narekkattuvalappil Revi is a writer/director from India. He explores genre stories with an awareness of working-class struggles that are centred on BIPOC people. Alok directed award-winning short films like INSIDE, a horror short of an interracial queer couple moving into a haunted home, (premiered at IFFSA 2021).
Amanda Lo is a queer Chinese-Canadian writer and creator who champions the underdog story. Her work often explores themes of connection vs. isolation, familial ties, and grief within a metropolitan landscape. Amanda has produced short films that have screened at the TIFF and IMAGE+NATION.
Eva Grant (she/they) is an Indigenous filmmaker. With support from the CMPA’s Mentorship Program for Diverse Producers, Eva is currently working for Winnipeg-based production company Eagle Vision as an apprentice writer, director, and producer on various projects.
Jason Ip is an emerging screenwriter. Having seen very little of himself reflected on the screen, he’s writing projects that accurately reflect the intersectionality of his queer and east Asian identities. His project, Fill Me In, was selected for ACTRA’s Working the Scene in Colour table read in 2021.
Letay Williams is the creator and screenwriter of Traytown (2020), the Creators of Colour - Big Pitch at TIFF 2021 Audience Choice award winner. Letay is intentional about creating stories infused with the diverse, vibrant culture of her Jamaican heritage that resonates with a global audience.
Nick West is an abstract art-loving writer and editor from Toronto with a passion for building gritty worlds and penning face-gripping dialogue. With a background in autobiographical short stories, his stories are often rooted in real experiences and historical happenings.
Raf Antonio is a queer non-binary artist. They earned their first on-screen credits for writing two episodes of Emmy-nominated preschool series Miss Persona. Raf’s episode “I Wanna Wear…” was one of the season’s most-watched and one of the first LGBTQ+ themed episodes to air on the channel.
Shirley Yip is a writer-director who explores human relationships and cross-cultural experiences in her work. Her stories are fueled by unresolved emotions and relentless struggles formulated at the intersection of her Asian roots and Western education. Her scripts have placed in Austin Film Festival, ATX Festival and Script Pipeline.