NYWIFT Blog

Notes from a Screenreader: Meaningful Images

Photo via Go Into the Story. A script is a story that will be told with images. It feels like that goes without saying, but spec scripts are so often crushed under the weight of their own dialogue that it bears repeating. Meaningful images are revealing, memorable, interesting to read, and space saving. To rewrite for...

Road to Muse: Meet Past Honoree Marquita Pool-Eckert

Marquita Pool-Eckert, a 1999 Muse Awards honoree, was a CBS Evening News with Walter Cronkite producer when I joined that broadcast as a production secretary in 1978. I was totally intimidated by her role on that fabled news program, but she treated me as an equal. That’s says so much about her. So, imagine my delight when I joined NYWIFT in 2011...

Terry’s Picks: December 3, 2013

Susan Sontag, Quai des Grands Augustins, Paris, 2002, chromogenic print. Photograph by Annie Leibovitz (via The Australian). Reflecting on: Susan Sontag’s thoughts on stereotypes and their negative impact on culture, highlighted this week by Maria Popova on Brain Pickings. Surprised but satisfied by: the inclusion of five women in Variety’s annual 10 Directors to Watch list....

New Member Spotlight: Imoya Monroque

The NYWIFT fall membership drive is almost over. So, it’s a perfect time to check in with new member Imoya Monroque and find out why she joined NYWIFT. Imoya, would you tell us a bit about your acting career? I am a member of SAG/AFTRA and have appeared in several national commercials and TV shows and pilots, such...

Road to Muse: Meet Our Announcer, Valerie Smaldone

“Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome…” That mysterious off-stage voice that announces presenters and honorees during awards ceremonies — it’s an actual position, listed on scripts and production notes. It’s called the VOG, the voice of god. At this year’s Muse Awards, that role will be filled by someone who’s becoming a NYWIFT favorite: Valerie Smaldone. New York Women in...

‘Monster-Fighting Feminists’

The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951). Over at RogerEbert.com, Bob Calhoun discusses the liberated women of 1950s sci-fi cinema — classics like Them! (1954) and The Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954) — and why the woman scientist archetype waned in later decades: In her October 8, 2013 RogerEbert.com piece, “Visual Pleasure and Voodoo Demographics: a Reflection on...

Weekly Film & TV News Roundup

Photo by Joe Pugliese Finally, a truly diverse actress roundtable. New York Film Academy’s article on gender inequality in film. Wow. HBO’s getting a show created by Diablo Cody and someone named Oprah. Winona is back. And starring in an action flick. Meet director Dennie Gordon, made in the USA—in demand in China! Indie producer Alison Owen controls the only...

Notes from a Screenreader: The Deep Freeze Script

Photo via Go Into the Story. Scripts that feel rote turn readers off right away even though rote scripts are written by people who know exactly what they’re doing. The plot moves forward, the conflicts are in place, the beats come and go like clockwork. Scoring high marks for plot and structure, these scripts still feel...

NYWIFT December Programs: Pitch Fest, Muse Awards + More

December programs are filling up fast so make sure to RSVP soon. Bullets, Bios, Resumes, and Interviews Monday, Dec 2, 6:30 pm, NYWIFT Offices (6 East 39th St) Learn to write, pitch, and interview for high impact. TV Pitch Fest Wednesday, Dec 4, 6 pm, NYWIFT Offices (6 East 39th St) An amazing opportunity! NYWIFT members...

Terry’s Picks: November 26, 2013

How far do we still have to go? Check out NYFA’s infographic (link below) STILL PORING OVER: This incredibly comprehensive infographic about gender inequality in film sent to us by the New York Film Academy. From pay rates and movie portrayals to awards and ages, this is a definitive tool for understanding the state of women in...

Out of 300 Scripts, Only 30 Written by Women

That number comes from a fascinating infographic created by a script reader who says they’ve covered 300 spec scripts for 5 different companies. See the full infographic. Given the record-breaking success of female-protagonist-led Hunger Games and Twilight series, we hope stats like “out of 300 scripts, only 77 had a female hero” will be changing soon. What do you think of...

L-R: Alessandra Stanley, Delia Ephron, Fran Drescher, Samantha Bee, and Whitney Cummings at NYWIFT’s Women in…Comedy panel. Photo via CINEMATIQ magazine.  Women in…Comedy: Changing Times A few weeks ago, NYWIFT brought together Samantha Bee (The Daily Show), Whitney Cummings (co-creator, 2 Broke Girls), Fran Drescher (Happily Divorced), and Delia Ephron (writer, You’ve Got Mail) to discuss the changing landscape for...

L-R: Alessandra Stanley, Delia Ephron, Fran Drescher, Samantha Bee, and Whitney Cummings at NYWIFT’s Women in…Comedy panel. Photo via CINEMATIQ magazine.  Women in…Comedy: Changing Times A few weeks ago, NYWIFT brought together Samantha Bee (The Daily Show), Whitney Cummings (co-creator, 2 Broke Girls), Fran Drescher (Happily Divorced), and Delia Ephron (writer, You’ve Got Mail) to discuss the changing landscape for...

L-R: Alessandra Stanley, Delia Ephron, Fran Drescher, Samantha Bee, and Whitney Cummings at NYWIFT’s Women in…Comedy panel. Photo via CINEMATIQ magazine.  Women in…Comedy: Changing Times A few weeks ago, NYWIFT brought together Samantha Bee (The Daily Show), Whitney Cummings (co-creator, 2 Broke Girls), Fran Drescher (Happily Divorced), and Delia Ephron (writer, You’ve Got Mail) to discuss the changing landscape for...

L-R: Alessandra Stanley, Delia Ephron, Fran Drescher, Samantha Bee, and Whitney Cummings at NYWIFT’s Women in…Comedy panel. Photo via CINEMATIQ magazine.  Women in…Comedy: Changing Times A few weeks ago, NYWIFT brought together Samantha Bee (The Daily Show), Whitney Cummings (co-creator, 2 Broke Girls), Fran Drescher (Happily Divorced), and Delia Ephron (writer, You’ve Got Mail) to discuss the changing landscape for...

Weekly Film & TV News Roundup

Still from Lucky. I got goosebumps from the trailer for NYC filmmaker Laura Checkoway’s Lucky. The WGA or Fashion Police writers—whose side is Joan Rivers really on? Conservative commentator and author Monica Crowley discusses her career, Nixon, and the hypocrisies woman journalists still face. (video) Guinevere Turner’s new project is called Creeps. I’m sold! Here are the best women in...

Wendy Williams & Andy Cohen to Co-Host 2013 Muse Awards

Wendy visits Andy at the Bravo clubhouse during season 6 of What Happens Live! (photo via Bravo). What’s better than one groundbreaking television host emceeing our 2013 Muse Awards? Two of ‘em: friends Wendy Williams and Andy Cohen have just confirmed for this year’s event. We feel like the luckiest folks in the world! Order your ticket for the 2013 Muse Awards on December 12.

Road to Muse 2013: Flashback to 1983

Meryl Streep rocks her embroidered NYWIFT jacket as a Muse Award nominee in 1983. Who else thinks we should bring back the NYWIFT jacket?! Fun fact: The early Muse Awards in the1980s often only had one honoree, sometimes two. It wasn’t until 1989 that there were three Muse honorees, and the number has grown ever...