Act One in Ft. Lauderdale

Each year, hundreds of aspiring screenwriters flock to Hollywood with scripts in their hands and stars in their eyes. This year, Hollywood is coming to them. Next stop? Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Act One, Inc., a Los Angeles-based training program for writers and other film industry professionals, is partnering with Calvary Chapel Fort Lauderdale to present the Act One Screenwriting Weekend, a conference for professional and aspiring screenwriters. The workshop, slated for November 4-5, 2005 at the church, is an intense, practical overview of screenwriting basics, the current film market, and the Christian’s responsibility to positively impact popular culture.

Participants will study the craft of screenwriting – from story development and structure to character, dialogue and screenplay format – with a panel of accomplished Hollywood professionals led by Christopher Riley, an award-winning screenwriter (After The Truth, 25 to Life, Actual Innocence), author (The Hollywood Standard), and the Director of the Act One: Writing For Hollywood program. He’ll be joined by his wife and screenwriting partner, Kathy, as well as Azusa Pacific University professor Dr. Thom Parham, a screenwriter and script consultant whose credits include JAG, Touched By An Angel, Steeplechasers, and Inside Out. Jack Gilbert, the head of Act One’s television program and former director of the prestigious Warner Bros. Writers Workshop, is also scheduled to attend.

The conference ends with an optional session on Sunday afternoon, November 6, at Calvary Chapel following the last service. The free event, which is open to the public, will feature a moderated question and answer panel with the Act One faculty members as well as a film clip screening and a discussion on faith in film. Anyone interested in the Christian response to popular culture are welcome to attend.

“South Florida’s longstanding reputation for quality and creativity in film makes it the perfect city for an Act One conference,” says Conference Coordinator Lauri Evans Deason. “And we’re thrilled to be working with Calvary Chapel Fort Lauderdale to help provide new inspiration and community for local writers who share our common goals of excellence, artistry, professionalism, and spirituality.”

The screenwriting seminar begins at 7 p.m. Friday, and continues all day Saturday. The registration fee (which includes study materials and breakfast and lunch on Saturday) is $175 for students and early registrants. After October 31st, the cost to attend is $195. Further information and online registration is available through the Act One website at HYPERLINK “http://www.actoneprogram.com” www.actoneprogram.com. Space is limited, and early registration is encouraged.

The free, open session on faith and film begins at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday.

MEDIA REQUESTS AND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Lauri Evans Deason
[email protected]
323-898-5528