Variety this year published the list of 10 screenwriters to watch. A conversation with the winners will take place on October 17 at the Mill Valley Film Festival. The magazine will also honor Italian scribe Paolo Sorrentino (“Hand of God”) with the Creative Impact in Screenwriting Award.
The annual 10 to Watch program celebrates groundbreaking writers, actors, directors, comedians, animators, producers and cinematographers. Some of the writers are being honored for films that have already premiered and received critical acclaim, such as “king richard“, While others, like”Tic, Tic… Boom!, remain eagerly awaited. At least half of the films selected have had their production schedules or release dates altered by the pandemic.
The class of 10 Writers to Watch of 2021 includes eight solo winners and two pairs. Interviews with those honored in 2021 will be featured in the Oct. 6 issue of Variety.
After taking place virtually in 2020, this year 10 Writers to Watch will return to an in-person celebration in Mill Valley. The event will also include a roundtable on October 17 with the winners, moderated by Varietyis Malina Saval.
The Mill Valley Film Festival, founded in 1977, also hosted the 2019 and 2020 reception of the 10 screenwriters to watch. For the previous seven years, the event was hosted by the Whistler Film Festival.
Last year’s roster included Andy Siara (“Palm Springs”) and Emma Seligman (“Shiva Baby”), while previous years honored now acclaimed screenwriters such as Charlie Kaufman (“Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind”) ), Jennifer Lee (“Frozen”) and Julian Fellowes (“Gosford Park”, “Downton Abbey”).
VarietyThe 2021 class of 10 screenwriters to watch is listed below.
Jeremy O. Harris, “Zola”
Zach Baylin, “King Richard”
Camilla Blackett, “Queen”
Akela Cooper, “Malignant”
Randy McKinnon, “Notes from a Young Black Chef”
Steven Levenson, “Tic, Tic … Boom!”
Julia Cox, “Nyad”
Ron Mael and Russell Mael, “Annette”
Jessica Knoll, “The luckiest girl in the world”
Mikey Day and Streeter Seidell, “Home Sweet Home Alone”