Writers INK Institute Invites Indian Storytellers to Participate in Feature Film Screenwriting Lab for Global Markets

First-of-its-kind, nationwide, skill-building initiative supported by
INK Global Foundation

(Mumbai, India – November 10, 2022) The Writer’s INK Institute, a nonprofit initiative incubated by INK Global Foundation, has begun its journey by launching its pilot program in the screenwriting space – The Feature Film Screenwriting Lab 2022 for Narrative Fiction. This 10-week program, taking place between December 2022 and March 2023, will select 30 up-and-coming screenwriters and filmmakers from diverse backgrounds and take them through an accelerated curriculum designed and delivered by international faculty, along with masterclasses and pitch sessions with domestic and international film industry professionals and recruitment opportunities with studios, OTT platforms, and production houses. Participants will also be provided access to talent management to ensure career sustainability, and promising lab fellows will be offered scholarships. The Best Screenwriter from the program will be provided a grant of Rs. 10 Lakhs (approximately USD 12,000).

“India has numerous multicultural stories, but unlike its international peers, India’s stories are not able to stand the test of time, quality, and depth due to lack of formal training in the art and science of storytelling,” said Lakshmi Pratury, CEO of INK Global Foundation, now expanding its programs and services to the United States. “Hence, educational initiatives in the field of creative and screenwriting are the need of the hour to take India’s stories to the global stage.” The purpose of the INK Global Foundation is to drive the INK Fellows Program and support the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations.

Writers INK aims to create a unique India-specific framework for writing education – a fully-integrated but modular Institute, delivering university-level education with industry-level application – to help build a cohort of formally-trained and diverse writers in India and ensure longevity and sustainability in their careers. The program has a conscious focus on finding unique voices, especially from under-represented communities across gender and socioeconomic backgrounds.

“With the onset of OTT platforms in India, the demand for good writers and filmmakers has skyrocketed. But there is an acute shortage of well-designed, screenwriting educational programs, due to which upcoming writers end up learning on the job. With Writers INK, we want to make global writing education easily accessible and affordable to up-and-coming or professional writers and assist them in their career development,” said Writer’s INK Executive Director Anshulika Dubey, who is an INK fellow, film producer (Mandela, Aamis), and a recipient of Forbes Asia Under 30 for her company Wishberry, a crowdfunding platform for creative artists. “We believe that great stories can nourish a society and boost cultural, creative, and economic growth. But this is only possible if we help writers build a solid foundation of great storytelling.”

Lab Directors:

Gabrielle Kelly (Executive Lab Director) – Faculty at the AFI Conservatory, Fulbright scholar in Asian media, screenwriter, producer, and global expert in screenplay labs, a mentor at the Sundance Middle East Lab, and a BAFTA member.

Cari Daly (Associate Lab Director) – An alumnus of the AFI Conservatory and Tisch NYU, faculty for screenwriting at AFI, and the Native American Media Alliance, a screenwriter, producer, and development consultant, winner of the AFI – William J. Fadiman Screenwriting Award, and the Academy Awards Nicholl Top 20 list.

Guest Speakers:

Shonali Bose (Margarita with a Straw, Sky is Pink)
Sana Amanat (Executive Producer and Co-Creator Ms. Marvel)
Anurag Kashyap (Dobaara, Gangs of Wasseypur)
Mike Reiss (The Simpsons)
Apoorva Bakshi (Delhi Crime)
Karen Tenkhoff (Motorcycle Diaries)
Wendy Calhoun (Nashville, Empire)
Jeo Baby and Jomon Jacob (The Great Indian Kitchen)
Richie Mehta, Lawrence Bowen, and Toby Bruce (Delhi Crime)
Madonne Ashwin (Mandela)
Gazal Dhaliwal (Mismatched)

Founding Team:
Anshulika Dubey (Executive Director)
Lakshmi Pratury (CEO of INK)
Sundar Raman (ex-MD of Mindshare and ex-COOIPL)
Shiv Subramaniam (ex-Aditya Birla)
Apoorva Bakshi (Producer, Delhi Crime)

Jury Members:
Sridhar Rangayan (Kashish Mumbai International Queer Film Festival)
Jyoti Nisha (Academic, Screenwriter, Filmmaker)
Jitin Hingorani (Film Festivals Director in New York & Dallas, Publicist,
Producer, Entertainment Reporter)