Michael Mackenzie

Michael Mackenzie writes and directs for film and theatre. His feature film (director and writer) ‘The Baroness and the Pig’ (prod. Media Principia) will be released later this year. Other scripts he has worked on as co-writer/script-doctor include Robert Lepage’s ‘Polygraph’ and the soon to be released ‘The Favorite Game’ (based on Leonard Cohen’s novel, prod. Cine Qua Non). His plays have been translated into French, German, Italian, Spanish, Hungarian and Czech, and this season (2001-2002) he had professional productions in Budapest, Stuttgart, Portugal and Toronto; upcoming productions include Prague, Berlin and Mexico-City. He has directed theatre productions in Toronto, Montreal and New York, has worked with Robert Lepage as dramaturge, and as coordinator of the Playwriting Program at the National Theatre School of Canada.
He has a Ph.D in History of Science; past appointments include Visiting Fellow at Princeton University and Consultant at the United Nations. His publications on technology policy have been variously translated into French, Spanish and Portuguese.

The Workshop

The workshop will focus on the practical craft and discipline of writing a screenplay with some discussion of the theories of feature-length screenwriting, plot-development, etc. The substance will be divided into two parts.

First, character and scene development - devoted to evolving credible and engaging characters and the craft of writing both action and dialogue to create convincing scenes. Second, plot and story development – the structure of the screenplay, what constitutes a workable plot, how to generate and use a plot outline. All this will be done with specific reference to the participants' material.

In addition, after assessing the goals of the workshop participants, a small amount of time may be devoted to developing verbal-pitch techniques for film projects, and finding/dealing with agents and producers.

All participants will have their material reviewed and discussed both in individual tutorials and group sessions (script/story conferences), with a view to shaping it for an eventual screenplay. It is expected that participants undertake additional writing, re-writing, and plot revision in the course of the workshop.

Applications and Submissions:

Applicants are invited to submit the following material, as early as possible:

1. A one-paragraph story outline of the script you intend to work on during the workshop;

2. Approximately 12 pages of written material from your script, drafted for a screenplay (i.e. the usual elements of action, dialogue, etc.) including at least 3 scenes.

3. A page or less indicating the aspects of scriptwriting that have been giving you the most trouble and/or which you wish to hear discussed.

4. A completed Application Form (send email request).

The successful applicants will arrive at the workshop with the above material, plus at least an additional 10 pages. Workshop participants are also encouraged to bring anything else, such as music, images (photographs, reproductions of paintings) that has fuelled their creative process.

Applications and samples of work should be sent to mss@thewritingmill.org

If you have further questions, write to: mss@thewritingmill.org

Cost:


The cost for the seven day workshop, which includes full board and lodging and ground transport in Majorca, is 900 euros, excluding flights.
Deposit, payable on registration : 300 E.

Deadline for submitting completed applications, is JUNE 30th.

Late entries only considered if there is still room. We take a maximum of nine participants, so apply early!

Early registrants are offered a 50 euro discount. If you and your work are accepted into the workshop by June 15th, you pay only 850 euros.