Category: WilWrite26 Film Track

  • 11:30AM – 1PM Sunday Belmont A/B/C: Brunch Keynote and Goodbye

    Join us for a special brunch conversation with New York Times Bestselling Author, Rosanne Parry, and Top Literary Agent Fiona Kenshole. They’ll discuss Rosanne’s road to New York Times Bestseller, with over 40 weeks on the NYT List. Listen in as they discuss the joys, heartaches, and revisions that paved her path. We’ll end with a special wrap-up just for you, focusing on your next steps in your writing career.

    About Rosanne Parry

    Rosanne Parry grew up in Oregon loving its rainy days, wild places, and many libraries.  She is the author of eight novels for young readers, including the NY Times best sellers A Wolf Called Wander and A Whale of the Wild which have been translated into more than 14 languages. Her next novel will be A Horse Named Sky–another Voice of the Wilderness book. Look for it August 29th, 2023. Rosanne is a bookseller at legendary independent bookstore, Annie Blooms. She lives with her family in an old farmhouse in Portland and writes in a treehouse in her backyard. 

    Find out more at rosanneparry.com

    About Fiona Kenshole


    Fiona Kenshole is a specialist children’s book literary agent based in Portland. She has been with the Transatlantic Agency for over 13 years, representing local authors such as NYT bestseller Rosanne Parry (A Wolf Called Wander), award-winner Elizabeth Rusch (The Twenty One) and critically acclaimed Leslie Barnard Booth (I Am We). Previously she was VP at Laika Studios, developing Academy award-winning movies such as CORALINE and THE BOXTROLLS. She spent 20 years as a senior publisher in London where she was proud to be the UK editor for Ramona Quimby, The Giver and Paddington Bear amongst others. She is looking for picture books – fiction and nonfiction, chapter books and contemporary middle grade.

    Learn more here: https://transatlanticagency.com/portfolio/kenshole-fiona/

    Find out more at rosanneparry.com

  • 11 – 11:30AM Sunday Belmont Foyer: Brunch

    Your weekend of writing is almost over! Join us for Sunday brunch. Pour your coffee and take your seat for our final keynote presentation. Keynote announcement coming in April!

  • 10 – 11AM Sunday Windsor C: Write the Movie, Not the Script

    Take your scripts to the next level by learning how to “direct on the page,” one of the film industry’s longest-standing taboos. In this “dangerous” workshop, Randall Jahnson teaches screenwriters how to incorporate stage directions and visual storytelling directly into their scripts without breaking any rules. You’ll gain techniques to make your writing more dynamic, visceral, and cinematic.

    Faculty

    • Randall Jahnson
      Randall Jahnson has been a professional screenwriter since 1985. He’s worked with such amazing filmmaking talent as Stephen Spielberg, Penelope Spheeris, Spike Lee, and the late Jonathan Demme. His credits include the punk rock Western Dudes, The Doors, The Mask of Zorro, Sunset Strip, and episodes of the classic HBO comedy-horror series, Tales from the… Read more: Randall Jahnson

  • 5:30 – 7PM Saturday Belmont A/B: SAG-AFTRA FilmLab Live Reading!

    FilmLab proudly premieres a LIVE reading featuring the 2026 Writer’s Room participants and professional SAG-AFTRA performers. You won’t want to miss this exciting debut!

    The FilmLab Writer’s Room is an in-person educational opportunity for aspiring screenwriters. Eight writers were selected by a panel of judges to participate in a two-day in-person writer’s room in Portland, Oregon:

    • Kim Bailey
    • Barbara Blomquist
    • Steven Dexheimer
    • Adam Lohman
    • Kate Morris
    • Kari Mote
    • Chad Neufeld
    • Mariia Rudenko

    They worked with Grant Rosenberg, an experienced showrunner, producer, and screenwriter, to collaborate on the script that will be performed by SAG-AFTRA actors. This script will move into production in 2027. 

    Come listen in on the script and hear about the process behind our next FilmLab production!

  • 5 – 5:30PM Saturday Belmont Foyer: Drinks and Appetizers Before the Show

    Kick off the evening with drinks, appetizers, and popcorn at our pre-show social hour. Mingle with fellow attendees and get excited for tonight’s Writer’s Room dramatic premiere. You’ll hear the work of our talented FilmLab writers brought to life by professional SAG-AFTRA readers in an unforgettable night. This event is free and open to the public, so bring your friends and find your seat.

  • 4 – 5PM Saturday Belmont C: Genre Screenwriting Workshop

    Genre is where imagination meets tension. As a writer, you can stretch reality while keeping every moment grounded and real. This workshop is designed for screenwriters who are comfortable with craft fundamentals and want to explore genre writing or deepen their existing genre work. We’ll move through the craft challenges that genre presents to a skilled writer: how to honor audience expectations while finding something genuinely your own; how to use tropes as tools rather than crutches; and how to make the familiar feel surprising.

    Faculty

    • Dustin Morrow
      Dustin Morrow bridges the worlds of creative practice and scholarly inquiry as an Emmy-winning filmmaker, bestselling author, film festival programmer, optioned screenwriter, podcaster and educator. He is a tenured Professor in the School of Film at Portland State University. More here: https://dustinmorrow.com/biography/. Schedule

  • 3 – 4PM Saturday Windsor C: Pitch for Film and TV

    Screenwriters! Come practice your pitch! We’ll help you refine and shine your film or TV pitch and talk you through your next steps to the screen.

    Faculty

    • Randall Jahnson
      Randall Jahnson has been a professional screenwriter since 1985. He’s worked with such amazing filmmaking talent as Stephen Spielberg, Penelope Spheeris, Spike Lee, and the late Jonathan Demme. His credits include the punk rock Western Dudes, The Doors, The Mask of Zorro, Sunset Strip, and episodes of the classic HBO comedy-horror series, Tales from the… Read more: Randall Jahnson

  • 2 – 2:45PM Saturday Windsor C: Short Film, Big Impact: A Case Study of The Lunch Date

    Working on your script? Join us for a deep dive to learn more about the art of screenwriting through the Oscar-winning short The Lunch Date. Watch the film before you arrive – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ty_hn7l1zKE&t=118s We will explore the film’s structural genius by examining how it leverages social assumptions and a powerful narrative pivot to subvert audience expectations. Using this classic work as a catalyst, we will discuss the unique hurdles of writing in the short film format. You will leave with practical insight into how to overcome those challenges and create stories that have a lasting impact.

    Faculty

    • Dustin Morrow
      Dustin Morrow bridges the worlds of creative practice and scholarly inquiry as an Emmy-winning filmmaker, bestselling author, film festival programmer, optioned screenwriter, podcaster and educator. He is a tenured Professor in the School of Film at Portland State University. More here: https://dustinmorrow.com/biography/. Schedule

  • 12:30 – 1:45PM Saturday Boxwood Cafe: Screenwriter’s Lunch

    Writing for the script or screen? Join us for a casual lunch designed to connect screenwriters at all levels. Share ideas, swap stories, and talk craft in a relaxed, informal setting.

  • 10:30 – 11:30AM Saturday Windsor B: Adaptability: Bringing Books to the Screen

    Ever wonder how to squeeze 300 pages of a novel into a 100-page script? In this workshop with Randall Jahnson, you’ll learn how to turn books into compelling movies or series. You’ll explore how to assess a book’s cinematic potential, extract the real story, and shape it into a pitch and script that grabs the audience’s attention. We’ll tackle the tough questions: what to cut, what to keep, and when it’s okay to combine characters or add new material. You’ll leave with practical strategies and the confidence to adapt any novel or IP for the screen, with real-world examples from Randall’s scripts: The Doors, The Mask of Zorro, and Flashbacks.

    Faculty

    • Randall Jahnson
      Randall Jahnson has been a professional screenwriter since 1985. He’s worked with such amazing filmmaking talent as Stephen Spielberg, Penelope Spheeris, Spike Lee, and the late Jonathan Demme. His credits include the punk rock Western Dudes, The Doors, The Mask of Zorro, Sunset Strip, and episodes of the classic HBO comedy-horror series, Tales from the… Read more: Randall Jahnson