Far North Adult Scriptwriting Workshop

Script to Screen is presenting a 1-day adult scriptwriting workshop in Kerikeri. This is a rare opportunity for local story tellers to work with renowned writer, director and author, Michael Bennett (The Gone, In Dark Places). The morning will be spent delving into character, story structure, key moments and writing fundamentals and then in the afternoon you will develop your own original story idea and write a scene.

Not to be missed, this is a practical and interactive workshop that will help you find the momentum you need to initiate a screen story, or move your project forward. If you’re a new or emerging filmmaker or a local creative wanting to reinvigorate a screen idea or explore writing for film and television, this workshop is for you.

When and where:
Sunday 14 July
9am – 5pm

Turner Centre, 43 Cobham Road, Kerikeri 0230
Venue is wheelchair accessible

Cost: 
$25 including GST and booking fee. Tickets via humanitix
Morning tea and afternoon tea provided, BYO lunch.

Before Sunday if you get the chance it would be beneficial to watch a few episodes of Michael Bennett's recent work, The Gone (here) Free on TVNZ+.

What to bring:

• Pen, paper/notebook or iPad or laptop
  We do not advise participants to take notes on phones.
• Water bottle
• Keep cup
• Lunch

Parking: There is plenty of off-street parking available at the Turner Centre. Be mindful that there is a one-way system around the building, please follow the arrows on the road.

ABOUT PROGRAMME MENTORS 

MICHAEL BENNET

Michael Bennett (Ngāti Pikiao, Ngāti Whakaue) is a screenwriter, filmmaker and author. Michael’s short films and feature films have screened and won awards internationally, including Cannes, Toronto, Berlin, Locarno, New York, London, ImagiNative and Dreamspeakers. He is the 2020 recipient of the Te Aupounamu Māori Screen Excellence Award, awarded by the NZ Film Commission for excellence in Māori filmmaking. Michael devoted many years of his recent career to the fight for justice for Teina Pora, a young Māori man wrongly imprisoned for 21 years. Michael made the documentary The Confessions of Prisoner T, which lead to the discovery of evidence pivotal to Teina’s exoneration. Michael directed and co-wrote the TV feature film In Dark Places about Teina’s case, which was finalist for a record 11 awards in the NZ Television Awards, winning Best Film and Best Director. Michael has been head writer or showrunner for many dozens of hours of prime-time television drama including The Gone (NZ / Ireland crime thriller), Vegas (crime thriller), Te Kohu (supernatural drama), and Mataku (the Māori Twilight Zone). Michael’s debut novel Better The Blood, a crime thriller, was published in 2022 in the UK, USA, Australia and NZ, with nine international translations. Better The Blood was a finalist for the fiction prize at the 2023 New Zealand literary awards (The Ockhams) and won Best First Novel at the Ngaio Marsh Awards. Michael is currently adapting his novel for television, and his second novel, Return To Blood, is in bookstores now.

This workshop is made possible thanks to generous support from Foundation North.

We are also running a Youth school holiday workshop. Check it out using the link below.