Western Australia is the latest state to welcome the Australian Writers’ Guild’s First Break initiative, with applications now open for the newest iteration of the screenwriting program.
Launched in March, First Break consists of a series of workshops designed to provide participants with the knowledge, training, and understanding to obtain work as a note-taker or script coordinator in a writers’ room, get their start in the industry, and build vital networks as they do.
At the conclusion of the sessions, participants are showcased to the screen industry via the AWG Pathways website. The Pathways First Break tab will be a permanent resource for industry members looking for new writers.
Earlier this year, the AWG revealed the 12 successful applicants for its NSW First Break program, with a panel selecting the participants from more than 200 entries.
Successful applicants for the WA initiative — to be delivered in partnership with Screenwest — will be announced on September 1, with workshops taking place via Zoom over three Saturdays in October/November 2022.
Screenwest head of creative for content and industry development, Martha Coleman, described the announcement as a “fantastic and timely for WA screenwriters to get their foot in the door of television development”.
“We are so pleased to be supporting the inaugural First Break in Western Australia, following its successful outcomes in other Australian states in the last year,” she said.
Applications for WA First Break will close at 5pm on Friday, July 29. AWG members can find out more about how to apply here, while there is information for non-members here.