Playwrights Grace Chapple and James Elazzi will have the opportunity to redevelop their plays into screenplays after being selected for Belvoir Street Theatre and For Film’s Sake’s (FFS) Margins initiative.
Delivered in partnership with the Sydney Film Festival as part of FFS’ Platform development program, Margins supports writers and story editors to implement various development approaches and better understand how locally generated stories can reach a global market. It is one of two strands for the second edition of Platform, alongside Platform: Lab, an incubator to support writers, creatives, and producers develop new skills, collaborations, and content.
Chapple will explore the adaptation of her award-winning debut Never Closer, about a reunion of old school friends set against The Troubles in Northern Ireland, while Elazzi will focus on his play Concrete, which has received development support from Belvoir.
They will be supported by local mentees, University of Melbourne head of theatre Chris Mead and FFS executive director Sophie Mathisen, as well as international development experts, including UK screenwriter, playwright, and author Robin Mukherjee, former New Zealand International Film Festival director Marten Rabarts, and UK producer Yvonne Isimeme Ibazebo. As part of Margins, international mentors will offer three free masterclasses for Sydney’s creative community. The initiative will run from June 10-14, culminating in a live table read and workshop at Belvoir on June 14.
Belvoir head of new work Dom Mercer was confident the initiative would quickly become a mainstay launchpad for Australian creative talent.
“Seeing our playwrights go from rehearsals onto screen projects and writer’s rooms is very validating,” he said.
“However, the formats have different demands, making Margins a vital tool to generate more effective development practices and habits to ensure the authenticity of the writers’ voice remains at the forefront of new work.”
Principal supporter Deanne Weir was pleased to help FFS and Belvoir identify the voices and works capable of reaching global audiences.
“The market is competitive and dense, however, there remains considerable demand for authentic stories,” she said.
“As an investor in the Babyteeth film, the trajectory from the Belvoir stage to great success on global screens was no surprise. Anchoring local stories in our cultural stages can help to stimulate conversation, build momentum, and spotlight our terrific talent to the world.”
Margins is currently open for applications from Australian script and story editors who will support the writers and mentors. Submissions close at midnight on Sunday, May 19. Find out more information here.