If you missed our last meeting, you really missed out. Our guest was the very personable and accomplished Lovinder Gill of the North Carolina Screenwriters, a writers' group based in Winston-Salem, NC. You can learn more about Gill at: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1159049/bio

His film, Chicks 101, which Mr. Gill wrote and directed, was recently released on DVD. It was voted Best Feature Film at the 2005 Backwoods Film Festival. CS' own Mack Stanton was a judge in the BFF competition, and gave the film high marks. See the trailer or purchase a copy at: http://www.chicks101movie.com/

Mr. Gill studied engineering before following his dream to work in the film industry. He has a B.A. in Broadcast Journalism and Mass Communications from Lock Haven University, a B.F.A. from the North Carolina School of the Arts School of Filmmaking as well as his M.A. in Screenwriting and Film Studies. He earned a M.F.A. in Screenwriting from Hollins University in Roanoke, Virginia.

At the September meeting, Gill shared with us how their group operates. To be considered for membership in NC Screenwriters, writers must submit a completed feature-length screenplay to their board. Based upon their criteria, the review committee then ****uates the screenplay, and may invite a member to meet or to join. The goal of NCS is keep their membership small and focused on member work during the course of the year, as each member is allowed to submit their original work for critique twice a year. NCS meets twice a month. This group offers beginner screenwriting classes once a year and a more advanced screenwriting class. 

One of the many perks NCS offers its members is the opportunity to see their work produced. Each member of the group has the opportunity to submit a 12 page short script to be considered for production. The membership then chooses by vote, one project to be filmed. Once a script is selected, everyone has the opportunity to crew on the film. 

Gill shared about the Masters in Film and Screenwriting program through Hollins University in Roanoke, Virginia. This program is a 6 week summer program over three years. A great option to consider. 

A big CS shout out to our special guest speaker Lovinder Gill, President, NC Screenwriters. Thanks, Lovinder! 

We did not have time to engage in discussion of our progress on John’s project so come ready to dive in at the next meeting.

In 1993, Rance moved to Los Angeles, CA in search of a promising career as a television executive. His first job was an office production assistant on “Roc”, the critically acclaimed FOX Broadcasting Company series. After “Roc”, Rance worked as an assistant to a talent agent at the William Morris Agency.  In 1994, Rance was admitted to the CBS Television Executive Management Training Program where he developed the M.O.W. “Cyberstalk”, for Norton Wright Productions/CBS Productions and coordinated the first annual, CBS/WGAw Television Writers Workshop for emerging minority writers entitled: The No-bullshit Approach To Becoming a Successful Television Writer. 

In 1996, Rance was inducted into the Writers Guild of America, west, Inc. and presently Co-Chairs the Committee of Black Writers.  Since then he has written and produced several television projects in addition to having sold six original screenplays: “Scary Dates” to 20th Century Fox Films; “RePros” to Davis Entertainment/Destination Films; “Paper Or Plastic” to The Knight Company; “Homecoming: The Revenge” to Fox 2000; “B&G” to Viridian Entertainment; and “32 & Single” to Universal Pictures.  

Rance’s other accomplishments include completion of the Riordan MBA Fellowship at UCLA’s Anderson School of Management, working with the LA County Department of Probation as a social worker for juvenile offenders, the Los Angeles Unified School District as an inner city high school teacher, and receiving his (EMT-1) paramedic training and certification at El Camino College.

Today, Kenneth Rance lives in Charlotte, North Carolina with his wife Cheryl and daughter Kennedy, where he continues to write and develop motion picture and television projects.  Presently, Rance guest lectures at Howard University and his most recent film “32 & Single” (Gold Circle/Universal) starring Renée Zellweger is slated for production in the fall.

Coming from Uptown Charlotte (Trade & Tryon):  Go SE on E Trade St toward S College St.  Turn right onto S. McDowell St/NC-27.  Turn left onto E 3rd street/NC-16 S.  3rd Street becomes Providence Rd.  At the corner of Providence Rd and Queens Rd (Myers Park Hardware on your left, Myers Park PC across the street), turn left to stay on Providence Rd going south.  After 6 miles, turn right onto Rea Road.  After .8 miles, you will see Good Shepherd on your left.  Turn left onto Swans Run Road after the church to enter the church parking lot.

Coming from Pineville:  Go East on Pineville-Matthews Rd (51) towards Matthews.  At the corner of 51 and Rea Rd (at Calvary Church), turn left onto Rea Rd.  At the first light (Colony Place), turn right to stay on Rea Rd.  After passing by Olde Providence Elementary on the left, turn right onto Swans Run Road just before the Good Shepherd sign.  Turn left into the church parking lot.  At next light, turn left onto Rea Rd at the next light.  After .8 miles, you will see Good Shepherd on your left.  Turn left onto Swans Run Road after the church to enter the church parking lot.

Coming from Matthews: Go West on Pineville-Matthews Rd (NC-51)   towards Pineville.  At the corner of 51 and Providence Rd (at Arboretum), turn right onto Providence Rd.  At the first light, turn left onto Rea Rd.  After .8 miles, you will see Good Shepherd on your left.  Turn left onto Swans Run Road after the church to enter the church parking lot.

Coming from the North or the East: Take 485-S or 485-W towards Pineville.  Take Exit 57-NC-16: Providence Rd./Weddington.  Turn right onto Providence Rd.  Pass the Arboretum on the left at the intersection of Providence and 51.  At next light, turn left onto Rea Rd.  After .8 miles, you will see Good Shepherd on your left.  Turn left onto Swans Run Road, after the church, to enter the church parking lot.

Happy New Year everyone!

Our sincerest apologies for the last minute change in location this month, as AI was closed in observance of the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday. Never to be discouraged, we returned to our alternate location, Panera Bread at Whitehall Commons.

Our very special guest was Charlotte playwright Erin M. Pushman.  A prolific writer, Erin’s plays and short comedies have been charmed audiences across North and South Carolina. Her creative nonfiction has appeared in various journals, and 'in certain company, she admits to having written a screenplay or  two.'

A monolgue from her full-length drama Moonshine was published in the 5th edition of the anthology Monologues for Women by Women.

Kicking off the new year, Erin treated us to  Blue,  a short comedy that takes place over ten anxiety-ridden moments spent prior to and waiting for the results of a pregnancy test. Blue was alternately humorous and touching. Thanks so much, Erin, for joining us.  We hope to see more of  your work in the future!

 A new Board of Directors was elected, with the following folks stepping up to keep things going smoothly. The 2007 officers are:

President - John Cane

Vice President - Tracy Poole

Treasurer - John Cane

Program Chair - Angela Oberer

Web Designer - Lesa Babb

Club Blogger - Lesa Babb

Public Relations Director - Malia Kline

Hospitality Committee - Judy Tooley

A heartfelt thanks to the outgoing Board members who worked hard to get the group organized and off to a running start!

As always, guests and new members were recognized and introduced themselves. Special thanks to local producer/ distributor Darryl Clark,  who talked briefly about his new screening venue in Uptown Charlotte. CS will be posting more details shortly.

At the conclusion of the meeting, membership dues were collected. A reminder to anyone interested in attending, guests are allowed to attend one meeting FREE, so come on out!  Annual dues are just $30.00, which covers inspiring guest speakers, sharing their insights on the craft of writing, and adventures in producing; copies of selected readings, plus twelve months of professional networking, peer support, limitless encouragement and much, much more!

This month our writers took time out from their holiday preparations to welcome CS member Marshall McDorman with a reading from one of his many screenplays. It’s Not a Croc is a feature-length comedy about a group of sorority sisters who get more than they bargained for when they pledge to care for a lost newborn.

Afterwards we held our first Carolina Screenwriters Pitchfest, and it was a blast! Everyone had a chance to polish their existing loglines and pitch new concepts. It was a great way to meet new writers and catch up with each other on works in progress. 

Thanks sincerely to Marshall for sharing his work and his inspirations with us, and to everyone who came out.

Mark your calendars for the next meeting, Monday, January 15, at 7:00 pm, when we will return to The Art Institute of Charlotte. We’re looking forward to a productive new year, as the 2007 schedule is already filling up.

Happy Holidays!

2006 - Nov 20  Update

The November meeting found our writers rocking and rolling along, as members and guests shared recent developments and upcoming projects. It’s always refreshing and inspiring to hear each others' good news.

This month CS welcomed filmmakers Alex Stephens and Linda Lavold from Dead Horse Productions, creators of Philosopher. Philosopher is a film about a shape-shifting entity and its life-altering affect on the human beings it encounters, now screening in film festivals around the country, including Sundance, the Florida Film Festival and The New Filmmakers Festival in New York. CS extends our very special thanks to Alex and Linda, who drove up from Anderson, South Carolina to share their film, as well as their insights and adventures with us.

The evening closed with a screening of excerpts from What’s Up, Grandpa?, presented by the show’s producer and host, CS member Charles Whitley. Charles discussed the genesis of his idea and his ongoing vision for the show, now entering its fourth season on Charlotte’s local public access television.

2006- October 16 Update

Our guest speaker this month was CS's own Tracy Poole. Tracy is a prolific writer who has been concentrating on screenplays for about three years. She has penned six screenplays, recently completed a television script, and is currently working on a novel.

The group read from the first act of Shattered Trust, a thrilling whodunit combining murder, romance and stolen gems that keeps the audience guessing until the final plot twist. Afterwards Tracy graciously shared some details about her writing process, including creating believable characters, writing dialogue that works, and making time to write.  Thank you, Tracy, for sharing your work with us!

Special thanks to Debbie Miller and The Art Institute of Charlotte for allowing us to continue  to meet at their beautiful campus, and to our guests and members who lend their efforts to make the club an enduring success. 

The September meeting of the Carolina Screenwriters began promptly at 7:00pm with reviews of the Charlotte Film Festival the previous weekend.

As a group we shared tips for screenwriters, and some of the moving trends in the film industry.

Our guest speaker was Louis Di Eugenio from Greensboro who took us on a journey of his interests in writing to his current screenwriting and film making productions.

We read a short (13 page) script Louie had written and the group engaged in some discussion regarding his screenplay.

We send a collective "THANKS, Louie!!" for driving to Charlotte and for entertaining and educating us.

We had two new members at the September meeting, Rick Johnson and Mack Staton whom we are thrilled will be joining us.

Debbie Miller, our contact from the Art Institute sat in on our meeting as well and we hope she’ll join us again next time.

We are sad to see James Matthews leave us, he’s transferring from the Art Institute in Charlotte to the Art Institute in New York at the end of September, and though he’ll still be a part of our club, we will miss our regular interaction with him. His contributions to our club have been enormous and we appreciate his participation in our group immensely.

We took individual photos of our members at the September Meeting, now posted to the members section of the website

www.CarolinaScreenwriters.com/Members.htm

We’ll be taking photos again at the October meeting for those who were absent or for those whose pictures didn’t turn out. (Mark, Angela, & Lisa – too blurry)

All dues paying members need to send their bios, (a brief personal history, can be entertaining or in resume format) to Angela@AngelaOberer.com to be included on your own separate webpage at www.CarolinaScreenwriters.com

The purpose of having your own page is to help promote you as a screenwriter.

Email accounts are being set up and will be emailed with instructions to our members by the end of this week.

Thanks to all who participated in our September meeting.

Big thanks to our new board of directors who have all jumped right in to make our club the success it is.

Great News!

At the August Carolina Screenwriters Meeting, we voted on a board of directors.

And our new club blogger is none other than the infamous Indie Film Producer D.L. Payne.

From now on, our club blogs and updates will be done by D.L.Payne and any guest writers he chooses to help him.

We welcome and support Mr. Payne in this new endeavor.

His help is very much appreciated.

Passing the baton with gratitude,

Angela Oberer

Please Join us for our next meeting.

Guest Speaker Louie Di Eugenio from Louie Louie Productions.

Details found at www.CarolinaScreenwriters.com

Guests Welcome!

Email questions to Angela Oberer at Angela@AngelaOberer.com

Hey Great News!

The Carolina Screenwriters now has their own website:

www.CarolinaScreenwriters.com

Check it out, all with updates and news on upcoming meetings.

Greetings,

The Carolina Screenwriters Group will be meeting the 3^rd Monday of each month from 7:00-9:00pm at the Art Institute of Charlotte. (Next Meeting Aug 21^st)

This will be a new permanent location for our group and is being hosted by the Art Institute of Charlotte.

Meetings and Parking are free and the meetings are open to the public including Students, Teachers, Actors, Directors, Film Makers, Screenwriters and those interested in the craft of Screenwriting. Thanks to new member James Matthews for arranging and securing this location for us.

The August meeting will be featuring Independent Film Maker & Screenwriter D.L. Payne from High Point, NC.

We will be doing a reading of his work “The Right to Arm Bears”, followed by a discussion of his work.

Please come join us for Networking, Learning & Fun.

DETAILS

What: Carolina Screenwriters Group

When: Monday August 21st

Time: 7:00-9:00pm

Dress: Casual

Where: The Art Institute of Charlotte

Mapquest: 2110 Water Ridge Parkway, Charlotte NC 28217 (Three LakePointe Plaza)

Cost: Meeting / Parking = Free (Let’s talk about small dues to cover costs of screenplay hard copies, and website expenses.)

Carolina Screenwriters Blog: http://blogs.scriptologist.com/Screenwriters

AGENDA FOR AUGUST MEETING

7:00-7:30pm – Business Meeting to discuss club officers, duties, possible dues, upcoming contests, classes, networking opportunities etc.

7:30-8:15pm – D.L. Payne & Screenplay Reading

8:15-8:45pm – Discussion of Screenplay

8:45-9:00pm – Good News Sharing (Tell us all your good news about your screenplay being optioned, produced, contests you’ve entered, treatments you’ve created etc.)

9:00pm        -  Wrap

CLUB OFFICERS NEEDED: (All positions are currently open and would look great on your resume)

President          (Presides over all meetings, Phone listed in all bulletins as main contact person, Seeks to resolve club challenges)

Vice President   (Glorified Admin Officer – Club Gopher)

Treasurer           (Handles all club monies, dues, handles screenplay copies.)

Program Chair   (Arranges program guests, and back up guests for meetings)

Web Designer    (Designs and updates club website, uploads members bios, screenplays, photos etc.)

Club Blogger      (Updates club blog with meeting highlights and upcoming club announcements.)

Graphic Designer (Creates Club logo, Promo flyers, special event flyers, registration forms etc.)

PR Director       (Sends PR announcements to local & State papers, websites, & forums.)

Mark your calendars now to attend and bring a guest.

See you on the 21^st.

- Angela Oberer (O-bur-er) Angela@AngelaOberer.com

The New Carolina Screenwriters Group will be meeting this coming Monday July 17^th from 7:00-9:00pm in the lobby of the theatre (Robinson Hall) at UNCC. It's the first building you see in front of you as you take the main road into campus from Highway 49 (University City Blvd).  Thanks to Mark Pizzato for arranging this meeting place for us.

Our meeting will begin promptly at 7:00pm with Mark leading us through an educational session on the importance of “Readings” to show us the how to do a screenplay reading, the benefits of readings and what to look for or be aware of when reading screenplays.

Then we will be reading from Marks riveting and original screenplay “Demonic Tricks” email me for a copy: Angela@AngelaOberer.com followed by a discussion of his work.

Due to time constraints, we will not have time to read the complete screenplay, so please print it out and read it in advance of the meeting on Monday. It takes less than two hours to read, and prior reading will allow you to participate in the discussion at the end. In this business, we learn by doing and participating.

What: Carolina Screenwriters Group

When: Monday July 17^th

Time: 7:00-9:00pm

Dress: Casual

Where: Lobby of Robinson Hall Theater

Mapquest Address: 9201 University City Blvd., Charlotte, NC 28223-0001

Cost: Parking $1.00 per hour for Parking (Park in the Visitor lot, right of the theater)

Campus Map: http://facilities.uncc.edu/maps/supportingfiles/GeneralMap.htm 

PS. Our meeting is still open to those who share an interest in Screenwriting. Feel free to bring a friend.

See you on Monday

Angela Oberer (O-bur-er)

980-254-0900