MGM and The Black List announced on December 3rd, the launch of a two-year feature film scriptwriting partnership. The goal is to discover new voices with unique perspectives from historically underrepresented communities around the world. MGM and The Black List have stated that they are committed to identifying new writers who want to tell original stories with universal appeal for the big screen.
Every six months over the next two years, The Black List will deliver a shortlist of new feature film writing candidates to MGM for consideration. MGM will then look to select one writer from each six-month cycle to receive a two-step Guild minimum blind script deal and the opportunity to work with the iconic studio. The first opt-in period for the partnership begins December 3, 2020, and will close on February 23, 2021.
This feels like a step forward for diversity in the film industry. Some may argue that more can be done, and more CAN be done, but this is at least a step in that direction. Over the summer we saw a global call for racial justice. Many film studios committed to making changes within their organizations.
On June 3rd, Star Wars actor John Boyega joined a Hyde Park London protest for Black Lives Matter. In a passionate and heartbreaking speech to the crowd, he acknowledged that the simple act of speaking out could cost him his career. Some creators have even turned to fans and supporters to help fund their stories. Dear America, From a Black Guy is a documentary created by B. Dave Walters, the core of the project seeks to help find ways to improve communication and collaborate constructively about race relation issues.
There is a desire for people to see themselves represented on screen. And it’s important for huge studios like MGM to keep the promises they made to diversity and equality last summer. It will be exciting to see what new projects will come from this.
Further information about the partnership can be found here: blcklst.com/mgm
More information on the Black List is available at www.blcklst.com
