Rocliffe New Writing Forum

Find out more about the invaluable forum for aspiring screenwriters.

Latest News & Events

One week to apply for the BAFTA Rocliffe New Writing Forum!

BAFTA NY / Joan Katz

Comedy writers! Get your applications in now!

Download application details > (72 KB)

Apply to the competition here

See who's on the judging panel

For more information, visit rocliffe.com

BAFTA Rocliffe May 2013 with Ben Stephenson, Controller BBC Drama Commissioning

_{15 May 2013}

On Monday 13 May, the latest BAFTA Rocliffe New Writing Forum took place at 195 Piccadilly. Joining on the night was Ben Stephenson, Controller BBC Drama Commissioning who offered his tips and experience on the works of our three selected rising screenwriters - Aisling Corristine, Romily Masters and Natalie Malla. After an incredibly insightful evening, Malla has shared some of her thoughts from the night and how her work has already started to turn heads.

My Director David and the company of Actors were making my words come alive in rehearsal and I was really pleased with how it was all looking and sounding, but ten minutes to go before the event was due to begin, and I was still so ridiculously nervous, that it was taking all my energy to stop myself from running and hiding.

Luckily the audience really responded to the characters and there was laughter in all the right places. I was kind of terrified of getting critiqued infront of a live audience, but the feedback from Ben Stephenson was so useful. He told me to put more of myself in to my work and really make sure that my voice was clear, so that commissioners could understand why I am the only person who can tell the stories I want to tell.

It was such an amazing experience taking part in the BAFTA Rocliffe New Writing Forum, and it has meant that I have now started to make contact with Kudos, Island Pictures, Eleventh Hour and a couple of Literary Agents who have shown some interest in my work. Here’s hoping this is just the beginning.

Download the event programme > (1.2 MB)

Event review

Jury Announced for BAFTA Rocliffe in Edinburgh and New York

_{22 April 2013}

BAFTA/ Steve Butler Jessica Hynes and Jennifer Saunders amongst comedy creatives who will choose new writers to showcase their work at the Guardian Edinburgh International Television Festival and the New York Television Festival.

Read the press release >

BAFTA Searches For The British Comedy Stars Of The Future

Rocliffe is now open for submissions for scripts from emerging comedy screenwriters for a chance to showcase their work in front of the cream of the UK and US television industry at two major international television festivals. For the first time, the BAFTA Rocliffe New Writing Forum will take place at the Guardian Edinburgh International Television Festival in August, as well as for a third year at the New York Television Festival in October.

Read the press release >

Submission Deadlines:

Early Bird Closing Date for submissions - 15 April 2013
Final Closing Date for submissions - 22 May 2013
Download application details > (72 KB)

Judging Panel Announced for 13 May in London

This year's BAFTA Rocliffe New Writing Forum entries will be judged by a panel of esteemed industry professionals including Sue Vertue, Danny Brocklehurst, Polly Hill and many more.

View the full panel list >

Best Of 2012 & What's To Come In 2013

_{Thursday 7 February 2013}

2012 was filled with loads of BAFTA Rocliffe success stories and we have high hopes for 2013.

Part of our hope this year is to support writers not just leading up to the event but also provide post-event advice. Writers, whose work is featured at our UK events, will be offered a full script report from a top script reader after the event. This will be timed so as to give the writers time to revise their work taking into account feedback received at the event.

Rob Brown’s work Sixteen was featured at the Edinburgh Film Festival 2011 and has since gone into production.

Writing partners Anne-Marie Draycott & Charity Trimm had their winning script Pregnant Pause (now renamed Unexpected) optioned by the team behind The Inbetweeners, Bwark Productions. With Bwark they have also been commissioned by BBC Comedy to write a sitcom pilot script Friends Reunited. In August 2012 they were one of the winners of the London Screenwriters Festival '50 Kisses' initiative and their winning short film script Dream Date has been filmed by two production companies. They are also working with another production company on another new script - but they can't say any more about that at the moment as its very early days!

After returning from New York, writing partners Thomas Phipps and Pete Bowden went onto secure an agent, have their script optioned by a production company and secured additional freelance writing work.

In 2012, writing partners Matthew Barry and Kayleigh Llewellyn have had their winning script Grey optioned by Company Pictures and are in development with BBC One. Kayleigh has also begun writing her own regular column for Funny Women.

Sarah Courtauld is in talks with a couple of indies to option her winning script, The Slush Pile and, through exposure to the selection Jury and their production companies with her script, Sarah has also been hired as a writer on a new sketch show, The Kerry Howard Show, slated for BBC Three in 2013. Whilst at the New York TV Festival, Sarah won a Hasbro Studios development deal with a Children’s TV idea Buckle and Swash.

BAFTA Rocliffe In New York Host Announced: Jenni Konner

_{16 October 2012}

Executive producer and showrunner Jenni Konnor is to host the BAFTA Rocliffe New Writing Forum at the annual New York Television Festival on Thursday 25 October.

Jenni is a television and feature film writer whose credits include HBO’s Girls, which received five nominations at this year’s Emmy Awards including Best Writing and Comedy Series, and recently finished shooting its second season.

Following a successful inaugural event in New York in 2011, the international initiative is the second special incarnation of the Forum - the Academy’s flagship writing programme, in partnership with Rocliffe - which has been running in the UK for the last 12 years.

When Rocliffe Went to New York in 2012

_{01 October 2012}

After our nationwide search to find the UK’s most promising comedy television writers, we finally have our winners. Sarah Courtauld, Nicolas Small, and writing partners Kayleigh Llewellyn and Matthew Barry will fly to New York courtesy of British Airways and have their work performed live in front of high profile NYTVF industry attendees at a special BAFTA Rocliffe New Writing Forum on 25 October at 92Y Tribeca.

Read the winners blogs >

When Rocliffe Went to New York in 2011

Joan A Katz / BAFTA New York In 2011, Phil Rosenthal creator of multi award winning Everybody Loves Raymond joined the forum as the industry chair, providing feedback and advice to the three winning writers Anne-Marie Draycott, Greg de Roeck and Thomas Phipps.

The writers have since gone on to forge contacts in the US, secure UK agents and have their work developed and optioned in the UK. Find out more about their experiences by following their blog and video diary entries... The BAFTA Rocliffe Comedy Writers Blog

Written Off: Watch this BAFTA Rocliffe New Writing Forum Documentary