Christiana Brockbank will be taking her script Binwomen to the Guardian Edinburgh International Television Festival with Rocliffe.
The Script: Binwomen
Synopsis: A sitcom about Janet, a compulsive hoarder who works on the bins alongside wannabe ambulance driver (Christina) and inept newcomer (Nigel).
Meet Christiana Brockbank
How did it feel to be shortlisted for Rocliffe?
It feels like my birthday and Christmas have come at once - which to be fair has happened most years thus far, as I was born on the 21st December... so let's throw in Bonfire Night and Easter too. In all seriousness, the nicest part about it is knowing that people have read your script and deemed it worthy of consideration for such a prestigious prize.
If you are selected to attend the BAFTA Rocliffe New Writing Forum event in Edinburgh, what are you most looking forward to?
If selected I'd look forward to getting as much advice as possible from the type of people that I never thought I'd get the chance to meet.
When did you get involved in writing comedy?
Ever since I picked up a pen or sat at my Grandma and Grandad's typewriter, I've been compelled to write comedy. I honestly find it difficult to avoid. Even in the most dramatic of situations both in real life and on the page I've found there's always some glimmer of something funny or bitter sweet that brings characters, and likewise the audience, together.
What inspired you to write comedy for the screen?
I was inspired to write comedy for the screen because I wanted to create the types of characters that people love despite their considerable flaws - in the same way I love Leslie Knope from Parks & Recreation, Daisy from Spaced and Maggie from Extras, all brilliantly real characters who can give one expression and immediately you know exactly what they're thinking because (even if only in some small way) that's you.
Which part of the writing process do you find most difficult and which come most easily?
I think coming up with the initial concept is the hardest and I find that the more I try to force myself to come up with a great idea, the more disconnected that writer-y part of my brain becomes - when in actual fact most of my ideas come to me when I'm in that annoyingly comfortable semi-conscious state located somewhere between sentience and full on, dribbling inducing slumber (where the pen and notepad on the bedside table might as well be in Cuba). I think that once you have your characters down, the easy part is letting them wander about in your head for a bit; learning stuff about them without even really thinking about it. And so for me, developing the characters - how they speak, their mannerisms and what they look like can be the easiest, and perhaps not surprisingly, the most enjoyable aspect of the writing process.
