Once again, three-time Oscar winner Meryl Streep is putting her money where her mouth is. For the third year in a row, the actress is supporting The Writers Lab, a program for women screenwriters over the age of 40.
Streep has divulged that as soon as she turned 40, she was immediately offered a number of witch roles, a disturbing but predictable indication of how Hollywood sees aging women: wrinkly and monstrous. We’re betting these depictions have something to do with the fact that the overwhelming majority of screenwriters who get hired to pen high-profile films are men.
In an effort to combat this ageism and sexism, New York Women in Film & Television (NYWIFT) and IRIS, in collaboration with the Writers Guild of America, East, launched The Writers Lab in 2015. The Lab provides “script development for women writers over the age of 40, it creates a springboard to the next stage of production, and expands the boundaries of today’s commercial narrative film,” a press release states. The program is intended to “increase opportunities for content made by women” and offer emerging screenwriters mentorship.
The mentors signed on to play a part in The Writers Lab 2017 include Alexis Alexanian (“Pieces of April”), Susan Cartsonis (“What Women Want”), Lisa Cortés (“Precious”), Amy Fox (“Equity”), Caroline Kaplan (“Time Out of Mind,” “Letters to Juliet”), Kirsten Smith (“Legally Blonde”), and Pat Verducci (“True Crime”).
“After receiving an overwhelming response in our first two years, we are thrilled to now make The Writers Lab an annual entertainment industry event,” said Terry Lawler, Executive Director of New York Women in Film & Television. “Providing this one-of-a-kind support to an underserved demographic is vital to shaping a media landscape that includes and represents all voices.”
“Now, more than ever, women’s distinctive voices must be heard,” added IRIS Co-Founder Nitza Wilon. “Through the Lab, we’ll continue to support and promote women’s scripts, and we’ll work to get those stories onscreen.”
The next Writers Lab will take place September 14–17, and applications will be available starting February 1. Those selected to participate will be announced August 1. The press release specifies, “Submissions must be feature-length, fictional narrative scripts of any genre written by women over the age of 40, who are American citizens or permanent residents of the U.S.” For more information, head over to The Writers Lab’s website.
Streep just received the Cecile B. DeMille Lifetime Achievement Award at the Golden Globes and made headlines for her powerful speech. In it, she addressed the role of actors, the importance of a free press, and how President Donald Trump’s behavior has affected her. Streep is nominated for an Oscar for her performance as an aspiring opera singer in “Florence Foster Jenkins.” The ceremony will take place February 26.
