DFI’s screenwriting workshop to be held from August 11 to 15

Aspiring screenwriters are invited to Doha Film Institute’s (DFI) Screenwriting for Beginners Lab happening from August 11 to 15.  

The lab will feature the ‘architecture’ of screenplays including storytelling, screenplay guidelines, non-verbal storytelling and characterisation, and the ‘formatting’ of a screenplay – visual grammar and Celtx/Final Draft.

“Discover the creative process of writing for the screen, all from the comfort of your own home with DFI’s exciting online Screenwriting for Beginners Lab,” said the DFI. Moreover, it explained that the workshop is for participants to produce a minimum of one scene for their screenplay. “They will also have the opportunity to continue their filmmaking journey with the DFI development team, working towards further education and grants.”

Among the lab mentors are Anthea Devotta, who currently works at DFI’s Training and Development team. She has over ten years of work experience in the film industry; and Amna Al Binali, who also works at the Institute’s Development team since 2013. Al Binali reads scripts and tracks local filmmaking talent and have directed two short films including “Doctor’s Office,” and “The Notebook.”

Day one of the lab will be focused on Introduction to stories; Day two, Building your characters; Day three, Story architecture; Day four, Visual storytelling, and Day five, Writing for the screen. Fee is QR300 and Qatar Museums Culture Pass members will receive a 10 percent discount. Deadline of application is August 1.

To be able to register, an applicant should submit the following to [email protected]: original short film logline and synopsis, applicant’s CV or short bio, copy of applicant’s ID, a short paragraph explaining interest in the lab. Applicants 18 years old or above are eligible to apply.