ART WITHIN ANNOUNCES...

ATLANTA-BASED ARTS & MEDIA GROUP LAUNCHES NATIONAL SCREENWRITER SEARCH AND FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM

Art Within Accepting Applications for “Next Great Screenwriters of Faith” Through Sept. 2

ATLANTA, Ga., August 15, 2005—Do you have what it takes to craft a Hollywood screenplay that incorporates fine writing, snappy dialogue, and…faith? Atlanta-based arts and media group Art Within is banking on the fact that talented screenwriters from across the country are working on their own “Bruce Almighty’s,” and is conducting a search for five emerging screenwriters of faith to participate in the launch of the organization’s Art Within Labs fellowship program this fall.

Applications for the search for the “next great screenwriters of faith” will be accepted through Sept. 2 (www.artwithinlabs.org). The winners will be announced on Sept. 23.

Art Within Labs is a fellowship program where writers experiment and excel by doing. The program is committed to fostering the next generation of screenwriters compelled to explore with excellence the intersection of faith and storytelling, with writers following in the footsteps of C.S. Lewis, JRR Tolkien, Flannery O’Connor, and others.

Art Within Labs is based in Atlanta, Ga., and is modeled after the Sundance Institute’s Screenwriter Lab in Utah, with the goal of creating a retreat center outside of Hollywood that is conducive to developing and nurturing a writer’s voice.

The idea for the Labs grew out of a desire to continue Art Within’s experimentation in blending topics of faith into its script commissions. “Through our development process, we have learned so much about how to encourage and challenge writers to take faith principles from their own lives and integrate them into their stories,” said Bryan Coley, artistic director of Art Within. “Art Within Labs now gives us the opportunity to do this on a national scale.”

Art Within Labs includes both an annual national search for the next great screenwriters of faith, as well as a year-long fellowship. This year, up to five writers will be selected, with each being awarded $10,000 for a year-long fellowship, during which, each will produce a completed screenplay. The screenwriters will be flown to the Labs in Atlanta four times during the process, beginning with an intensive two-week workshop this November with Art Within’s creative team. Industry professionals will also be brought in for mentorship and evaluation. The Labs program will conclude with staged screenplay readings at Art Within’s annual Showcase and Symposium.

Since 1995, Atlanta-based Art Within has been dedicated to integrating faith and art to impact contemporary culture. Working through the vehicles of theater and film, Art Within focuses on nurturing scriptwriters and screenwriters with a faith perspective and helping producers find high-quality new scripts through Art Within’s development process.

MEDIA NOTE: For more information about Art Within or Art Within Labs, contact Laura Swickard McGowan at (847) 328-8009 or laura@lauramcgowan.com.