ACADEMY REVEALS WINNING NICHOLL SCREENWRITERS Scripts to be performed at live read in November Our Coverage Sponsored by Martin's Tavern of Georgetown Est. 1933
Established in 1933, Martin's Tavern is one of Washington DC’s most historic family-owned enterprises. For 80 years, Martin’s Tavern has been a renowned fixture in the mid-Atlantic and a must-visit establishment in historic Georgetown. In the late 1890's, William S. Martin traveled from Galway, Ireland to America. Forty years later, he and his son, William G. Martin, the current Billy's grandfather, opened Martin’s Tavern on the corner of Wisconsin Avenue and N Street NW which is run today by our friend, William A. Martin Jr. You can call him Billy! From sitting Presidents and media icons, to city residents and worldly travelers, Martin’s Tavern is a welcoming home to the many who have long embraced its warm atmosphere. Its quintessentially classic American fare has delighted discriminating palates for decades from the Oakwood Atlantic Smoked Salmon to the Filet Mignon to whatever your little heart desires from the convincing menu. Every President from Truman to George W. Bush has happily dined at Martin's Tavern, and you can see the delicious culinary choices preferred by each in our review: Martin's Tavern is Highly Recommended by Whom You Know:
The President’s favorite booths, The Proposal Booth of Jack and Jackie Kennedy, Mickey Mantle in The Dugout Room, George W. Bush and family at Table 12 are just a few of the iconic stories. Fourth generation owner Billy Martin, Jr. continues the tradition of Washington’s oldest family owned restaurant and Georgetown landmark.
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Five individuals have been selected as winners of the 2015 Academy Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting competition. The Academy is celebrating the 30th anniversary of the global competition which aims to identify and encourage talented new screenwriters. Each winner will receive a $35,000 prize, the first installment of which will be distributed at an awards presentation on Wednesday, November 4, at the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills. For the third consecutive year, the event also will include a live read of selected scenes from the fellows’ winning scripts.
This year’s winners are (listed alphabetically by author):
Elizabeth Chomko, “What They Had”
Andrew Friedhof, “Great Falls”
Anthony Grieco, “Best Sellers”
Sam Regnier, “Free Agent”
Amy Tofte, “Addis Abeka”
A total of 7,442 scripts were submitted for this year’s competition. Ten individual screenwriters and two writing teams were chosen as finalists. Their scripts were then read and judged by the Academy Nicholl Fellowships Committee, who ultimately chose the winners.
The other finalists are (listed alphabetically by author):
Ghazi Albuliwi, “Arafat”
Jennifer Bailey and Max Lance, ”Best Funeral Ever”
Ryan Covington, “The Secrets We Keep”
Lynn Esta Goldman, “Angel on the Wall”
Murat Izmirli, “Grimwood”
Suzanne Kelman and Susannah Rose Woods, “Held”
Augustus Rose, “Far from Cool”
Fellowships are awarded with the understanding that the recipients will each complete a feature-length screenplay during their fellowship year. The Academy acquires no rights to the works of Nicholl fellows and does not involve itself commercially in any way with their completed scripts.
The Academy Nicholl Fellowships Committee is chaired by writer Robin Swicord, and marketing executive Buffy Shutt serves as vice chair. The other members of the committee are writers Tina Gordon Chism, Naomi Foner, Eric Roth, Kirsten Smith, Dana Stevens and Tyger Williams; actor Eva Marie Saint; cinematographer John Bailey; executive Marcus Hu; producers Stephanie Allain, Albert Berger, Julia Chasman, Julie Lynn and Peter Samuelson; and agent Ron Mardigian.
Since 1986, 142 fellowships have been awarded, and in 2015 several past fellows added to their feature film and television credits:
Nikole Beckwith directed “Stockholm, Pennsylvania,” from her Nicholl-winning script, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival.
Robert Edwards wrote and directed “When I Live My Life Over Again,” which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival.
Patrick Gilfillan wrote “Lila & Eve,” which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival.
Kurt Kuenne edited and co-wrote the documentary “Batkid Begins: The Wish Heard around the World,” which premiered at the Slamdance Film Festival.
Alfredo Botello was a co-writer of “Hollywood Adventures,” which opened as the number-one film in China in June.
Rebecca Sonnenshine is a writer and supervising producer on “The Vampire Diaries.”
Annmarie Morais is a writer and story editor on the series “Killjoys.”
Andrew Marlowe is the creator and was executive producer, and Terri Miller was a writer and executive producer on “Castle.”
Tickets for the 2015 Academy Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting Awards Presentation & Live Read are now available at Oscars.org/Events. Casting for the live read will be announced at a later date.
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