Reflections of 2022 Black List Feature Writer’s Lab Participants

Writers who participated in this year’s Black List Feature Writer’s Lab reflect on their experience.

Every year since 2013, the Black List has held a feature writer’s lab. This year’s event took place in Los Angeles from September 22–25. Once again, I was pleased to participate as a mentor and workshop facilitator.

Here are the reflections of the 2022 Black List Feature Writers lab writers.

Justin Geldzahler

The gaudy neon art in the basement of our West Hollywood rental might have summed things up best — it was all a dream.

Or at least that’s what the long weekend felt like. Round trip flights to Los Angeles (I’m based in the backwater that is Brooklyn), king sized beds with en suite bathrooms (not to mention a hot tub out back), so much food and booze that we all probably developed gout (worth it). And that’s not even counting the cavalcade of wonderful guests who came through, whether it was our personal mentors — Jonathan, David, Natalie, thank you for your gentle notes and hard lessons — or the Reverend Scott Myers himself.

If you read this blog then you already know the value of His teachings. Scott struck a delicate balance between concrete advice and woo-woo spirituality that provided us all with immediate insight for all of us as well as notes we’ll be returning to for a while. Sometimes you just need someone to say, “Hey this stretch is a little slow, maybe stick another action scene in?”

Franklin, Megan, Kate, Shelby, Claire, and Niki, thank you for inviting me into this wonderful program. Your generosity and professional advice have already helped me on my way to making a second feature. And I’m doubly grateful for your good taste, as there wasn’t one jerk in the group. (I’ve been reasonably assured that the rest of HotLab agrees.) Thank you for introducing me to new friends who wanted to get together a week later, even when the Black List isn’t footing the bill.

Writing this reflection reminds me of the most valuable part of this long weekend: validation. You need it to go anywhere in this town. Thanks to the Black List feature lab, I feel like I might be getting somewhere without having to worry about parking.

Amy Huckabay

Sometimes being a writer can feel like screaming into the void. Is anyone out there reading this?! Can anyone hear me! Okay, I swear I didn’t mean to start out this dramatic, but…here I am.

The Black List Lab was a huge, immense highlight in my time in this business. I probably don’t have to tell you that Hollywood isn’t exactly a place you hear, “good job!” a ton. You more hear things like “can you change your hair?” or “is that dairy free?” and that’s during a pitch meeting.

But, my time with the lab was the opposite of that. From every mentor I spoke with who treated me like a peer to my fellow writers who I spent twenty hours a day with — I felt heard.

The Black List team (Megan, Shelby, Kate, Franklin, Claire, Niki) did so much to make us feel special. The amount of work they put into the lab for us was honestly incredible. They were thoughtful with everything from the mentors they paired us with to the restaurants they took us to (and there were a lot of restaurants, let me tell you).

And then there’s the lovely Scott Myers who so graciously led us through the weekend, facilitated our peer session, and was just a delight overall. We were so lucky to get to learn from him (and eat lots of good food with him, did I mention that?).

I’m so happy to be connected to my fellow lab members (or HotLab as we named ourselves, don’t judge) and to keep reading their work for years to come. I couldn’t have asked for a more wonderful group to be sleep deprived with.

And yes, a week after we left the lab, we already had a dinner together.

Yeon Jin Lee

Haiku odes to the The Black List Feature Lab mentors –

Phil Hay

A ray of sunshine.
He gave clear and simple notes.
He filled me with hope.

Guinevere Turner

She said ‘Maybe being
Angela is a Golden Cage.’
Her ideas blew my mind.

Michael Mitnick

‘Didn’t really sleep last night’
He said but his notes on script,
Still very profound.

Scott Myers

He listens deeply,
Gives a gentle suggestion.
The puzzle unlocks.

Nadia Osman

Coming home from the Lab felt a little like Dorothy returning from Oz — lessons were learned, we met new friends, and occasionally we broke out into song only to have it interrupted by something in the woods (for two nights there was a huge possum hanging out by the hot tub). And there was an obscene amount of very good food.

To be honest, the lab bolstered me with confidence and validation. I feel totally empowered and supported in this — and I cannot underline this point enough — absolutely insane endeavor to pursue screenwriting professionally. I also felt fuller than I ever have. Did I mention the food?

But it wasn’t just the mentors and the Black List team that did it. It was through the feedback and genuine camaraderie of my fellow talented lab members, the encouragement and cheerleading to be bold, courageous, and celebratory in my work. Their writing talents astounded me, and I was incredibly lucky to be placed with these five amazing individuals whom everyone reading this should hire (should they have that power).

I feel very compelled to end this with something pithy or self-deprecating. Yet the truth is, writing is a solitary profession. You spend the bulk of your time staring into space, going for walks, taking long showers, etc. but it’s often alone, with your own thoughts — whether they’re sunny or sour that day. To be able to be part of a community of like-minded writers and industry folks that will not just read my work or offer notes, but actively work towards helping me further my career, is nothing short of a miracle. Kind of like how it’s a miracle I kept eating all weekend (truly, it was hedonism at its finest).

Cheers and massive thank-yous to Franklin, Megan, Shelby, Kate, Claire, Scott, all our wonderful mentors, and my amazing lab members. Now back to writing. Long live Hot Lab!

Cody Pearce

This is too weird. It’ll never work. No one will read this…

Such thoughts floated through my head as I finished my latest script. As writers, we spend countless hours diving deep within our minds, trying to commune with odd, often half-formed characters and map out strange new worlds. It can be exciting to plumb the depths of the subconscious. But it’s also quite lonely. We wonder if the ideas we bring up to the surface will interest anyone else.

Enter the Black List Feature Lab, a whirlwind experience that showed me just how transformational and inspiring it can be when writers share what they’ve brought up from the depths. The 2022 Lab was a hybrid event. First we met with our illustrious screenwriting mentors via Zoom over a couple weeks. Then we gathered for four days of in-person meetings and workshops at a posh Melrose house that felt like something out of a reality show.

Though we lived in a mansion for four days and ate at fancy restaurants, the most valuable part of the experience was meeting other writers. When I first learned about my fellow Lab participants and my mentors, I was quite intimidated. Everyone seemed so accomplished and their writing was so strong. I wondered how I would fit in. But everyone was so welcoming and supportive, offering thoughtful feedback on my work.

In the end, all writers deal with self-doubt, whether they’ve just finished their first script or they’ve won an Oscar. I left that weekend feeling inspired as I made many lasting friendships that will help me navigate my career going forward.

Franklin, Megan, Scott, Claire, Kate, Shelby, Niki, and of course my fellow #HotLab participants: A HUGE THANK YOU for giving me this wonderful opportunity to showcase my voice and hear your voices as well! It may get lonely swimming in the depths of my subconscious, but experiences like this one remind me that I’m never swimming alone.

Ali Imran Zaidi

100 degrees. That was my temperature the day of my sweaty Zoom interview for the lab. In a mid-COVID haze, I powered through what I vaguely remember as a nice chat with Franklin Leonard and Megan Halpern, but I might have come across like a sweaty car salesman. I hoped for the best and expected the worst. But boy, did the best actually come to pass! 
 
 After a series of amazing Zoom mentor sessions (full of insightful truth-bombs) with David Rabinowitz, Guinevere Turner and Jonathan Stokes, I got to meet my cohort. And really, the cohort was the crown jewel atop the whole thing. Except, like, nice crown jewels, not the kind stolen and put in a museum and labeled as ‘gifts’- what am I even talking about, sorry, focus. The cohort, right. It’s funny, just a few days before we all met in this ridonkulous West Hollywood mansion complete with pool, hot tub and weird art (some of which was definitely from an unidentified cult), we were going about our lives like each other didn’t exist. We even had a rather reserved pre-Lab intro Zoom hang. We were all separate ingredients, but then we go through this InstantPot of a weekend, and what emerged was a singular stew, a weird 6-person finger-snapping gang that hasn’t stopped blabbing on our group text ever since.
 
 Our brains were worked to the bone, our bodies were fed more than they probably should have, and we were regaled by surprise guests who gave us practical, street-level career advice. And what can I say about Scott Myers that hasn’t already been said? He’s got this wonderful, gentle, supportive approach that’s somewhere between a brilliant professor and your cool, wise uncle who plays guitar and hits you with that wisdom you need right in your all is lost moment, so you can figure out your junk, and power through your climactic third act. That’s right, Scott Myers is the deus ex machina of the lab. He’ll teach you how to write gooder, and he might make you cry when he shows you how to pitch better too. I had a couple of pitches I was preparing for, and his advice has been invaluable. And his protagonist pass is as much an exploration of your main character as it is of your own self. All of this is the magic that you come to the lab for. That, and the food. Oh my, the food.
 
 And finally, if you’re ever lucky enough to meet Shelby and Kate from the Black List team, talk to them about restaurants or obscure cinema and I guarantee you will not be disappointed. What a beautiful thing Franklin has created and Megan has shepherded with such joy and care, I’ll forever be grateful for the incredible experience.

This was my 21st Black List feature writer lab or mini-lab. This group of writers bonded in a big way and each of their script projects has merit. I look forward to seeing where their rewrite process takes these compelling stories.

Once again, kudos to the Black List team for organizing this year’s feature writer lab. I look forward to seeing what 2023 brings in terms of future Black List labs.

For reflections of writers who have participated in previous Black List feature writer labs, here are some links for you.

Reflections: 2021 Black List Feature Writers Lab

Reflections: 2020 Black List Feature Writers Lab

Reflections: 2019 Black List Feature Writers Lab

Reflections: 2018 Black List Feature Writers Lab

Reflections: 2017 Black List Feature Writers Lab

Reflections: 2016 Black List Feature Writers Lab

Update: 2015 Chicago, New York, and Toronto Black List Screenwriting Labs

Update: 2015 Los Angeles and San Francisco Screenwriting Labs

Update: 2014 Black List Feature Writers Lab

Update: 2013 Black List Feature Writers Lab

Reflections: 2021 Black List New Zealand Feature Writers Lab

Reflections: 2022 Black List/Women In Film Feature Writers Lab

Reflections: 2021 Black List/Women In Film Feature Writers Lab

Reflections: 2020 Black List/Women In Film Feature Writers Lab

Reflections: 2019 Black List/Women In Film Feature Writers Lab

Reflections: 2018 Black List/Women In Film Feature Writers Lab

For more information on the Black List educational programs, go here.