The Black List Opens Submissions For Six Diversity Lists

Introduces The Desi List For South Asian Writers

Big news in Deadline yesterday with this announcement:

The Black List is opening submissions for six diversity lists in partnership with GLAAD, CAPE, the MPAC Hollywood Bureau, The Salon, the Latin Tracking Board, NALIP, 1IN4 Coalition, and the WGA Disabled Writers Committee, in addition to establishing the Desi List-–a new, curated list that will shine a light on the most promising feature scripts and pilots from South Asian writers.

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“Hollywood gets the best movies and television and makes the most money when it makes movies and television about everyone, and we simply haven’t done that historically. I’m incredibly excited to read and inevitably fall in love with the scripts these partnerships identify, and I hope everyone else does too,” said Black List founder Franklin Leonard. “Special notice here goes to Black List SVP Kate Hagen for both the vision and the gargantuan logistical effort to synchronize these processes for the benefit of everyone, especially the writers who will submit.”

Kudos to Kate Hagen for spearheading the launch of these initiatives. I’ve gotten to know Kate over the last decade, along with Megan Halpern who were both promoted to Senior VP status a few years ago. Both are key members of the Black List management group and it’s been an immense pleasure working with them as a volunteer mentor at over twenty feature writer labs and mini-labs, a key part of their educational outreach.

In fact, the entire team Franklin Leonard has assembled at the Black List is a remarkable group. Their commitment to screenwriters and opening paths for talented writers to break into the Hollywood system is without question, as demonstrated by these latest Diversity List programs.

This tweet is pinned to my home page:

It’s exciting to see the Black List continue to create opportunities for storytellers from diverse backgrounds to bring those tales to fruition.

For more information, visit the Black List website here.