Here are the women on Variety’s 10 screenwriters to Watch. It is really focused on comedy writers and seems to have a bit of a feminist bent. Here’s to hoping these women make some good films that we get to see in theatres.
Emma Forrest
“I’m from the Nora Ephron school,” she confesses. “Everything is copy. Every guy I get involved with for five minutes knows I’m going to write about him.” Liars (A-E) is about her relationship and breakup with actor Colin Farrell.
Emily Halpern & Sarah Haskins
It’s not very often that a true feminist voice is accepted into mainstream Hollywood but I am happy to report that Sarah Haskins, culture satirist extraordinaire has some seriously great projects in the pipeline. Her script Book Smart written with Emily Halpern about two overachieving high school seniors who, after realizing the only thing they haven’t accomplished is having boyfriends, resolve to find ones by the prom has been bought by Natalie Portman. The women are now adapting Lunch Lady for Amy Poehler.
Mindy Kaling
Best known for her role on the office Kaling’s first spec script, “The Low Self Esteem of Lizzy Gillespie,” a romantic comedy about a female underdog, which she co-wrote with seasoned scribe and “Office” colleague Brent Forrester, is currently being pitched to studios.
Liz Meriwether
A big fan of fart jokes and profanity, the Michigan native gives props to Judd Apatow for reviving the R-rated comedy, but she chooses to tell stories about the female experience. “Benefits” turns the romantic comedy upside down, beginning in bed and then exploring whether the relationship is worth pursuing. Refreshingly, the female lead character — the Portman role — just may not be that into him.
“People want to put women in one box,” Meriwether says, “and I’m interested in how women can be everything at once. She can be a slut who wants to fall in love, or she can party too much, but she’s still very smart. I want to expand the vocabulary.” With impeccable comic timing, she adds, “We’ll see how long I last.”
Michelle Morgan
“Michelle has a very fresh, honest and contemporary young female voice,” says Debbie Liebling, the Fox exec who hired her. “She’s funny in a very natural way. Sometimes, comedy gets pushed to a place where it couldn’t happen, but there’s a tremendous believability to her comedy.”
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