This residency programme was established for women who are outstanding Canadian feature-film screenwriters, to elevate and support talent. Each year, one writer will be provided with the opportunity to work and be mentored in the heart of Toronto’s dynamic downtown district, so they may develop their feature-film screenplay. A jury of leading screen-industry professionals will decide the winner. The Residency, which began in 2018, will run for five years until 2022. It is being generously supported by Toronto-based actor, journalist, and author Micki Moore, in response to TIFF’s Share Her Journey campaign.
What’s Included
Eligibility
Candidates for the programme will represent the industry’s brightest emerging talent with a narrative feature-film project. The selected Writer-in-Residence must be a woman whose existing written work has gained some attention. This work could include: online or television projects with significant audience views; a short or feature that has been selected for major festivals; a project that has been developed through a leading international script lab; or a feature that has gained momentum through box-office or foreign sales. Applicants must reside in Canada and be Canadian citizens or permanent residents.
Application Process
With your application, please include the first 15 pages of your feature-film script and a synopsis of your project (maximum 500 words). Submissions should also include a creative vision for the project, a logline, and information on any above-the-line attachments. Applicants must also submit a video pitch, no more than two minutes in duration. The applicant should comment on their project and filmmaking approach, as well as why they would like to participate in the Micki Moore Residency.
Selection Process
Each submission to the TIFF Micki Moore Residency is carefully reviewed by a pre-selection committee comprising up to three members of the TIFF Industry programming team. A shortlist of candidates will then be presented to an external jury of leading screen-industry professionals, who will review, deliberate, and select this year’s Micki Moore Writer-in-Residence.
Joanne Sarazen is a screenwriter, playwright, and alumna of the Canadian Film Centre’s 2017 Writers’ Lab. Her first feature-length screenplay, Tammy’s Always Dying, makes its World Premiere at TIFF 2019. Produced by Jessica Adams and directed by Amy Jo Johnson, the film stars Felicity Huffman, Anastasia Phillips, Clark Johnson, and Lauren Holly. As a playwright, Sarazen’s work has been produced in Montreal, Toronto, and Banff. She was the recipient of the MainLine Theatre’s Next Stage Award, and has earned several nominations for her work in the Montreal Fringe Festivals.
