FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 30, 2018
CONTACT: Clarissa Corona 213.718.0732 communications@nhmc.org
NHMC LAUNCHES THIRD ANNUAL LATINO SCRIPTWRITERS INTENSIVE TO EXPAND RANKS OF LATINOS IN TELEVISION
Application period for NHMC's Television Writers Program to open April 9
The six-week program, a partnership between Univision and NHMC, and led by former NBC vice president of story and writer development, Geoff Harris, mentors 8 writers who are expected to complete a pilot television program that can be used to secure representation or for pitching to production companies and networks. The writers were selected from among 140 Latino professionals who have completed NHMC's prerequisite Television Writers Program. Southwest Airlines and Final Draft are program supporters.
"What's on television now is a distortion of today's multicultural reality," said Alex Nogales, NHMC president and CEO. "Only by increasing the number of Latino and other people of color writers who create the content that networks broadcast can television programming more closely mirror society. The Latino Writers Intensive, along with our Television Writers Program, helps spur the change we need to see."
The 2018 class of Latino Writers Intensive participants includes:
Latino Writers Intensive alumni who are currently developing and producing their own shows for major television networks and streaming services include:
April 9: Application Period Opens for Television Writers Program
NHMC also announced that the application period for its annual Television Writers Program will open April 9 and close Aug. 5, 2018. Program information and application form are available at https://www.nhmc.org/writersprogram.
The program, which begins in October, prepares working Latino writers for positions at major television networks. Conducted in a real-life writers' room, the five-week program is also led by Geoff Harris. Programs sponsors and supporters include ABC, NBC, Southwest Airlines, and Final Draft.
Since its launch in 2003, the Television Writers Program has trained more than 100 aspiring television writers, 35 percent of whom have earned positions on award-winning and top-rated TV shows featured on ABC, BET, CBS, CW, FOX, HBO, NBC, Amazon, Disney Jr., Hulu, Lifetime and Netflix.
### The National Hispanic Media Coalition (NHMC) is the media watchdog for the Latino community, ensuring that we are fairly and consistently represented in news and entertainment and that our voices are heard over the airwaves and on the internet. We exist to challenge executives and influencers throughout the entertainment and news industry to eliminate barriers for Latinos to express themselves and be heard through every type of medium. NHMC works to bring decision-makers to the table to open new opportunities for Latinos to create, contribute and consume programming that is inclusive, free from bias and hate rhetoric, affordable and culturally relevant. Receive real-time updates on Facebook, Twitter @NHMC and Instagram @NHMC_org.
