Meryl Streep has made a "significant" contribution to a new initiative nurturing female screenwriters over the age of 40. Hopefully we will see a rise in the number of films written by women. This year's Oscars were a disaster when it came to equality - maybe in a few years time more women will get the opportunity to produce, write and direct more films.
The Writers Lab, run by New York Women in Film and Television, will mentor eight screenwriters at a retreat in upstate New York. Providing guidance will be the likes of Gina Prince-Bythewood, writer-director of cult romantic hit Beyond the Lights, Boyhood producer Caroline Kaplan and Legally Blonde writer Kirsten Smith. The initiative was launched over the weekend at the Tribeca film festival, and will aim to develop and hone the selected writers’ scripts. It comes following a study last year that found the number of female screenwriters in the US was falling, from 17% of the sector in 2009 to 15% in 2014. They were also found to be paid less than their male counterparts.
