Miriam Devitt, the recipient of the 2016 Warner Bros. Creative Talent Scholarship, writes about her adventures in screenwriting, and her plans to take things to the next level.
I’ve been telling stories all my life - I’ve been driven to communicate with an audience for as long as I can remember.
Warner Brothers Ireland awards scholarship to @myIADT student Miriam Devitt:https://t.co/SFYisooLRR pic.twitter.com/zDUpWd2f49
— IADT Dun Laoghaire (@myIADT) November 21, 2016
When I was 6 years old I performed a poem with my best friend at a community talent contest, and I was hooked. I realised the power the storyteller had – as a writer, as a performer – to share an idea with an audience, to entertain and enthral them, and perhaps to even shape their lives in some small way. The power of the written word has deep roots in Irish society; we are a nation of bards and poets, playwrights and raconteurs. When I write I feel a fire in my belly in a way that few other things make me feel. I particularly like to write about issues that give people a voice; women’s issues, those of children, the LGBT community, people with disabilities, people of colour. I love to research and dive into people’s lives and find what makes them tick, I love the psychology of unpicking a character, and I love the craft of plotting a good story to keep an audience hooked, whatever the journey or message of that story is.
The power of the written word has deep roots in Irish society; we are a nation of bards and poets, playwrights and raconteurs.
After graduating from Trinity College Dublin with a Degree in Drama and Theatre, I worked professionally in theatre, film and broadcast/online media as a writer, a performer, a teacher, a director, a radio documentary maker, and a producer. While my primary degree gave me a broad education helping me to work in these various areas, I became increasingly drawn to writing –and specifically writing for film. However, in order to develop my skills, practice and approach to writing to their fullest potential, I knew that I needed more targeted training. So I applied for the Masters in Screenwriting at the National Film School.
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Watch: Barry, a short film by Miriam Devitt
In the past couple of years, I have written several draft scripts and successfully written and produced two short films. These were self-funded and called in the help and support of many talented professional cast and crew members, who worked for little or nothing. While I have been grateful for their goodwill and support, I want now take my practice to the next professional level: I need to garner the skills and confidence to give my stories the time and attention they need during development so that they will attract professional funding levels. This in turn would allow me to work in a fully professional context with higher production values, one where cast and crew can be reimbursed adequately and dedicate their skills to realising the story in a way that resonates more strongly with audiences. This Masters represents a significant step forward, allowing me to hone my writing skills and enter the Irish, and international, film industry with a really strong, marketable and resonant feature length screenplay to offer.
I love the psychology of unpicking a character, and I love the craft of plotting a good story to keep an audience hooked, whatever the journey or message of that story is.
The Warner Bros. Scholarship has provided a tremendous opportunity for me, a single mother who would otherwise have struggled to pay the fees, to return to college as a Masters student. The National Film School at IADT has an excellent reputation for producing talent for the Irish film and television industry. Our course is a very practical Masters, focused on us completing a screenplay for our final project and with award-winning lecturers who work in the industry we are in good hands. The scholarship, as well as providing me with financial support to complete the masters, offers me mentoring, screenings and a short placement at their Dublin office.
That kind of support, in a competitive industry such as this, is invaluable.
Find out more about the Warner Bros. Creative Talent Scholarship here.
