Program Overview

The Jewish Roots Screenwriters Collective is a new kind of writers lab, designed to help actively working film and TV writers generate stories, characters, and concepts that are rooted in Jewish wisdom, culture, and pride. In the aftermath of the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023 and the rise in global antisemitism, many writers have expressed a deep desire to bring their cultural identity and Jewish joy to the screen, and this collective will offer participants the tools to do so. 

Research has shown that when audiences build parasocial relationships with characters from a minority group, it has a real-world impact on how that group is perceived. In this way, writing Jewish characters and stories that are grounded in Jewish values and portray the authentic, diverse, lived realities of our people is a bold act of Jewish self-determination and a mechanism to combat growing antisemitism.

The Jewish Roots Screenwriters Collective follows a unique idea generation and workshop model, in the vein of The Artists’ Way, but with Jewish values at the center. In each session, participants will engage with Jewish texts to gain a rich, nuanced understanding of our deeply held values, and follow writing prompts to generate story ideas and build 3-dimensional characters that integrate these values into dramatic writing. Additionally, participants will work on an existing project to shape a pitch for a Jewish story that they’ll present to financiers at the end of the program. 

The goal of the collective is two-fold: to help participants strengthen their pitches for greenlight by infusing Jewish wisdom into their plots and characters, and to give participants the tools to proudly bring their personal Jewish POV to writers’ rooms and other creative avenues, where they can change the way Jews are represented on screen. We will also be building a supportive, creative community of writers and provide mechanisms to remain connected after the program ends.

This program is open to WGA members in good standing who are passionate about Jewish joy and pride and believe in the power of storytelling to make real-world change. No previous Jewish knowledge is required, and the texts will be nondenominational and made accessible to all.

At the culmination of the program, participants will have the opportunity to pitch a film or TV project to financiers, who may choose to option or purchase a script or fully finance production of a spec pilot or low-budget feature film. During the workshops, participants will have the opportunity to shape their pitches, and the final session will include a pitch workshop to ready the presentation for the funders.

Program Details

Session Dates

The Jewish Roots Writers Collective will meet for seven 2-hour sessions on Zoom, with a target start date in late April, running through late June. Participants may be located anywhere, as long as they are available during the evening hours in Pacific Time. 

The first six sessions will be writing workshops, and the final session will be a pitch preparation session. Participants will then have the opportunity to pitch their projects to the financiers, with a target date of late July. Pitches will happen remotely over Zoom.

The Team

The writing workshops will be taught by Emmy-nominated executive producer and writer Adam Gilad, whose work spans more than 20 TV shows and films. The Jewish Roots Screenwriters Collective is hosted by JITC Hollywood Bureau, the first and only narrative change organization dedicated to promoting authentic portrayals of Jews on screen. The Jewish Roots Writers Collective is generously funded by Judea Films.

For full bios, click here.

Participants

The initial cohort of the Jewish Roots Writers Collective will have up to 10 participants. At this time, the collective is open to WGA members, and we encourage writers who are actively staffed or developing/selling material to apply. While writers of all levels are welcome to apply, this program is not a pipeline program or lab designed for early career writers; rather, it’s intended for writers who are confident in their craft to learn how to adapt their existing techniques to make space for their identity and desire to promote Jewish storytelling.

Participants need not have previous Jewish knowledge or community engagement. We are seeking to empower those with a desire to connect creatively with Jewish texts, traditions, values, and culture. Participants will not be required nor encouraged to participate in Jewish observance, ritual, or practice in any way; this is not a religious program.

Interested parties must fill out this application to be considered.

Application Guidelines + Timeline

We encourage you to familiarize yourself with the program details and JITC Hollywood Bureau before you apply. You can find our Fact Sheet (adopted by major studios and streamers) and our “Jews on Screen” study in collaboration with USC’s Norman Lear Center Media Impact Project here to gain a better understanding of our approach to Jewish representation.

You will have the opportunity to save your application form and return to it. However, we encourage you to prepare for the following three sections before you begin:

1. Biographical information 
   1. You will be asked to upload a resume and/or credits list.
   2. You will be asked for a short bio (up to 300 words) describing your work history, and if applicable, your relationship with Jewish culture and education.
2. Short answers:
   1. Why are you interested in joining this collective (up to 500 words)?
   2. Why do you believe Jewish representation on screen is important (up to 300 words)?
   3. What is something you’d like to see represented more in Jewish content/characters on screen and why (up to 300 words)?
   4. What is a Jewish trope, stereotype, or storyline you are tired of seeing in film or TV and why (up to 300 words)?
3. Pitch:
   1. You will be asked for a logline, format, and genre(s).
   2. You will be asked for a 1-3 paragraph summary.
   3. You will have the opportunity to share any additional information.

Applications will be open from January 26, 2026 at 3:30pm PT and close March 1, 2026 at 12:01am PT. Participants will be notified of next steps in the early spring. We may conduct additional interview screenings as part of the vetting process.

If you have any issues with the application, please email cindy@jewinthecity.com.

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