Why the world should sit up and take notice of the London Screenwriters' Festival.
It was my privilege and pleasure to be invited as a mentee to The London Screenwriters' Festivals' Talent Campus 2.0. sponsored by Creative Skillset and the BFI.
I turned up with no preconception as to the demographic of delegates, so it was to my delight that I discover the diverse range of amazing co-attendees. Black, white, oriental, able bodied, disabled, American, English, Scottish, Antipodean, German, Chinese, Indian, to name but a few.
Now you'd think if you placed these total strangers into a small room and left them to their own devices, that it wouldn't be long before religion or politics would rear their head. However, throughout the entire three days, I only heard one hilarious quip about Brexit; that was it. Why, I wondered, did everyone bond almost instantly? Why was there no awkwardness in conversing? Were we being merely polite or, to use a buzzword of today, tolerant?
No. I choose to believe that we had far more important things uniting us than could ever divide us. A love of the written word, a respect for our craft and each other, respect for the sacrifices which participants had made in order to merely be there, a passion for sharing and an ambition to improve not just our writing but ourselves.
This weekend, for me, was all to do with how we can influence positively the outcome for others and in return, help ourselves to have a greater understanding of the challenges which we all face as writers and humans. Steered towards a more positive attitude to others and ourselves by the inimitable Chris Jones, we learned the possibilities that await us if we surrender to only good vibes and do not allow ourselves to be dragged down by the negative influences which surround us.
What an pity, I thought, that the remainder of the world could not be a fly on the wall at Ealing Studios last weekend, to observe the unequivocal acceptance of one fellow human being for another. It was truly magical.
Cheers!
P.S. After the weekend, I even found myself telling my husband, who happened to be in a momentary huff, to stand up and “fluff his aura”. You should have seen his face, haha!
