Back in April, I interviewed the directors of NYWIFT and IRIS about their noted launch of The Writers Lab, a retreat for women screenwriters over 40, that received a substantial amount of funding from Meryl Streep. The 12 inaugural participants, listed below, were selected from a pool of over 3,500 applicants. The eight mentors for the weekend long September lab are Jessica Bendinger (Bring It On, Aquamarine), Caroline Kaplan (Time Out of Mind, Me and You and Everyone We Know), Meg LeFauve (Inside Out), Darnell Martin (Cadillac Records), Lydia Dean Pilcher (Darjeeling Limited, The Talented Mr. Ripley), Gina Prince-Bythewood (Secret Life of Bees, Beyond the Lights, Mary Jane Skalski (Win Win, The Station Agent) and Kirsten Smith (Legally Blond, Ten Things I Hate About You).

Sarah Bird, Daughter of a Daughter of a Queen

Vanessa Carmichael, The American

Tracy Charlton, Raised Up

Kellen Hertz  Ashburn

Anna Hozian, Anchor Baby

Lyralen Kaye, John the Divine in Iowa

Jan Kimbrough, The Glastonbury Cow Party

Billie Mason, The Cargo

Peres Owino, Basketweaver

Gretchen Somerfeld, Face Value

Janet Stilson, Jaguar Trail

Kim Turner, It Goes Like This