THE WHALE – Writers Lab

A space where writers can refine their skills, receive feedback, and connect with a community that shares their passion for storytelling. The Writers Lab also plays a crucial role in the development and success of the writers by providing a supportive environment for learning, growth, collaboration, and networking. The workshop is led by Bafta and Sundance-nominated writer/directo Tina Gharavi.
A 3-day Writers’ Room Lab exploring the creative process of storytelling for Film & TV. The goal of the lab is to develop and encourage new languages of storytelling to emerge and build a pipeline of writers telling stories that would otherwise not come to the surface.
Our major initiative is to invite writers who are experienced but who need their craft nurtured and work through their market-ready screenplays to pitch them to the industry.
Applications go through Filmfreeway.
Tina Gharavi

Gharavi is a BAFTA and Sundance-nominated writer/director, focused on delivering authentic stories lensed with an impeccably wrought perspective. Having worked in war zones and guerrilla filmmaking, Gharavi marries her indomitable spirit with a distinct talent to deliver performances and beautifully observed stories. Her debut feature, I Am Nasrine, was nominated for a BAFTA and she is set to direct her third feature, a Virginia Woolf adaptation in 2024. Now a showrunner, Gharavi’s also engaged in development on her first TV series, Refurinn/The Fox, an Icelandic detective noir with an intriguing twist, exec produced by Nomadic Pictures (Fargo). She recently completed directing her first Netflix series, 4 episodes shot in Morocco: a hybrid drama-doc series, African Queens: The Cleopatra, for Westbrook, exec produced by Jada Pinckett-Smith.
Gharavi is also an academic, teaching filmmaking around the world, and was awarded an MIT Fellowship. She was elected into the BAFTA Academy in 2017, is represented by Independent Talent in the UK and Gersh in Los Angeles, her two home bases.