#black screenwriters

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Ryan Coogler

I just know, Ryan sat in a corner somewhere and is just quietly taking in all of this news. We've seen him be acknowledged by others during the award shows and he is always so humble about it all.

Ryan went from Football to Film due to a football injury and the encouragement of his creative writing professor, Rosemary Graham, who told him he should, "go to Hollywood and write screenplays." He noted in an interview that before his big break with Creed (2015) and eventually Black Panther (2018) he was $200,000 in debt from Film School loans. He and Zinzi got married in 2016 and later founded Proximity Media in 2021 with Sev Ohanian. Ryan and Zinzi have technically been working together since 2009 since she helped him with his short films at the time.

Imagine this man who didn't initially consider film to be his trajectory in life, writes and directs a movie from the deepest of his heart to honor his beloved Uncle...and that movie gets an Oscar nomination. The movie Variety tried to spit on about it's amazing opening weekend of 65.5 million dollars globally for a film that had a budget of 90 million. The movie that has been featured at iMAX theatres approximately 3 separate times since it's release in April 2025. A film that is beloved by its' audience and highlights the experience of many but mainly African Americans in a way we've never seen in film. A movie that has one of the most phenomenal surreal montages film audiences have ever seen. A film production that employed Black creatives, and other creatives of color, which allowed them to showcase their skill, craft, voices, and creativity through their work on this film. This film that has secured every academy award nomination that it could surpassing Titanic (1997), All About Eve (1950) and La La Land (2016) 14 nominations with 16 nominations for Sinners. Thus, Sinners is now the most nominated movie in the Academy Awards history with 16 nominations. I will also include that Sinners has also received 18 nominations from the NAACP Image Awards occurring on February 28, 2026.

There is a lot of conversation about how these awards are viewed, which awards matter, who should care and/or who should not. But I think there is something to be said about being recognized for your work let alone awarded. It is a nice feeling and it is encouraging. It's a beautiful feat when you can be recognized by those who love and respect you, but also those you may have expected to overlook you. It allows you to look at the room, the industry, the audience and realize that the work you did was seen, felt, understood and hell, maybe even appreciated. February and March will come and go but the impact that Sinners will resonate for years to come. The work of Ryan, Wunmi, Michael, Delroy, Jayme, Miles, Ludwig, and Ruth will weigh on the hearts of the audience and the culture for years to come. Whether Sinners wins anything at The Academy Awards, it will always be clear that Sinners has won the hearts of many. The support will continue and awards will never change that.

May this be encouragement for you to write that story, complete that blueprint, acknowledge the progress in that treatment plan, or be creative with your lesson plans! Let it encourage you to be mindful of those around you and the ways in which they affect you. There are flowers to be given and we don't have to wait for awards to be given in order to acknowledge, see, feel and understand those around us too..

[diaspoqueer]

Post 48: Directors

Dee Rees

Dee Rees is a screenwriter, and director! She is known for her films Pariah (if you haven't seen it, I implore you to watch it) and the Academy Award nominated Mudbound(2017). She is openly lesbian and married to Sarah M. Broom an accomplished writer in her own right.

[melodylsimpson]

Book-to-Movie/TV Adaptations From Black Writers

Did you know that only 160+ movies/shows have been adapted from books by Black authors since 1908? 4 of these were sci-fi/fantasy. Of the 160+ adaptations, 61 are adaptations of 2 books. Meanwhile, in YA alone, 50+ adaptations have been released in the past 20 years, half of which were sci-fi/fantasy. But that's not all.

My findings can be found in the essay, "Dear Hollywood, Where Are the SFF Book-to-Movie/TV Adaptations From Black Writers?" over on Reactormag.com, previously Tor.com.

Also, be sure to check out:

My Spreadsheet of ALL Black Book-to-Movie/TV Adaptations From Black Writers

My Letterboxd List of ALL Black Book-to-Movie Adaptations From Black Writers

Happy Black History Month!

[afroeditions]

Quinta Brunson Lands First Emmy; Only Second Black Woman To Win In The Writing For A Comedy Series Category

In her show’s first season, Quinta Brunson won the Emmy for Outstanding Writing For a Comedy Series tonight, making her only the second Blac

“In her show’s first season, Quinta Brunson won the Emmy for Outstanding Writing For a Comedy Series tonight, making her only the second Black woman to win in the category after Lena Waithe, and the first to win solo.”

[imthefailedartist]

Professional Background Noise

If you ever just want to watch something but it's really nothing, but it's got enough stuff happening to keep you entertained but it's nothing that matters it's Tyler Perry's Sistas and The Oval.

When I say they contain everything, I mean they contain everything. And when I say they contain nothing, I mean they contain nothing. Repetitive stilted dialogue, long static scenes, messy inconsistent characters, missing & random plot lines. Good or decent actors being terrible because their writer and director gives them no instructions, rehearsal time, do-overs, stage direction, etc.

I read an article by sometime who did a set visit, they said he recorded 20 plus episodes in 2 weeks. In an episode of a podcast someone said his scripts don't go through rewrites. He doesn't do stand-ins, or specific lighting. He does flat white light over everything, on Black people. They look so dry and ashy sometimes.

They shows are all equally wild and boring.

Kidnappings, cheating, murders, the president and first lady going toe to toe, cults, sex scandals, serial killer pervert, torture, the president is getting nasty in the oval. We have yet to see the VP and are 3 seasons deep.

This man introduces plot after plot, and none of them ever get resolved. A man's daughter was kidnapped in episode one and has yet to be returned because she's on the spin off (on which a man gets his penis sniffed)

On Sistas each of the girls are seeing a man they don't really like or understand, but won't leave them. One is an abuser but also not?!?! One lady has turned into a stalker, one is dating a white man and can't get over it. One is dating a man who likes anal play (to him) and wearing panties but she can't get over it. PEG him sis! One is the dumbest lawyer of all time. Fatma is the only one not horrible. They are the worst of friends. The men are hit and miss. The one gay character is a sex obsessed caricature of gay characters from the past, he only speaks in soundbites. Zatima is the only couple worth something, they have real chemistry.

Tyler Perry's has the market cornered in professional background noise.

[cocoabutterbrushes]

Chewing Gum creator and Black Earth Rising star Michaela Coel is bringing a new project to HBO. I May Destroy You (2020) is a thirty-minute series that explores the questions of sexual consent. Coel also goes on to explore where, in the modern landscape of dating and relationships, the distinction between liberation and exploitation lies. I May Destroy You is set to make its debut this summer!

I’m a die hard Michaela fan and I will always give her her flowers. Her writing is fresh and authentic while capturing black women in their truth. 

[diversemovies]

Get Out director wants young black filmmakers' scripts

"We're trying to promote untapped voices in genre."

"For young black horror filmmakers, if you have a script, reach out and I'll try to help it get made. Monkeypaw Productions is my production company.” - Jordan Peele

Black screenwriters send in your scripts!!!!

Jordan Peele’s Twitter: @JordanPeele 

MonkeyPaw Productions Twitter (though it doesn’t look active: @Monkeypaw_Prod

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At Deadline’s Contenders Film Los Angeles, Ryan Coogler shared why he stepped away from franchise films to make 'Sinners,' a wholly original project inspired by his love for cinema. Coogler revealed that creating something personal fueled his passion during industry uncertainty ahead of his next movie, 'Black Panther 3.' via Deadline Hollywood