Julian Fellowes, Scott Frank, Peter Straughan, Brian Helgeland and Abi Morgan to deliver lectures for BFI and BAFTA

Throughout September and October 2012, the British Academy of Film and Television Arts and BFI will host lectures delivered by some of the best screenwriters working in international cinema.

Now in its third year, the series celebrates the screenwriter’s contribution to a film’s creative vision. The marks a screenwriter makes on a blank page are often the first steps of a film’s journey to the screen, yet it is the contribution of the director and the actors that gets the most attention once the film is produced. This series gives a platform to the world’s top screenwriters to explore their creative processes and share their insights with an audience of film-lovers and their peers.

The strand will feature five events at BAFTA and BFI Southbank from 26 September – 27 October this year:

The season has been programmed by Screenwriter and BAFTA Film Committee member Jeremy Brock who says: “We want to celebrate some of the best writers in the industry and also champion screenwriters as collaborative authors of films, rather than simply as adjuncts of the director’s vision. A film is not a singular piece of work, but a true collaboration.”

Webcasts of all the lectures including exclusive video content will be available to all on the BAFTA and BFI websites later in the year. The 2011 Lecture Series including lectures with Charlie Kaufman, William Nicholson, Moira Buffini, Paul Laverty, John Logan, Frank Cottrell Boyce and Guillermo Arriaga is screening on Sky Arts at 8pm on Thursday evenings through August and the first weeks of September.
The lectures are as follows: 26th September Julian Fellowes BFI Southbank, 1st October Scott Frank BFI Southbank, 24th October Peter Straughan BFI Southbank, 26th October Brian Helgeland BFI Southbank, 27th October Abi Morgan BAFTA.
The season is funded by JJ Charitable Trust, one of the Sainsbury Family Charitable Trusts.