Our 2021 Fellows
JORDAN COLEY is a Jamaican-American writer from Hamden, Connecticut. His work has been featured in The Ringer, GQ, and The New Yorker.
MATTHEW DEKNEEF is a writer from O‘ahu, Hawai‘i. A graduate of Kamehameha Schools, with a degree from Chapman University, he got his start in journalism at a local alt-weekly newspaper writing about film and entertainment. He has served as editor of Flux Hawaii, an arts and culture publication, and Lei, a travel platform for the LGBTQ community. Previously, he was the deputy editor at Hawaii Magazine. His recent writing on Hawaiian culture, history, and indigeneity has appeared in Teen Vogue, SSENSE, and Prior. He lives in Honolulu.
FILIPA IOANNOU is a writer and editor living in Oakland. She has covered politics, breaking news, and animals standing up like people at the San Francisco Chronicle, San Antonio Express-News and SFGate. In her spare time, she enjoys buying furniture from strangers on Craigslist with the intention of “restoring it to its former glory” and then never actually doing that.
2021 Finalists
Aaron Edwards, Alison Stine, Arabelle Sicardi, Liz Fields, Miranda Green, Sindya Bhanoo, Sydney Baloue, Taylor Hosking
About the Fellowship
Emmy- and WGA-award winning writer Cord Jefferson is excited to partner with the WGA Foundation to launch the 2021 Susan M. Haas Fellowship, which will provide two journalists interested in TV-writing with financial and creative support as they develop original pilots.
Jefferson’s experience as a journalist turned screenwriter gives him a unique lens into the entertainment industry. After regularly offering advice and behind-the-scenes counsel to journalists interested in pursuing careers in film and television, Jefferson decided to offer support in a more formal way with the Haas Fellowship.
Two writers with backgrounds in journalism will receive $25,000 each to assist with living expenses for a six-month period, during which recipients will develop their original teleplays. Each writer will also be paired with a mentor who will provide notes and guidance throughout the drafting process. At the end of the six months, fellows will have the opportunity to meet with at least two industry professionals (agents, managers, and/or executives) to aid in the process of representation, staffing, and/or further project development.
The fellowship is named after Jefferson’s late mother, who dedicated her life to education.
Eligibility
This fellowship is open to journalists without a full-time job or steady source of income. This includes part-time, freelance, unemployed, or laid-off journalists. Applicants must not have earned credit(s) or financial compensation for any prior television or film writing work to be considered.
Writers of all race, color, gender, religion, national origin, age, disability and sexual orientation are encouraged to apply. Special attention will be given to applicants from communities which have been traditionally underrepresented in television writers’ rooms. You must be 21 or older and authorized to work in the United States to participate.
Additionally, applicants must be:
Committed to completing one (1) TV pilot during the program.
Able to participate in all program meetings and fulfill all program requirements.
Open to constructive criticism and respectful of all other participants and mentors.
The Susan M. Haas Fellowship will not tolerate discrimination by participants on the basis of race, religion, gender, age, disability, or national origin. Participants who violate this rule will be immediately removed from the program.
Application Requirements
Applications are due by Sunday, February 21, 2021 by 11:59pm PST.
Current Resume: Your resume should include all past writing-related work experiences.
Cover Letter/Personal Statement: Your cover letter should be no more than 500 words. It should outline your interest in television writing and experience in journalism.
Writing Clips/Sample: Applicants should submit three journalistic writing clips, ideally those that have been featured in a publication. Audio and video journalism submissions are acceptable as well. Your writing sample should not be a screenplay or teleplay.
Pitches/Ideas: Applications should include three brief original pilot ideas. Pitches should not exceed 250 words and can be about original topics of any genre.
Terms of Use: Applicants will be required to agree to a submission agreement before submitting their applications.
Late applications will not be accepted or reviewed.
Selection Process
After the application window closes, you may be contacted to set up a phone interview. Not all applicants will be asked to do a phone interview.
You will be notified about the status of your application no later than Friday, April 2, 2021.
Covid Impact
In light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, all Susan M. Haas Fellowship programming will take place online. Do not hesitate to apply if you currently do not have reliable access to internet and a computer with a functioning microphone and camera. Accommodations can be made to assist with those expenses.
Program Schedule
Exact dates and scheduling details will be announced upon acceptance to the program.
About Cord Jefferson
Cord is an Emmy, WGA, and NAACP award-winning writer who has worked on HBO’s Emmy and Golden Globe-winning series ‘Succession,’ NBC’s Golden Globe-nominated series ‘The Good Place,’ and HBO’s Emmy-winning limited series ‘Watchmen.' Cord recently worked on ‘Moonfall’ for Amazon as a Co-Executive Producer, ‘Station Eleven’ for HBO Max, and he previously worked on Netflix’s ‘Master of None’ (he co-wrote the episode ‘New York, I Love You’), ‘The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore’ for Comedy Central, and the Starz comedy series ‘Survivor’s Remorse. Prior to writing for TV, Cord was the West Coast editor for Gawker. His reporting and writing have appeared in The New York Times, National Geographic, Bookforum, and various other publications.
Cord and Susan
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Terms of Use
By submitting an application to THE SUSAN M. HAAS FELLOWSHIP, I release THE SUSAN M. HAAS FELLOWSHIP STAFF SELECTION COMMITTEE, THE WRITERS GUILD FOUNDATION STAFF, and CORD JEFFERSON and all their subsidiaries, affiliates, officers, representatives, employees, and volunteers from any and all liability arising from the submission of my information, ideas and/or works or otherwise in connection with the submission of my application to THE SUSAN M. HAAS FELLOWSHIP.