Letter from ScreenCraft Fellow Elie El Choufany

As part of our ongoing Letters from Past ScreenCraft Fellowship Winners series, our 2019 winner Elie El Choufany shares some thoughts on his experience.  For additional letters, click HERE.

Dear Screenwriter,

I know you. You have a clear goal in mind; a specific vision of the career you want as a storyteller in the spellbinding world of film and television. And it all lies just beyond that door if only you can get a foot in.

But how can someone from middle-of-nowhere Lebanon even come close to a door like that?  How can you?

Winning the 2019 ScreenCraft Film and TV Screenwriting Fellowship did not just get me a foot in the door, it gave me the key.

The ScreenCraft Fellowship is a roller coaster that involves meetings with executives, producers, managers, and studios from all over town. But it is more than just that: it is a support system.  The team at ScreenCraft took the time to understand who I am as a storyteller and helped me pave a unique path into the industry that compliments my specific sensibilities.

The meetings I took with Dreamworks, Bad Robot, and Warner Bros, to name a few, were not randomly generated, but instead, they were curated in an attempt to help me find where I best fit in such a diverse landscape.

It is with that kind of support and that kind of dedication from the ScreenCraft team that I was able to navigate what can easily be a confusing and overwhelming process.

Among the many challenges that come with being a screenwriter, one of the most difficult to address is finding the right vehicle to get you where you want to go. In other terms, ScreenCraft is not the Threshold Guardian that you must get past, but rather the ally that is going to help you take your first step in what can be a long-lasting and rewarding journey.  And yes, in this analogy, you are the hero.  And heroes need allies to overcome obstacles.  Fair warning, though, no capes.

What separates the ScreenCraft Fellowship from other lookalikes is their commitment to tailoring your journey moving forward so you can have the best possible chances of achieving that clear goal you’ve had in mind and worked so hard for, for so long.

And to top everything off, the highly-skilled team at ScreenCraft introduced me to my current literary manager, and have played a pivotal role in helping me launch my career. If you’re looking for an ally to help launch yours, look no further.

Learn more about the ScreenCraft Fellowship here!

Elie El Choufany was born in Lebanon and studied filmmaking at the London Film School before relocating to Los Angeles. He has worked as a writer, director, editor, and cinematographer. After winning the 6th Annual ScreenCraft Screenwriting Fellowship, he signed with literary manager, Tom Drumm, of Think Tank MGMT.

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