New Screenwriters on Breaking In

Heather Gromley became a Staff Writer on SINGLE DRUNK FEMALE, Season 2, after serving as Writers' Assistant on Season 1. But first, she earned a master's in Museum Studies, moved from Indianapolis to LA, and became Mike Judge's assistant. We'll talk about her experience working for Mike, how that job led her to SINGLE DRUNK FEMALE, and how she got promoted to Staff Writer after just one season. I'm Priscilla Nguyen, a pre-WGA writer, and you're listening to NEW SCREENWRITERS ON BREAKING IN.Heather Gromley is a Korean-American screenwriter from rural Illinois. She earned a bachelor's degree in English Literature from the University of Tampa, and a master's degree in Museum Studies from Johns Hopkins University. In 2015 she moved to Los Angeles, and in 2019 she became Mike Judge's assistant, working on SILICON VALLEY and the BEAVIS AND BUTT-HEAD reboot. In 2021, she became the Writers' Assistant on SINGLE DRUNK FEMALE, and in 2022, she became a Staff Writer on the same show.

Kelechi Urama staffed off a hot new pilot that had just been optioned. But first she had to drop out of Fordham, transfer to Pittsburgh, and finally move to LA. We'll talk about how she got stuck working admin, used the pandemic to write three new pilots, and got repped off the Black List. I'm Priscilla Nguyen, a pre-WGA writer, and you're listening to NEW SCREENWRITERS ON BREAKING IN.Kelechi Urama is a Nigerian-American screenwriter from Maryland. She graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with a degree in Communications, and moved to Los Angeles a year later. In 2020, she wrote a comedy pilot called I NEED BLACK FRIENDS, which got her a manager and an option agreement with Party Over Here and CBS Studios. In 2021, she became a Staff Writer on RUN THE WORLD.

Ellie Guzman was a Script Coordinator at Dreamworks when her bosses promoted her to Staff Writer. But first she started as a Production Assistant, moved up to Production Coordinator, and took a bunch of Dreamworks screenwriting classes. We'll talk about how she became a Script Coordinator, the landscape for animation writers, and her strategy to avoid getting pigeonholed. I'm Priscilla Nguyen, a pre-WGA writer, and you're listening to NEW SCREENWRITERS ON BREAKING IN.Ellie Guzman is a Salvadoran-American screenwriter. She graduated from USC in 2015 with a degree in Human Biology and worked in the ER before quitting to PA on an animated show. In 2019, she became Script Coordinator on another animated series called ARCHIBALD'S NEXT BIG THING IS HERE!, where she wrote her first freelance episodes. In 2020, she became Script Coordinator on KUNG FU PANDA: THE DRAGON KNIGHT, and in 2021, she became a Staff Writer on the same show.

Jeane Phan Wong changed reps during a low point in her career who helped her turn things around and get staffed. But first, she worked as an assistant for eight years, got into NBC Writers on the Verge, and sold three pilots. We'll talk about her experience as a Script Coordinator, how she sold those pilots, and why she decided to change her reps. I'm Priscilla Nguyen, a pre-WGA writer, and you're listening to NEW SCREENWRITERS ON BREAKING IN.Jeane Phan Wong is a Vietnamese Chinese writer. She grew up in the San Gabriel Valley and majored in English at UCLA. After interning briefly for a local congressman, she decided to pursue a career in Hollywood and worked as a TV assistant for eight years, starting on THE VAMPIRE DIARIES and ending with ARROW. In 2016, she participated in the NBC Writers on the Verge program, as well as the inaugural Women in Film / The Black List Episodic Lab. Jeane has also sold three scripts and landed one feature writing assignment. In 2021, she became a Staff Writer on an upcoming historical drama series.

Kale Futterman got her MFA in 2017, but it took four more years before she got staffed. During that time, she assisted two writer-producers, wrote ten scripts, and worked in education to pay the bills. We'll talk about getting the MFA, the pros and cons of personal assisting, and taking charge of her career. I'm Priscilla Nguyen, a pre-WGA writer, and you're listening to NEW SCREENWRITERS ON BREAKING IN.Kale Futterman is a Black screenwriter from New York City. She majored in Visual Arts at Stanford, and got an MFA in Screenwriting from USC in 2017. For the next three years she worked as an assistant, first to a writer-producer named Robert Munic, and then another writer-producer named Nicole Jefferson Asher. In 2021, she became a Staff Writer on GINNY & GEORGIA. In 2022, she staffed on an upcoming animated series called BAD CRIMES.

Erica Tremblay met her showrunner and collaborator, Sterlin Harjo, through the Native Filmmakers Lab at Sundance. But that was a decade in the making. Before that, she made a short film, two documentaries, and hundreds of videos for major publishers. We'll talk about how she got into advertising, switched to publishing, and staffed off a feature sample. I'm your host, Priscilla Nguyen, and you're listening to NEW SCREENWRITERS ON BREAKING IN.Erica Tremblay is a Native-American writer and director from the Seneca-Cayuga Nation. She grew up in Missouri and lives on Cayuga Lake in upstate New York, where she is currently studying her Indigenous language. In 2007, she wrote, produced, and starred in a short film called TINY RED UNIVERSE. In 2012, she released a documentary called HEARTLAND: A PORTRAIT OF SURVIVAL, about a devastating tornado that had struck her hometown. In 2014, she released another documentary called IN THE TURN, about a ten-year-old girl who is unable to participate in sports because she's trans. Several years later, she wrote and directed a short film called LITTLE CHIEF, which premiered at Sundance in 2020. In 2021, she became an Executive Story Editor on DARK WINDS, an upcoming series for AMC, and subsequently staffed on RESERVATION DOGS at FX.

Victoria González wrote her first episode of television as a Showrunner's Assistant. She started as a page at CBS, and got staffed a mere four years later. We'll talk about how she found an all-Latina writers' group, went viral on Twitter, and got staffed off a 50-page comedy sample. I'm your host, Priscilla Nguyen, and you're listening to NEW SCREENWRITERS ON BREAKING IN.Victoria González is a Mexican-American television writer. She was the first in her family to go to college, and started her writing career in the CBS page program. From there she landed a job on CRAZY EX-GIRLFRIEND, where the creator, Aline Brosh-McKenna, became one of her mentors. In 2021, she co-wrote an episode of DIARY OF A FUTURE PRESIDENT, and later that year became a Staff Writer on SAVED BY THE BELL.

Van B. Nguyen sold a spec script called BLACKOUT that's now in post-production. She began as a Set PA in Austin, and worked in production for ten years before finally getting staffed. We'll talk about why she moved to LA, changed her mindset, and stopped chasing reps. I'm your host, Priscilla Nguyen, and you're listening to NEW SCREENWRITERS ON BREAKING IN.Van B. Nguyen is a Vietnamese-American screenwriter. She grew up in Houston and came up as an Assistant Director in Austin before moving to LA. While in Austin, she wrote an action film called BLACKOUT that's currently in post-production, starring Josh Duhamel. In 2019, she placed on the WeForShe WriteHer List, and in 2020 she was selected for the Film Independent Episodic Lab. In 2021, Van became a Staff Writer on BLUE BLOODS.

Shruti Saran met her current showrunner through a hashtag on Twitter called #blackoutscriptreads. But first, she quit her job, found a writers' group, and got serious about networking. Today we'll talk about how she did it – all while living in Austin, Texas. I'm your host, Priscilla Nguyen, and you're listening to NEW SCREENWRITERS ON BREAKING IN.Shruti Saran is an Indian-American screenwriter. She grew up in India, England, and the United States, and graduated from the University of Michigan with a degree in biology. Shruti worked in digital marketing for several years before quitting to write full-time. While living in Austin, Texas, she began building a network on Twitter, and periodically traveled to LA to network in person. Eventually she wrote a drama pilot that got her an agent, a manager, and a slew of general meetings. In 2021, she wrote a buzzy comedy pilot called BAD GANDHI that got her staffed on her first show, a new series for Netflix.

Welcome to New Screenwriters on Breaking In, a show about how women of color (and other writers) are breaking in today. I'm Priscilla Nguyen, and in each episode you'll hear from a writer who broke in within the last five years about how they buckled down, found their reps, and got their first job. If you want to know how new writers are breaking in - not twenty years ago, but today - don't miss New Screenwriters on Breaking In. Subscribe now, or visit us online at newscreenwriterspodcast.com.