The Workshop
Michelangelo is a rigorous residential writing program in Italy, designed to get you away from the distractions of life and going on a new project or rewrite. You’ll get intensive daily feedback from a top screenwriting professor, along with peer feedback and guidance. In our secluded villa near Cortona or in the charming medieval hill town of Orvieto, you'll be able to focus in a way that isn't possible at home.
Workshops run for two weeks and accommodate no more than 9 students. Each two week session will include 10 class days, with off days interspersed. In Session 1, you will be far from distractions in a remote villa, with delicious Italian country cooking provided on every class day. In Session 2, the entire town of Orvieto will be your playground—you'll be free to choose among the gardens of our convent and the cafes of the town for your favorite spot to write.
For more information on the workshops, keep reading or see the PROGRAM. Note: Michelangelo Screenwriting has no affiliation with any university programs, and therefore does not carry course credit.
Session 1: Villa Michelangelo Retreat
While designed primarily for screenwriters, writers working in other genres are more than welcome in this Tuscan country retreat. The workshop will be led by Robin Russin, an award-winning, produced screenwriter; longtime UCLA professor and lecturer; author of Screenplay: Writing the Picture and Naked Playwriting; and currently Director of the Multi-Genre MFA in Creative Writing and Writing for the Performing Arts at the University of California, Riverside. For more detail on Robin and the course, see the PROGRAM.
Villa Michelangelo is a restored farmhouse on a dominating ridge in southeastern Tuscany. The villa, which typically rents for $5,000/week, is over 500 years old, with seven bedrooms, three kitchens and three and a half baths.
There are numerous quiet areas where you can work undisturbed. Let us suggest the rooftop terrace from which you can see 20 miles of Tuscan countryside, or maybe you'd prefer poolside where you can work on your tan while revising your scenes between laps.
The closest major town is Cortona, the setting of Under the Tuscan Sun. Frances Mayes still lives there—we know because we've bumped into her. Villa Michelangelo is also convenient to Lake Trasimeno, and famous destinations like Siena, Perugia, and Assisi.
For more information on the location, see VILLA MICHELANGELO.
Session 2: Orvieto Screenwriting Bootcamp
Session 2 will be an intense residential screenwriting workshop in an idyllic urban setting. The workshop will be led Emmy Winner and five-time Emmy Nominee Ron Hutchinson, who has had over thirty television and feature film scripts produced. Ron is also an award-winning playwright and has taught at the American Film Institute (AFI). For more detail on Ron and the course, see the PROGRAM.
A walled hill town of great antiquity, Orvieto sits on a spectacular butte of volcanic rock whose sheer cliffs fall nearly 1,000 feet to the valley floor. Orvieto is most famous for its gorgeous gothic Duomo, its Etruscan underground city, and its wines. In the long summer evenings, the daytrippers disperse, and you'll have enchanting medieval streets almost to yourself.
We'll be staying in the Istituto San Lodovico, a convent with a beautiful garden on the town's southwestern wall. The nuns there have a lot of experience in hosting creative seminars and workshops.
Orvieto is easy to access from the Florence-Rome motorway and rail lines—both pass beneath the town. You won't need to rent a car unless you want to check out other nearby tourist destinations, like Todi and Lake Bolsena, and the sights of southern Tuscany.
For more information on the location, see ORVIETO.
How To Apply
Tuition, which varies by session and room assignment, covers both the course fee and housing for two weeks. Returning students are eligible for a small discount. Writers that itemize their tax returns may be able to deduct this as a business or education expense.
Applications require a resume, 10-page writing sample, and a 1-2 page description of the writing project prospective students wish to work on. Apply at write.michelangelo@yahoo.com, by January 31, 2012. The earlier you submit your application, the better. We will continue to accept applications after January 14th if courses are not full, and we will maintain a waiting list thereafter.
For more information, see REGISTRATION.
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Michelangelo Screenwriting was founded in 2008 by UCLA/Loyola Marymount professor Paul Chitlik and UCLA Advanced Professional Program alumnus Carlo Cavagna.
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