EXCLUSIVE: Netflix’s Forever creator Mara Brock Akil’s Writers Colony has added eight new up and coming writers to their winter cohort, which ran from January – April 2025, and spring cohort, which began in April and is coming to a close June 30th.
The Writer’s Colony is a three-month, LA-Based screenwriting residency where writers have the chance to develop an original script that showcases their writing voice and vision. Throughout the residency they workshop their scripts and have access to network with a variety of entertainment professionals at all levels to prepare them to launch into the industry. The residency is an unprecedented opportunity for underrepresented writers, with cohorts made up of those who have not been on staff with a studio or been in a scripted television’s writers room. The goal of the colony is to amplify the voices of those who have not yet had the chance to bring their ideas to the page.
“Throughout the past four years, I have been proud and inspired by the impact of the Writer’s Colony,” said founder Mara Brock Akil. “It has been an honor to continue the colony’s commitment to supporting underrepresented emerging writers with this year’s winter and spring cohorts, and have been thrilled to see them continue to grow and flourish as storytellers.”
Spring cohort are as follows:
- Stacy Pascal Gaspard, a film and television director who is passionate for sharing her vibrant Afrolatin-Caribbean culture, and her love for dance, on the big screen.
- Amandla Baraka‘s portfolio ranges from brands such as Target and American Express, to directorial work on music videos (Masego and Don Toliver’s “Mystery Lady) and short film (“Lost Keys”), all of which are centered in her mission to tell stories with honesty and care.
- Niambi Powell is a screenwriter passionate about social work and film, even co-founding her own non-profit while charting her path in the world of screenwriting.
- EJ Lykes, Los Angeles based writer and producer, whose work includes Ruby Rose Collins’ “all the love i could handle,” which was selected for Voices of Culture and will premiere during the 2025 American Black Film Festival, amongst others.
“It is a privilege to support and foster the growth of the up and coming writers the colony has worked with, and who have joined us throughout this past year,” Artistic Director Natalie Guerrero added. “Having the ability to develop as a writer and an artist in a nurturing and supportive environment is essential, and it is an honor to be a part of this organization.”
The winter cohort members included: two-time Emmy and GLAAD-awards winning producer, director and writer
- Nasir Kenneth Ferebee, whose credits include work with MTV, The Oprah Winfrey Network, Bravo, BET, Lifetime, HBO, NBC, and more.
- Jowaan Sullivan, whose work as a storyteller, actor, and director over the past 25 years has appeared in brands ranging from APPLE to New Yorker Mag, Vogue x Emmy’s, and more.
- Kirby Marshall-Collins, a TV drama writer and director whose work focuses on amplifying the voices of Black and queer people, who has throughout her career succeeded as a 2023 Disney Writing Fellow, a Panavision New Filmmaker Program grant recipient for her coming-of-age short WAYS TO FLY (2025) which premiered at the Pan African Film Festival.
- Sule Murray, a screenwriter and producer, focused on exploring themes of cultural memory, community, and exploitation, celebrating the ingenuity and creativity of marginalized voices while tackling complex issues with empathy and imagination.
Previous Writers Colony cohorts included Duran Jones, Dorado Quick, Sahari Moore, and Sunny Dae in the Spring 2024 Cohort. The Fall 2023 Cohort included Aissa Rose Gueye, Cliff L. Powell, Aquilia “Q” Mikel, and Ernest Crosby.
