Caveat, the Lower East Side cabaret, filled with students, faculty and industry insiders to watch staged readings of six TV pilots. Two fully produced webisodes were also screened to a packed crowd. All were part of the Spring Showcase hosted by the exciting MFA in Television Writing that’s bringing world renown to Stony Brook University.
“The pilots showcased are on a par with what’s streaming and airing on major platforms and networks today,” said MFA Program Director Alan Kingsberg. “The ideas are cutting-edge and each has a powerful emotional or comedic core.”
Casket Girls by Jamie Bokman tells the story of a queer woman who pretends to be a vampire to fight against her arranged marriage and the patriarchy of the church in 1729 New Orleans.
Fallen Grace by Turner Scholar Omani McDaniels is about a mixed race woman who struggles to rebuild her life when her famous rapper dad gets cancelled and the family loses their money and reputation.
Graduate Council Fellow Devon Lang’s Live Nude Girls features a single mom who tries to unionize a ragtag band of coworkers at a rundown midwestern strip club.
Other pilots performed were Saturn Return, written by Gregory Abbey, Things to Do Before We Die by Tristan Rodriguez and Title Town by Mark Lugio. The two webisodes screened were “Two Ninjas and a Cat” by Dave Chan and “Muse” by Emma Gutt.
Located in the heart of Manhattan, Stony Brook’s MFA in Television Writing is a two-and-a-half year program that offers the most comprehensive TV writing curriculum in the country. MFA students complete TV writing portfolios that are designed to launch their careers. The MFA is part of the prestigious Lichtenstein Center, which includes programs in creative writing, film, television and more.
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