DUBAI: The Middle Eastern Writers Committee, a new group that is part of Writers Guild of America West, has asked the US film industry to acknowledge their talent and to “take more chances” on them in an open letter published this week.
“Reach out to us. Get to know our work. And most of all, take more chances on us to both tell our own stories and contribute to the ones being crafted in writers rooms all over town,” read the letter.
According to a 2020 report published by the group, writers from the region "are dead last, making up only 0.3% of employed writers. That’s pretty close to 0%.”
“Because of this, we find ourselves at a cultural inflection point, and we’re asking for your allyship to improve this number,” the letter reads. “Identifying the problem is the first step – taking action is what should follow.”
The letter was signed by over 50 members of the committee including writer and director of “The White Tiger” – Ramin Bahrani – and actor and writer of “Three Busy Debras” – Mitra Jouhari.
