On the heels of the whitest Oscars since 1998, Patricia Arquette’s semi-accidental rebel call for “gay people and people of color” to fight for women’s rights, and a generally rising tide of consciousness about how minorities are treated in Hollywood, HBO announced that it will launch a new fellowship geared specifically towards diversity.
On Wednesday, the network that currently has hit shows “Game of Thrones,” “Girls,” “True Detective” and “Last Week Tonight with Jon Oliver,” declared that they will seek “emerging writers from diverse backgrounds” and that those selected will participate in a week of master classes, focusing on things like story development and how to pitch their work, before embarking upon an eight-month writing journey paired with an HBO development executive.
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Last year, HBO tried a similar format focusing on directors. The HBOAccess Directing Fellowship produced four short films that will be aired on HBO Go and HBO On Demand this March.
