The Oxbelly Retreat is an annual gathering of international storytellers, dedicated to the exchange of ideas, deepening of craft and broadening of artistic horizons through intercultural dialogue.
In 2024, the Oxbelly Retreat includes programs for writers working in film, television and literature to workshop their writing with both advisors and peers and to engage in dialogue across mediums through the interdisciplinary evening sessions. Each program is led by established writers in their respective fields – Screenwriters program led by Nicole Perlman, Episodic Writers program led by Jörg Winger with program advisor Jen Blake, and Fiction Writers program led by Chigozie Obioma.
Screenwriters Programs
The Screenwriters program of the Oxbelly Retreat supports eight screenwriters developing their second feature who are seeking to strengthen their craft and push the boundaries of their unique cinematic voice.
The program will primarily consist of one-on-one sessions with screenwriter advisors and craft sessions with their peers and experienced writer, director and producer advisors, equally dedicated to empowering risk-taking and bold storytelling. Additional film industry special guests join the second half of the Retreat, holding sessions on approaches and tools to pursue a path to production. Fellows will also have unstructured time to work on their scripts at the beautiful Costa Navarino in historic Messinia, Greece.
Application Deadline: January 19, 2024. The program has no cost to apply and all expenses for fellows are covered.
The Episodic Writers program of the Oxbelly Retreat brings together eight promising writers developing their first original series and who are interested in utilizing the collaborative format of a writers’ room to advance their pilot scripts.
Episodic fellows will workshop their pilots in sessions with experienced screenwriter and showrunner advisors and with their peer fellows, and have unstructured time to work on their material at the beautiful Costa Navarino. Additional programming the second half of the Retreat consists of sessions led by creatives and executives from the international film & television industry, serving to empower the creative writing process as well as unlock approaches to advance their projects and careers.
Application Deadline: January 19, 2024. The program has no cost to apply and all expenses for fellows are covered.
Episodic Writers Program
Fiction Writers Program
The Fiction Writers program of the Oxbelly Retreat brings together writers from around the world for a week of literary and creative exchange, held at Costa Navarino in historic Messinia, Greece.
Fellows will engage in workshops and craft sessions led by faculty and guests who are themselves established and acclaimed writers and industry leaders, followed by unstructured time to write in the serene and transformative environment the Messinian scenic landscape offers. Fellows will attend interdisciplinary programming in the evenings – mostly a curated series of masterclasses exploring the craft of writing, readings, screenings and panel discussions that cut across multiple mediums.
Application Deadline: January 19, 2024. The program has no cost to apply and all expenses for fellows are covered.