News

SKATELAND makes it into competition at Sundance 2010!
http://festival.sundance.org/2010/press_industry/releases/2010_sundance_film_festival_announces_films_in_competition/

_______________________________________________________________

Join Wendi Niad 1:30pm when she speaks on the panel, "The Business of Writing" at The Writers' Faire taking place at UCLA on Sunday, August 30.

_____________________________________________________________________

2 clients, Norm Harper and J.G. Pile, have their scripts make it to the quarter finals of the Nicholl Fellowship.

_______________________________________________________________________

James Cotten's film La Linea to close the New York International Latino Film Festival July 27 - August 2

_________________________________________________________________

FX unveils partial fall schedule
'Sons of Anarchy' moves to new night
By James Hibberd June 30, 2009, 01:34 PM ET

"Sons of Anarchy"

FX unveiled part of its fall schedule Tuesday, including premiere dates for the return of "Sons of Anarchy" and "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia."
The network will have at least four original programs, including "Anarchy" (on a new night, Tuesdays at 10 p.m. starting Sept. 8 for 13 episodes) and "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" (Thursdays at 10 p.m. starting Sept. 17 for 12 episodes).
The sixth and penultimate season of "Nip/Tuck" will debut sometime in October. FX also plans to pair another as-yet-unannounced comedy with "Sunny."
FX is once again adopting a fearless approach to its lineup, scheduling shows to debut while broadcast is at the bullhorn. This approach has worked in the past, with "Tuck" previously having managed to grow year-over-year despite launching during the fall.

________________________________________________

Got script? Registration is now open for Wendi's UCLA extension Fall semester class Street Smarts for Screenwriters beginning September 24, 2009.

Hear more about the class when Wendi Niad speaks on the panel: The Business of Screenwriting at The Writers' Faire at UCLA on August 30, 2009

____________________________________________

6/1/2009
MISHA GREEN BEGINS WORK ON HEROES!

____________________________________________

Alyssa Milano finally commits to writer/director Daryn Tuft's project, My Girlfriend's Boyfriend...

Hey Steven Zeitchik, writer of the Hollywood Reporter article - so nice to see the writer/director, Daryn Tufts, getting so much mention, praise and attention in your expose! CAA really needed that promo piece and boy did they deserve it. They worked so hard to get those actors attached. Whew! What? Oh that's right, Daryn Tufts, the writer/director and Rick McFarland, the producer, got Alyssa Milano attached personally! Don't you all just love when "journalists" are so unbiased and cover all their bases? I know I do!

_____________________________________________

Rave review for Todd Klick's film Rough Cut

_____________________________________________

HEROES offers Misha Green staff writing position.

_____________________________________________

Haley Ramm books Guest Star on Jada Pinkett's new series Hawthorne.

_____________________________________________

Watch Izzy Murad on Surviving Suburbia on ABC and hear her recurring on Disney Channel's Phineas and Ferb

_____________________________________________

Haley Ramm will be starring with her real life best friend Miranda Cosgrove on iCarly this Saturday night, May 16th, on the premier of iReunie with Missy on Nickelodeon. Watch it!

_____________________________________________

“La Linea” Cracks U.S. Deal
by Brian Brooks (May 4, 2009)

A scene from James Cotten's "La Linea." Image courtesy of Maya Entertainment.

Director James Cotten’s crime drama “La Linea” with Andy Garcia, Ray Liotta and Esai Morales has been picked up by L.A.-based production and distribution company Maya Entertainment, the company’s EVP Jose Martinez, Jr. announced Monday. Martinez and Alex Raminfar negotiated the deal for Maya Entertainment with Alexis Garcia of Endeavor Talent Agency on behalf of the producers. A release date is still pending.

Paralleling today’s drug wars, the film is described as a a character driven feature set in one the most dangerous cities in North America: Tijuana. The story follows veteran assassin Mark Shields (Ray Liotta) as he tracks down, Pelon (Esai Morales), the elusive and brutal head of the Salazar Crime Cartel. Pelon has taken over the ailing Javier Salazar (Andy Garcia) and made a deal to move the business from Colombia cocaine to Afghani Heroin. The deal would make Pelon the most powerful narco trafficker in the hemisphere.

“Maya is pleased to distribute this amazing and timely film featuring an outstanding cast which supports our mandate to distribute relevant, thought provoking English-language, Latino-themed features,” commented Martinez in a statement. “We will be announcing our plans for a release date for the film shortly.”

Maya Entertainment, headed by award winning producer Moctesuma Esparza and co-chaired by Jeff Valdez, styles itself as the only Latino owned and managed filmed entertainment company specifically focused on the U.S. Latino film-going audience. Maya Entertainment is the sister company of Maya Cinemas North America, Inc. a movie theater exhibition company which operates multiplex cinemas with a site in Salinas, CA and new sites soon to be opened in Bakersfield, CA, San Bernardino, Fresno, CA, Santa Fe, NM, Chicago, IL, San Antonio, TX, Houston, TX and New York.

_____________________________________________

Izzy Murad books Curb your Enthusiasm with the reunited cast of Seinfeld! Go Izzy!

_____________________________________________

FINALLY! It is official! The rights to MacGyver land at New Line!

______________________________________________

Niad Management signs young adult author Justin Reichman

_______________________________________________

Misha Green gets staff writing position on Sons of Anarchy on FX

_______________________________________________

Eric Artell on Scrubs - Tuesday, January 6, 2009 on ABC

_______________________________________________

Misha Green's Sunflower makes the 2008 Blacklist...the list compiled by 250 development executives of the most liked screenplays of the year!

_______________________________________________

William Friedkin signs on to direct Misha Green's screenplay Sunflower set up at SKE with Niad Executive Producing.

_______________________________________________

Haley Ramm books feature film Skateland, 1/2 hour comedy pilot The New 20s and star billing on iCarly within 2 weeks of each other! Hot might be appropriate :)

_______________________________________________

Wendi Niad's fall semester class, Street Smarts for the Screenwriter begins at UCLA on October 20th.

___________________________________________________

AUTISM: THE MUSICAL WINS 2 EMMYS!!

_______________________________________________

Niad Management, in conjuntion with book agents Folio Literary in New York, have closed a deal for Lee Zlotoff to write a series of MacGyver books!

_______________________________________________

With Niad introducing all parties, Ender's Game is back in negotiations to become a movie.

_______________________________________________

Rafaella DiLaurentiis exercises the option on the feature film rights to MacGyver paying out a large six figure sum.

________________________________________________

Haley Ramm books the role of Chelsea Stanner in the new show this fall from Jerry Bruckheimer, The 11th Hour on CBS. Watch the premier on CBS, October 9th at 10pm!

________________________________________________

AUTISM: THE MUSICAL RECEIVES 5 EMMY NOMINATIONS!

_______________________________________________

And it looks like Sidney Kimmel Entertainment(The Kite Runner) is the winner, taking Misha Green's screenplay Sunflower off the market for six figures with Vincent Newman producing and Niad executive producing.

________________________________________________

Niad and Literary Agent, Irene Webb, sell Elaine Hall's book proposal, The Miracle Project, to Harper Collins for a large advance against 50% of the profits!

________________________________________________

Unknown writer from Pennsylvania sends us query letter, we read, we like, we sell The Metro Gardeners by Todd Klick to Larry Levinson Productions and Hallmark! Todd now lives in Los Angeles and is taking meetings!

________________________________________________

Jana Howington is hired to write Curious George 3 for Dreamworks Animation.

_______________________________________________

Misha Green attaches John Cameron (Lars and the Real Girl) and Brandy James to produce her screenplay Dry with Wendi Niad and Jennifer Graff Executive Producing. Sunu Gonera(Pride) has come aboard to direct.

Video Game company Electronic Arts hires Orson Scott Card to write 13 Webisodes to accompany their upcoming video game software Tiberium.

Eric Artell has begun shooting season 7 of Dragonfly TV!

Izzy Murad books Socially Awkward Guy with Second City!

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card enters the Modern Library's Reader's List Top 100 Novels at #59! Congratulations!

Elaine Hall and her Miracle Project are the subject of the multi award winning documentary Autism: The Musical running on HBO and now for sale through www.themiracleproject.org

Street Smarts for the Screenwriter taught by Wendi Niad at UCLA was a huge success. She will be back again for the Fall semester.

Haley Ramm shoots more episodes of Without a Trace.

Eric Artell books Sneezo in Superhero! for Dimension Films

23 year old writer Misha Green signs with Endeavor features and television.

Neil Cohen's project You Look Nice Today, in which he will also be producing, continues to move forward with Eva Mendes attached and the search for a director ensuing.

more later...

November:

The Strike is on. www.wga.org

Cartoon Network airs the first ten episodes of Ben 10 during an all day Ben 10 Marathon hosted by Haley Ramm and Graham Phillips starting at 10:00am until the premier of the live action movie Ben 10: Race Against Time.
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 8:00PM

Street Smarts for the Screenwriter: A six week class on how to take academia to the trenches beginning in the spring at UCLA's Extension Writer's Program, taught by Wendi Niad on Monday evenings 7-10pm.

Summer:

Misha Green snatched up by Niad Management right out of NYU's screenwriting program, makes it to the quarter finals (245 out of 5000) with her brilliant screenplay Amazons, the finals of the Sundance Screenwriters Lab AND makes it to the final interviews for the Fox Writers Diversity Program. Thank you to client and NYU screenwriting professor Susan Sandler for this referral!

Wendi Niad will be speaking and taking pitches at the Willamette Writers Conference in Portland, Oregon. August 3-5.

Orson Scott Card goes to Comic-Con in San Diego to promote the comic book series he is adapting for the upcoming Will Smith movie I Am Legend based on the Richard Matheson novels.

Lee Zlotoff sells pilot, Virtual Housewives,to Showtime.

Haley Ramm has been asked to reprise her role as Jennifer Long in multiple upcoming episodes of Without a Trace including the season premier.

Slade Pearce goes back to work as October Road is picked up by ABC for the fall.

New literary client Christine Bailey has also made it to the finals of the Sundance Screenwriters Lab! Congratulations Christine! Thank you to John Coles for the referral!

Ary Kian worked with Al Pacino on Salomaybe? then followed that up with a role on Reno 911! Oh how we love our versatile actors~!

May:

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card has finally been put into turnaround by Warner Brothers. We are in negotiations with another studio with Card's company Taleswapper producing along with Chartoff Productions.

Moebius by Neil Cohen has just been announced by the WGA as one of the 6 Best Unproduced Screenplays of the year. A portion of the screenplay will be published in next month's Written By Magazine.

CBS Prevails with 'Trace' Finale
11 May 2007
CBS's decision to bring Without a Trace back to its old timeslot on Thursday night for its season finale paid off for the network as the show posted a 9.9 rating and a 17 share in the 10:00 hour, beating an episode of NBC's E.R., which posted a 6.2/11 and a preview episode of ABC's Traveler, which scored a 6.1/11.

Haley Ramm is cast as Gwen in the live action movie of the animated series Ben 10.

Orson Scott Card will be adapting several comics for Will Smith's company, Overbrook, and Warner Brothers based on the upcoming Will Smith movie I Am Legend.

Tune in to the season finale of Without a Trace on May 10th on CBS. Haley Ramm, in her role as Jennifer, will be leaving us with a cliff hanger that will continue into next season.

Orson Scott Card has been hired to write a pilot for the Johnson-Roessler Company (The Initiation of Sarah; Barbershop series) set in post oil America.

April:

Lee Zlotoff sells yet another pilot to FX

Haley Ramm booked the role of Jennifer on CBS's Without a Trace

Several financiers are lobbying for Neil Cohen's screenplay, Moebius.

Watch Dalia Phillips onBones. 8pm on Fox, April 5th.

Tune in to E.R. on NBC, February 15th to see Haley Ramm as Tasha.

Eric Artell completes the 6th season of DragonflyTV, booked the feature film Sands of Oblivion and 3 National Commercials for Wendy's, Mattel's Hot Wheels and The Washington Post.

The novel You Look Nice Today is coming together nicely as a future film with Neil Cohen adapting and Eva Mendes starring.

David Kaufman guests on The Class.