Feedback from Kemiyondo Coutinho and Felicia Pride
Essence of Rome by Will Loper Jr. (comedy pilot)
As a successful TV chef that seems to have it all, Rome Knight learns the hard way that not every way to a person’s heart is through their stomach when they must find a way to be vulnerable as they search for their better half.
Featuring Jamal Douglas, Tryphena Wade, Leonard A. Thomas, Courtney Gabrielle Williams, Dinah Berkeley, Tory Devon Smith, Breezy Leigh, Chanell Bell, Thomas Silcott, Philip Smithey, Trip Langley, Allison Youngberg, and Rashawn Nadine Scott
As a big, friendly giant military brat born and raised in Anchorage, Alaska, Will Loper Jr has had the pleasure of enjoying many experiences that came along with the life. As a Black man of the LGBTQIA community, he grew up with scarce influences to truly represent who he was which influenced him to write stories about his own experiences. Currently working for Apple, it has helped broaden his horizon of how he wants to leave his mark on the world; through storytelling. He went to the University of Alabama where he studied theater and music performance and is now working on his master’s in project management from LSU.
Sheltered by Henry Alexander Kelly (coming-of-age comedy pilot)
Follow a group of awkward high schoolers as they grow through the nerdy and dirty suburbs of the San Francisco Bay Area!
Featuring Bryan Peralta, Taylor Vaughan, Regina Famatigan, Chris Trovador, Elena Campbell Martínez, Jesus Martinez, Julianna Ojeda, Mateo Mpinduzi-Mott, and Courtney Gabrielle Williams
Henry Alexander Kelly is a proud Nicaraguan-American venti-caramel comedic writer and actor. His works have been produced at Ensemble Studio Theatre LA, MeetCute LA, Skylight Theatre, Company of Angeles, and Q Youth Foundation. He is a company member of Ensemble Studio Theater LA, Nosotros, Hero Theater, and the swashbuckling children’s improv group The Story Pirates. He just made his feature film debut as kind-hearted Barrett in the dark-comedic thriller Murder Bury Win. Recently he was a semi-finalist in the Screencraft Film Fund, a graduate of the 2020 National Hispanic Media Coalition’s Series Script Writers Program sponsored by ABC and NBC, and a Sundance Institute alum. Henry serves zany, larger than life genre-blending worlds exploring the intersection of cultural identity, interpersonal struggles, and the absurdity of society. A proud member of the LGBTQIA+ community, he is deeply involved in championing and uplifting narratives of queer individuals through his storytelling! He is literary managed by ATN Entertainment.
American Rebel by York Walker (period drama)
When his lover is murdered, a newly ordained pastor embarks on a search for answers that threatens to shatter the foundation of his faith and change his world forever.
Featuring Jon Gentry, Tory Devon Smith, Courtney Gabrielle Williams, Thomas Silcott, Brian Ashton Smith, Dinah Berkeley, Trip Langley, Kila Kitu, and Tamika Simpkins
YORK WALKER is an award-winning writer based in Harlem, New York. He is the inaugural recipient of the Vineyard Theatre’s Colman Domingo Award where he is currently an artist in residence. He is also the winner of the John Singleton Short Film Competition. His work has been developed with the Fire This Time Festival, Actor’s Theatre of Louisville, and the American Conservatory Theater. He is also a member of Marcus Gardley’s New Wave Writer’s Workshop and is currently in development writing the book for a new Broadway musical.
