WIFT WRITERS SELECTED
WIFT Australia has selected five standout female and gender diverse screenwriters to participate in the 2025 WIFT Australia x CinefestOZ Writers Retreat following an unprecedented number of submissions for the annual creative residency.
From award winning veterans to rising voices, this year’s cohort brings a rich tapestry of lived experience and creative vision to the program which aims to support the development of new exciting Australian screen stories from underrepresented voices.
The structured writing experience, hosted by CinefestOZ Film Festival and supported by Minderoo Pictures, will be led by See-Saw Films/Picking Scabs’ Executive Producer Shay Spencer as the retreat’s official mentor and culminate in the group expanding their professional networks and knowledge at CinefestOZ’s Industry Program.
“The depth and originality of the nearly 100 applications we received this year made the process of selecting just five participants near impossible,” said Spencer.
“Together, these writers showcase a rich spectrum of voices, genres, and career stages, all united by their commitment to telling bold, resonant stories that challenge, entertain, and inspire. WIFT along with our partners CinefestOZ and Minderoo Pictures are honoured to support their development.”
Selected for the opportunity this year are:
Alicia Walsh is a seasoned writer and script editor, originally from WA, whose past credits include many award-winning shorts as well as Dance Academy and Wonderland. Alicia will use her experience to develop the second draft of her feature film screenplay set in her home state currently in development with a West Australian creative team.
Jessica Londono, an emerging Colombian-Australian writer and director based in Perth, channels the solitude and strength of navigating motherhood away from the support of her family and cultural roots into her bold, emotionally charged sci-fi feature E-MUM, a haunting exploration of maternal love and artificial intelligence based on a proof of concept playing in this year’s festival.
Sydney-based writer Hannah Lehmann joins the retreat with a strong background in digital and heightened storytelling, having created the hit Snap Originals series Two Sides and comedy series The Unboxing for Seven Studios. Her psychological thriller It’s Probably Nothing! follows a young woman who gradually realises she is being stalked by a shadowy creature as she attempts to walk from her car to her apartment, in a chilling reflection of gendered violence.
Madeleine Parry, director of Netflix’s Emmy-winning Nanette, brings her signature blend of documentary insight and dramatic storytelling to her deeply personal Ελευθερία, a feature about a widowed Greek grandmother whose secret friendship with a refugee child rekindles her spirit and forces her to confront long-buried trauma.
Rounding out the group is writer/producer Lou Sanz, whose credits include SXSW-premiering debut feature Audrey, who will use the retreat to progress her pitch-black satire Auto Fiction which follows a failed novelist turned Uber driver who exploits tragic real-life stories for literary fame, spiraling into a dangerous game of “Who’s story is it anyway?”.
Supported by Minderoo Pictures for the first time this year to expand the program’s impact, the WIFT Australia x CinefestOZ Film Festival takes place alongside the CinefestOZ Film Festival in Busselton, Western Australia from Friday 29 August until Sunday 7 September.