HOW TO WRITE SOCIAL DRAMA FOR TV
|
A ONE-DAY PRACTICAL WORKSHOP WITH SCREENWRITER ANJI LOMAN FIELD
OVERVIEW: Issue-led/social drama has become increasingly important in today’s world: The Netflix series ADOLESCENCE achieved incredible success and sparked an important international conversation about the vulnerabilities of young people in the digital age. ITV's show MR BATES VS THE POST OFFICE has been hailed as one of the most important British dramas of the decade. Both shows have won multiple awards and critical acclaim, raising public awareness and triggering policy debate. So what exactly is Social Drama? The key features that define the genre are: • a focus on real-world issues: inequality, race, class, gender, migration, health, crime, justice, war, environment, etc. • the storytelling is human-centred, exploring the experiences of relateable characters; enabling viewers to connect with them emotionally. • the moral/ethical dimension of the topic usually raises questions about fairness, rights, responsibility, or social policy. • the potential for public discourse in response to the drama. Rather than being “just entertainment,” these shows actively seek to provoke discussion, policy reflection, or activism. (But this provocation has to be inherent in the drama, not overt.) New shows often build their audiences slowly, with positive reviews and good word-of-mouth leading to impressive viewing figures (ADOLESCENCE reached 141.2 million views by June 2025). This is a hands-on workshop exploring the genre and giving writers practical experience in developing issue-led stories for the screen. If there’s a pressing social, cultural or political issue you want to explore through drama, this workshop will give you the tools you need to develop your project. |
CONTENT
MORNING
AFTERNOON
GOALS By the end of the day you will:
|
DATE:
Friday 31 OCTOBER 2025 11AM to 6PM VENUE: BECTU Prospect House 100 Rochester Row London SW1P 1JP (Close to London Victoria.) PRICE: FULL FEE: £110 CONCESSIONS: £98 BECTU MEMBERS: £88 PLACES ARE STRICTLY LIMITED - PLEASE BOOK EARLY ON THE BUTTONS BELOW *We offer the concessionary rate to all Concessions as well as to members of these affiliated organisations. If you are a member of one of these organisations, please book at the concessionary rate and show your membership card to the course tutor at registration.
ABOUT YOUR TUTOR
Anji Loman Field is an established writer, storyliner, script editor and producer. She has worked in film, television and radio drama in multiple genres across three continents, most recently as lead writer on THE DEVIL'S PROMISE, a 6 x 50' episode English/Arabic supernatural thriller, created by Tony Jordan (Red Planet) for MBC. In her early career she worked as a researcher, then producer of social, issue-led documentaries for over a decade before doing an MA in Screenwriting and switching to writing drama. She wrote for the German market initially, then for popular BBC shows EastEnders, Holby City and Doctors, all of which regularly dealt with health and social issues. In 2005, she moved to South East Asia to work for BBC Media Action in the field of International Development. She became an expert in Behaviour Change Communications, writing drama designed to subtly convey health & social information through relateable stories and characters that would resonate with viewers. Anji currently has three issue-led projects in development: a drama exploring sexual harassment in the legal profession, another about patient safety issues in the NHS and a comedy drama about an ordinary couple dealing with their son's schizophrenia. Here's a snapshot of what previous participants have said about Anji's courses and workshops: "Anji is very generous with her time and her expertise. The workshops were very focused and her advice is practical, demystifying and clear. Enormously useful." Desi Lyon (Radio & TV writer represented by the Blake Friedmann Agency) "In addition to delivering what was promised in terms of how to approach writing for Existing TV Drama, Anji’s clear expertise in writing provided insights that I can apply immediately to projects across various other formats." Sean Kelly (Executive Producer/Screenwriter) "Excellent teacher. Fun. Very clear and real information about how a story is developed from a pitch to production, as well as how it's woven into longer show storylines. We had such fun working on storylines together. It was superb. I would go every Sunday." Mera Kalam - Aspiring Screenwriter ENQUIRIES: Anji Loman Field Email MORE INFO ON ANJI HERE |
