Christopher T. Brown, Albany Branch Library manager and filmmaker
Hartford Public Library announces a new virtual dramatic writing workshop that will give content creators the advice they need to develop their own projects and tell their own stories.
The program, called Talkin’ Drama, will be moderated by Christopher T. Brown, a filmmaker and manager of the Albany Library.
“My passion for storytelling is deeply rooted in my upbringing. Book and films were an important part of my family life. The elders in my family were storytellers who maintained a tradition of oral history to instill morals and values into us as children… All my success as a filmmaker can be traced directly back to my grandmother, her extensive photo albums, and the stories I heard as a child surrounding those pictures,” Brown said.
The program will take place on the last Thursday of every month. Each workshop will feature a guest speaker or panel made up of industry professionals. After the presentation, there will be an opportunity for viewers to ask questions of the panelists.
The first workshop, featuring cinematographer Jeremy Royce, is scheduled for Thursday, March 25, 2021 from Noon – 1 pm on Zoom.
“My plan is to approach everyone that I know in Hollywood who I think could make on impact on the Hartford community to be a guest on Talkin’ Drama. The more I can act as a bridge between Hartford and Hollywood, the better,” Brown said. “The goal is to encourage people to read, and use the library.”
Royce graduated from USC’s school of cinematic arts in 2013. His work has been short-listed for a student Academy Award and nominated for a student Emmy and has earned him multiple awards for directing and cinematography. Jeremy’s debut feature film ‘20 Years of Madness’ premiered at the 2015 Slamdance Film Festival in Park City where it won the Jury Honorable Mention. Jeremy currently works as an LA based freelance cinematographer and teaches part time at USC’s School of Cinematic Arts.
Artists and creators will discuss the mechanics of dramatic writing as it functions in their career, and discuss benefits and pitfalls of developing content. It will dive into the practical and real issues facing someone as they develop their artistic craft. They will highlight ways teamwork functions in the process of storytelling. In addition, the Talkin’ Drama series will cover the practical aspects of why it is essential to be entrepreneurial within the ever-changing landscape of the entertainment industry.
Whether you strive to be a content creator, producer, writer, director, playwright, attorney, or entrepreneur, this workshop will help you identify the path towards creating meaningful stories.
Brown, a Hartford native and Trinity College and NYU Tisch School of the Arts graduate, was recruited to HPL as a branch manager of Albany in 2020, from Los Angeles. He has also made short films set in Hartford.
“I ran a Talkin’ Drama workshop at Milner Vine Street school in 2019. The program was a huge success, so I thought it was only right I introduce it to HPL adult virtual programming. It could fit within the scope of our virtual limitations. And it gives Hartford natives access to professionals actively working in Hollywood,” Brown said.
In addition to his own films, Brown’s work in the industry spans back to 2006, starting as a script reader for Samuel Goldwyn Films. He was later honored in 2011, with a nomination for a Kennedy Award for a play he’d written entitled, Tough Love. While at New York University, he began working with Spike Lee, working on several projects with him including Michael Jackson Bad25 and Da Sweet Blood of Jesus. Brown was a production assistant on The Birth of a Nation (2016), a producer on the television pilot “Baselines” (2018). And the second unit director on Final Frequency (2019).
-30-