The Middle East Media Initiative (MEMI) in partnership with Cairo Industry Days will hold A One Day TV Focused Pitch Forum. TV producers and executives from US and Middle Eastern companies will hear ten-minute pitches from each writing/producing team.
MEMI is an innovative professional exchange produced at the USC School of Cinematic Arts in partnership with the U.S. Department of State and Middle East TV Industry Partners. Recognizing that television series as a major influence in entertaining and informing audiences, MEMI seeks to support and train the current generation of Arab TV screenwriters and content creators in telling local stories that are firstly entertaining and spark important conversations and actions around pluralism and mutual understanding. This year MEMI has selected eleven (11) TV projects from across the Arab world.
Mentors:
Hisham Fageeh
Hisham Fageeh started as a stand-up comedian in 2011 in Saudi Arabia's underground scene and gradually made his way into the mainstream, particularly at Telfaz11, a multi-channel network with 24 million members. As a filmmaker he is internationally acclaimed for producing and acting in 'Barakah Meets Barakah', Saudi Arabia’s official entry for the 2016 foreign-language film Oscar race.
MEMI Instructors
David Isaacs
He is the Chair of John Wells Division for Screen & Television at the University of Southern California's School of Cinematic Arts. With solid experience spans over 35 years in TV screenwriting and production, he was credited as a writer, co-producer, or creative consultant on M*A*S*H, Cheers, Wings, Frasier and Becker as well as episodes of The Simpsons.
Mort Nathan
He is a screenwriting professor at Chapman University in Southern California. Nathan began his career as a writer on the hit TV show Benson. Shortly, he became the executive producer and head writer of the Golden Girls, for which he received two Emmys and two Golden Globes. He created TV shows such as The Fanelli Boys and The Louie Anderson Show.
Paul Foley
is an adjunct professor at the USC School of Cinematic Arts. He has written and rewritten projects for Disney, Twentieth Century Fox, Jim Henson Productions, NBC Television Studios, Universal Studios, Warner Bros, and Vanguard Animation. He is a graduate of USC's Graduate Screenwriting programme. Foley currently serves as a consultant on big-budget productions for a Dubai based streaming startup.
Jill Condon
She is a screenplay professor at Chapman University in Southern California and a twenty-year veteran of television comedies. She started her career as an intern on the original Cosby Show. Her writing and producing credits include Ned & Stacey and Friends. Her Friends episode ``The One with The Embryos`` is ranked number 21 in TV Guide's top 100 TV episodes of all time.