Click here to check out the 2014 Young & Hungry List!
Yesterday we reflected on the careers of a few of our 2011 Young & Hungry honorees, and today we’d like to continue this showcase, this time representing writers who were recognized in 2012. These now-seasoned veterans give us a bit of perspective on the exceptional talent contained in this year’s list, which we’re proud to release this Thursday.
HERE ARE A FEW STAND-OUT HONOREES FROM THE 2012 YOUNG & HUNGRY LIST.
Carter Blanchard made the list with his spec Glimmer, which would go on to sell to Dreamworks shortly after he was recognized. He took on Fox’s Kindergarten Heroes, based on Mark Millar’s comic, in October of last year, and most recently was recruited to rewrite the highly-anticipated Independence Day sequel for Centropolis, which Roland Emmerich has committed to direct.
Creighton Rothenberger and Katrin Benedikt made the list in a big way following the sale of their spec Olympus Has Fallen. Nu Image / Millenium produced the film with Gerard Butler and Aaron Eckhart starring. From there, the action-savvy duo went on to pen the third installment of The Expendables series, winning them the honor of writing for just about every major action movie star of the last 30 years. Up next, their follow up to the script that put them on the map, London Has Fallen, which is slated to hit theatres in 2015.
Daniel Kunka has won some impressive credits since he was listed, having sold his spec Bermuda Triangle to Atlas and Warner Bros. in the Spring of 2013. Following that, his red hot spec Yellowstone Falls was swept up by Misher Films and QED for a hefty sum following an intense bidding war.
Jeremy Slater made the list after he was hired to rewrite the found footage horror Reawakening for Lionsgate and Mosaic. He also sold his spec Tape 4 in 2012, and after a temporary stint on the writing team of the Fantastic Four reboot, he was brought on to write the big screen adaptation of Bill Willingham’s graphic novel series Fables.
Jonathan Stokes set up his specs Blood Mountain with Derby Street Films and El Gringo with After Dark Films shortly after landing on the list. With Benedict Cumberbatch set to star in Blood Mountain, he followed up that news by landing the coveted writing assignment of adapting Harlan Coben’s novel Six Years for Paramount and the Mark Gordon Company.
Josh Campbell and Matt Steucken sold their Y&H Listed spec The Cellar to Bad Robot and Paramount, who attached Dan Trachtenberg to the director’s chair and cast John Gallagher Jr, John Goodman and Mary Elizabeth Winstead. Their action comedy Hostile Engagement flooded the market soon after they made the list, and ultimately sold to The Solution Entertainment Group. This summer, they hopped on the sequel to 2010’s Snabba Cash, directed by Daniel Espinosa.
Matt Duffer and Ross Duffer busted onto the scene with their spec Hidden, which was set up at Warner Bros. and Vertigo and which they themselves landed in a position to direct. It doesn’t yet have a release date, but with Alexander Skarsgard and Oblivion’s Andrea Riseborough starring, it’s sure to get noticed. Most recently, the brothers landed the assignment of writing the sequel to 2012’s supernatural horror The Possession.
Matthew Federman and Stephen Scaia were immediately recruited to adapt the Zorro reboot following their spot on the list. Since then, the team were tapped by New Line to adapt Y: The Last Man, based on Pia Guerra and Brian K. Vaughan’s hugely popular comic book. Now seasoned vets in the realm of adaptation, they’ve turned their attention to video game properties, as they were recently brought on to adapt Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon series.
Michael Starrbury kicked off his spot on the list by diving right into the star-studded The Inevitable Defeat of Mister and Pete. Since being featured on the Y&H List, he landed on New Line and the Mark Gordon Company’s The Great Unknown and next will tackle Tupac life story in the biopic All Eyes on Me.
Zak Olkewicz had immediate success following his spot in the list, when his first spec sold out of the gate one month after the announcement. His follow up, Ink and Bone, was picked up by Dimension and is being directed by fellow Y&H alum Evan Daugherty. Transitioning the plan ever so slightly, Zak hit the market with the pitch Elimination in 2013, which sold to 21 Laps and Fox Searchlight later that year, which makes for a very impressive track record.
Only two more days until the release of the 2014 Young & Hungry List. Until then, check back for more fond remembrances of past honorees who’ve done us proud.
Missed the 2011 recap? Check the links below to read up on some of the highlights from previous years…
YOUNG & HUNGRY NO MORE – A LOOK BACK AT SOME OF THE 2011 YOUNG & HUNGRY ALUMS
YOUNG & HUNGRY NO MORE – A LOOK BACK AT SOME OF THE 2012 YOUNG & HUNGRY ALUMS
YOUNG & HUNGRY NO MORE – A LOOK BACK AT SOME OF THE 2013 YOUNG & HUNGRY ALUMS
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IF YOU’D LIKE TO REVISIT THE LISTS THEMSELVES, CLICK ON ANY OF THE BOXES BELOW
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