Meet the Finalist: Bruno Agnello, "Weekenders"

Tell us about yourself, and about Weekenders.

I am originally from Brasil but been living in Los Angeles for the past six years. It was a hard adjustment but overall an incredibly positive experience. During my time in LA, I wrote (and directed) some projects, but "Weekenders" is the first script I've sent out to competitions. I wrote the first draft for it a couple of years ago. That draft sat in my drawer since because I was focused on writing features, but this year I refound my love for short format and decided to come back to "Weekenders". I always felt a strong connection to this story and thought it had a lot of potential. I love this script because going through the drafts shows my growth as a writer.

Share a memorable moment you experienced working on this project.

I remember pulling opening the pages of an old first draft of "Weekenders" and being surprised by how much the words I wrote over a year before spoke to me at that moment. I knew I was going to rewrite and send it out before I finished reading.

Name 3 collaborators that you'd take with you to any other project.

I would bring my incredibly talented partner Julia Gil, she is a wonderfully talented fine artist that managed to translate her vision into cinematography. She brings complexity, subtlety, and sensibility that I would love to add to any project of mine. I would also love to have by my side two amazing screenwriters that always read my work and give me feedback, Raiyah Brown and Måns Reimer. Over the years their notes and encouragement helped me so much and I feel lucky to have access to such talented people that share their time with me.

3 tips you’d like to share with aspiring artists in your field:

- Writing depends heavily on reflection and introspection, take time to absorb ideas before trying to express them.

- Once you finish a draft let it breathe for a while, come back to it after a couple of days and read it with fresh eyes.

- Read good writers, watch good movies, good input helps with good output.

What do you hope to achieve in your career in the next 5 years?

In the next five years, I want to sell a feature script, I have a few ready and am excited to get them read. I also have a passion project that I'm working on the side that should start production in a year or so.

Weekenders is nominated for Best Screenplay of the Year at the New York Film Awards.