Sideline Productions Seek Sitcom Writers

If you’ve got what it takes to become the next Graham Linehan or Dylan Moran, or you’ve ever watched an episode of Mrs. Brown’s Boys and thought to yourself, “Those script writers have the best job in the world, I’d love to do that,” then now is the time for action.

Sideline Productions – the people who brought Take Me Out, Mastermind and Rubberbandits to television screens – are currently on the hunt for sitcom writers for the Irish, UK and US markets.
The programme, run via the Comedy Division, is seeking original comedy scripts with a view to developing new Irish writing talent to create professional comedy TV scripts with the potential to be commissioned in Ireland, UK or USA.
Sideline Productions creative director, Billy McGrath, is hoping to build on the recent successes of Irish comedies such as Brendan O’Carroll’s Mrs. Brown’s Boys and Moone Boy, co-written by Chris O’Dowd and Nick Vincent Murphy, across the water.
“We are seeking six good scripts written by comedy writers who have the desire to work with us to develop first drafts into six great scripts,” says McGrath. “The writers who show a real aptitude and IQ for scripted comedy will be favoured, but we also are ready to be surprised by a unique take and originality with the sitcom structure”.
All applicants must be free to attend a series of planned workshops – hosted by Billy McGrath, scriptwriter/editor John Henderson, and ex-BBC/RTÉ script executive Eilis Kent – where they’ll receive professional training, feedback, script editing and input from outside professionals, resulting in an improved script, expanded network and potential for career advancement.
Writers also have the possibility of their script being read live by professional actors as part of the first ever Dublin Sitcom Festival planned for later this year, for which broadcast executives, comedy commissioners, agents and talent managers will be specifically invited.
Submissions must be accompanied by the Online Submission Page, which can be downloaded at sideline.ie. This must contain (on one page) the script’s information and logline, along with original signature(s) accepting the terms and conditions.
These submissions must then contain a half-hour sitcom (either multi-camera studio or single camera location), with writing samples also typed and presented. The script front-cover page should include: name of the series, your episode’s title, writer(s) name(s) and contact details, a current CV, and a personal statement no longer than a page long.
If you’ve had a sitcom commissioned and/or broadcast in the last three years then sadly you’re not eligible for this initiative. For new writers, Sideline recommends the BBC Writers Room online for sample templates and all sorts of useful tips. Submissions must be uploaded by 6pm on March 31, so get cracking.

For more, see sideline.ie/our-work/productions/sitcom