Success Story: Matthew Jones
A High School Fellowship Success Story
You're never too old-or too young-to break into Hollywood. Case in point: 2004 Scriptwriters Network High School Fellowship alumnus, Matthew Jones. This writer-director-producer has racked up writing credits while still in his teens. Jones' latest project is a short film he co-wrote and directed, "Choices," a drama about a teen preparing to end her unplanned pregnancy. New Renaissance Pictures will release "Choices" in 2007. Matthew is also a lead writer for BET's 2007 TV Special, Outkast Goes To Idlewild: The Rebirth Of Cool. He garnered an Associate-Producer credit on the same network's TV Special about Miami Vice as well. Matthew's other short-film credits include "Separating Affect" and "Distracted"-which won "Best High School Domestic Drama" at the 2005 International Student Film Festival Hollywood. Additionally, Matthew won the 2006 Directors Guild of America Student Film Awards in the category of Best African American Film-West Coast for his coming-of-age, urban-drama short film, "Be The Man"-another production with New Renaissance Pictures. On top of all this, Mr. Jones attends Biola University, where he's majoring in film production.
Yet not too long ago, this wunderkind won a Scriptwriters Network (SWN) writing competition and became one of ten high school writers chosen from Los Angeles County to win a free one-year membership to the organization. Mentored by SWN volunteer members, each High School Fellow wrote a 30-page screenplay from concept to completion. A staged reading of the finalists' scripts was held at the Los Angeles Public Library. This also included a discussion of the presentations by writer-director, Doug Atchison, creator of Akeelah and the Bee.
According to Matthew, "The high school program with the Scriptwriters Network was an amazing experience. I took the program right before I went to college, and it really molded me and helped me start writing better screenplays and to have confidence in them."
Naturally, Scriptwriters Network is proud and thrilled to have played a role in Matthew's career. And with a start this amazing, the future surely holds great things for this young filmmaker.
For more information on Matthew Jones and his projects, visit www.Mattcjones.com.