This February, a script I wrote as part of the MA in Writing for Stage and Screen at Creative Futures Academy (CFA) at UCD, Bastards of Young, won the Fade In TV Pilot Competition. The contest has been running for nearly thirty years and has a track record of jump-starting writers’ careers by connecting them to Hollywood producers and buyers. The script follows the Replacements, the cult-favorite band that spent the eighties hailed as the next big thing – but never achieved mainstream success. Winning Fade In is a thrilling step forward, and I couldn’t have done it without the incredible support of CFA’s staff.

When I applied to CFA at UCD in July of 2023, I was looking to develop my craft, challenge myself, and above all, write the pilot I’d been wrestling with for close to five years. CFA at UCD’s MA in Writing for Stage and Screen felt like the ideal next step: an opportunity to write and grow in a place with a rich storytelling tradition, surrounded by experts in the field. Friends and family questioned why I chose to pursue screenwriting in Dublin rather than Hollywood, but it turned out to be the best decision I could have made.

In Dr. Nicolas Pillai’s TV/Film project class, I worked closely with screenwriter-in-residence Mark O’Halloran on Bastards of Young.  With Mark’s help, I honed Bastards of Young from a sprawling 70-page draft into a lean, propulsive 28-page pilot. The story came to life in a way it never had before. Alongside the script, I created a five-minute sizzle reel to capture the show’s tone, themes, and trajectory. This hands-on experience with visual storytelling was one of the most valuable lessons I took from the programme, and it gave me the clarity of purpose I needed to continue refining the script after graduation and send it out into the world.

CFA at UCD’s MA in Writing for Stage and Screen gave me the tools, mentorship, and creative space to take my writing to the next level. It pushed me to experiment, sharpen my storytelling instincts, and embrace adaptation—not just in the sense of reworking stories, but in how I approach the creative process itself. I am deeply grateful for my time in the programme and excited to see where the lessons I learned at CFA will take me next.

By Alberto Nissim – MA Writing for Stage and Screen Graduate 2024.

Applications are currently open for the 2025 intake for CFA at UCD’s MA Writing for Stage and Screen. Apply below.

Warning: Explicit language, will be offensive to some readers and viewers.