Research Methods for Writers is our ongoing event series where we explore the screenwriters' approach to researching their projects. From how they obtain information to how they incorporate it all into their scripts, we learn about the role research plays in the writing.
For this session, WGF librarian Lauren O’Connor speaks with Marissa Jo Cerar, the Creator, Showrunner and Executive Producer of ABC’s limited series Women of the Movement. They’ll discuss Cerar’s process for researching the life of Mamie Till-Mobley and her journey to seek justice after the murder of her 14-year-old son, Emmitt Till, in 1955. Cerar will share how she approached writing about real-life people and events, what sources she used in her research, and how she chose what details to include in the six-episode series.
Panel starts at 4:00pm Pacific time.
If you have any other questions, please feel free to reach out to us at events@wgfoundation.org.
For anyone who was unable to RSVP for the panel, we will record and post it at a later date.
About the Panelist
Marissa Jo Cerar is an Emmy and WGA Award-nominated writer-producer who has built an impressive resume filled with some of the most powerful television series of the past decade. Marissa Jo grew up as one of eight adopted kids in a small town in Illinois, and she would go on to impart her unique life experience into her work, starting with her studies at Columbia College Chicago, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in Film. With a passion for socially conscious storytelling, she has spent her career focusing her creative efforts on projects that explore the intersectionality of the human experience through character-driven and female forward stories.
Marissa Jo’s most recent project was the highly-anticipated ABC series WOMEN OF THE MOVEMENT, which she created and served as Showrunner and Executive Producer. The limited series premiered on January 6th, and told the powerful true story of Mamie Till-Mobley, who devoted her life to seeking justice for her son Emmett Till following his brutal murder in the Jim Crow South. Putting her own life on the line to seek justice in his name, the soft-spoken young mother bravely chose to bear her pain on the world’s stage, and as a result ignited the civil rights movement as we know it today. Intentionally told through Mamie’s point of view, Marissa Jo's vision for the series has brought nuance and depth to this true story through an intentionally humanity forward approach.
Additionally, Marissa Jo is in development on the drama series BLACK CAKE for Hulu. Based on the book of the same name, Marissa Jo opened the writers room on February 14th this year, is serving as Showrunner on the series, and will executive produce the project with Kapital Entertainment and Oprah Winfrey’s Harpo Films.
Marissa Jo began her television career working as a writer and producer on hit series such as Netflix’s 13 REASON WHY, Freeform’s THE FOSTERS, FOX’s SHOTS FIRED, and the award-winning Hulu series THE HANDMAID’S TALE, for which she shares nominations for both the Emmys and Writers Guild Awards for Outstanding Drama Series for season three. Additionally, Marissa Jo's Black List feature script, “Conversion,” is currently in development with K Period Media and Kapital Entertainment, under MJ's multi-year deal with the studio, where she has several more projects in development as a writer and a non-writing Executive Producer.