If great stories can come from anywhere, why not Wisconsin? For the last three years, the Wisconsin Screenwriters’ Symposium has aimed to support writers and the great stories they create. Between panels with professional screenwriters and showrunners, a screenplay competition, and a week-long writers’ room workshop, the 2026 Symposium built on this momentum and has become a beloved event for aspiring writers throughout Wisconsin.
As a Professor of Film in Communication Arts, Aaron Greer founded the Wisconsin Screenwriters’ Symposium to meet the needs of writers in the state. Wisconsin was one of the few states to not offer a resource like this, and it was creating a barrier for creators in the state to grow and produce their works. Greer worked with the department to secure seed funding that helped get the Symposium up and running.
“If we want to have stories told in this state or about this state, whether we’re talking about film, television, or documentaries, then we have to nurture and support writers and encourage people to write from here and about here,” Greer said when asked about his motivation for creating the Symposium.
All Wisconsin screenwriters can benefit from the Symposium, whether they are current university students, recent UW alumni, or simply have resided in the state at some point in their lives. Through the Symposium’s panel discussions and networking opportunities, writers have the chance to connect with other writers, both those who are up-and-coming and seasoned professionally. Greer notes this as one of the Symposium’s greatest successes.
“Attendees weren’t just networking up with the panelists; there were also opportunities to network laterally,” Greer said. “We had panelists starting conversations about their professional projects in addition to audience members meeting each other and making plans to collaborate in the future.”
One of the most exciting triumphs of the Symposium so far is a budding collaboration between Celia Ramsey and Cut the Deck Creative, which is run by Corey Holl (BA’23) and David Guenthner (BA’23). Ramsey and Holl met at the 2025 Symposium networking event and have since partnered to produce Ramsey’s feature, The Mysterious Affair at Stone Fences, a coming-of-age comedy set within a satirical murder mystery. The crew hopes to begin production in June 2026 and wrap up by the end of the summer.
Backing the success of Wisconsin writers through the Symposium has been an honor for Communication Arts, and it’s made possible through donor support. Gifts made to the department have allowed us to provide the seed funding for programs like the Wisconsin Screenwriters’ Symposium, which propel current students and Wisconsin residents forward. You can support our department and programs like this by making a gift to Communication Arts during Day of the Badger on April 14-15, 2026.