An award-winning producer and personal manager, Marilyn R. Atlas is equally at home in the worlds of film, television, and live theater. Among her credits as film producer are “Real Women Have Curves” for HBO, which won the Audience Award at the Sundance Film Festival, “A Certain Desire,” starring Sam Waterson, and “Echoes,” which won the Gold Award at the 1991 Texas International Film Festival. In addition to producing a variety of programming for the cable/ pay TV market, Marilyn has served as a production consultant on the film “Call Me.” She was also involved as a producer in the development of the MOW “Nightwalker” and “Playing for Keeps.”
In live theater, Marilyn co-produced the West Coast premiere of the musical “God Bless You Mr. Rosewater” by Ashman and Menken, writers of both “Little Shop of Horrors” and “Beauty and the Beast.” She also co-produced the award-winning play “To Gillian on Her 37th Birthday,” which was made into a film starring Michelle Pfeiffer and Peter Gallagher. Her additional credits as a producer in live theater include “Today’s special” and “As I Sing.”
Marilyn has served as Casting Director for feature films, including John Frankenheimer’s “The Equals” and “The Whiz.” She is a founding member of Women in Film’s Luminas Committee which supports the portrayal of women in non-stereotypical roles in film and television. Along with director and actress Dorothy Lyman, Marilyn founded ADT, a director’s theatre, and served on its advisory board.
Marilyn is a member of NALIP, the National Association of Latino Independent Producers. She has spoken at their Writers’ and Producers’ retreats, the DGA-sponsored LA Asian Film Festival, as well as various other symposia for the Sherman Oaks Experimental College, Santa Fe Screenwriters Conference, and Richard Krevolin’s USC Screenwriting Retreat covering such topics as: “Creating for the Actor: Carving Memorable, Inhabitable Characters” and “Ever-Evolving Marketplace: What’s Hot, Why and for How Long…” Marilyn has also taught several actor workshops on creating “Multiple Viewpoints – One Core” for actors as well as “Acting and Auditioning for Producers.” She has spoken at the Texas Bar Association and was a guest lecturer at Whittier Law School.
Marilyn has spoken at various colleges, including Skyline, Stephens, and at the University of Texas – San Antonio’s Adalante Latino Film Festival. She has served as the professional-in-residence (in theater and film) at Ball State University, and was the guest speaker at the International Writer’s Conference at Hollins University. She structured an accredited, intensive course at Skyline College in San Francisco covering the inception, development and promotion of a script in “The Business of Screenwriting: The Idea – and its Execution.”
Marilyn is working on a development slate that includes “Lola Goes to Roma,” “Suburban Turban,” and “Chasing the Jaguar” a film adaptation with Denise DiNovi Films based on the Harper Collins YA book, written by actress Michele Greene. For television, she’s in development on the pilot “MacArthur Park,” first developed for Showtime, and recently sold the pilot “Untitled Posse Project” to ABC Family. She set up the MOW “Bitterroot” at the Hallmark Channel and Starz for production in late 2008. “Suburban Turban” is set for late 2008 production. She is also presently developing a musical adaptation of “Real Women Have Curves” with the Goodman Theatre in Chicago to be part of their Latino Festival in 2009.
Marilyn is committed to projects that reflect diversity and portray non-stereotypical characters.
Marilyn Atlas's Class List
Teacher
Course Name
Start Date
Marilyn Atlas
The Actor’s Perspective: Finding a Winning Strategy to Jumpstart Your Career
November 1, 2008
In this 6-week overview for actors, Producer/Manager Marilyn R. Atlas will break down the basic hurdles/tests to getting an agent or manager, and depending on your level of experience, what you need to be ready in the marketplace (i.e. what kind of classes to be taking). What should your headshots say about you? How to “build up” a young, developing actor’s resume to show dedication, appetite for learning, and breadth of interests. How to amass noteworthy examples of past work that show your different looks and acting range on your reel. Get a primer on the realities of the business, the importance of networking, taking classes, finding your character “type” and honing your voice.
Post your pic/res for individualized assessment.
(Please use the most professional photograph available – no polaroids!)
Post a 1 ½ min to 2 min monologue
Post same monologue incorporating changes/notes
It is important to note that 1 week will be spent viewing these tapes after posting the 2 monologues, so no proper instruction as such will be given. So, essentially, this is a 4-week course taught over a period of 6weeks. Though, throughout the course, a limit of 3 emails per person for one-on-one correspondence will be exchanged to answer questions and give advice. The final week will feature students posting some basic general questions, and I’ll answer those most frequently asked.
Class Cost - $160
Class Features - Interaction with other students (optional)
Teacher
Course Name
Start Date
Marilyn Atlas
The Writer’s Desk: Lessons in Marketing Yourself
November 1, 2008
In this 5-week overview for writers wanting to make it in Hollywood, Marilyn will discuss the importance of knowing your audience, getting your ideas down on the page and out of your head, the necessity of delivering on genre expectations, and the helpfulness of having a conversational familiarity with movie templates close to your script idea. She will hammer home the understanding your particular audience, and your niche targeted viewer-ship if applicable, including actor attachments -- will show a Star Power list. She will also explain the importance of having several polished spec scripts as examples for possible representation and eventual writing assignments.
2 ideas for commercial viability – as outlined in 1-2 paragraphs
Submit a total of 9 loglines (3 per script idea) for notes/suggestions (A professional logline encapsulates the essence of your story, protagonist, and genre within 1-2 sentences!)
(If you can’t capture your story within these limitations, we will not read beyond these boundaries.)
Post a 2-minute mini-pitch for individualized assessment.
Class Cost - $50
Class Features - Interaction with other students (optional)
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