Warner Bros. Discovery and Series Mania Institute Select Winner of Writers’ Programme

Warner Bros. Discovery Access UK and the Series Mania Institute have selected French screenwriter Julie-Anna Grignon as the winner of their 2025 Writers’ Programme.

Grignon, who previously worked on series such as “Week-End Family” for Disney+, “Balthazar” for TF1, and “Endless Night” for Netflix, won €10,000 for series concept.

The cash prize will allow Grignon to develop a pilot for the project which is titled “The Hum.” It was selected by a WBD judging panel that included José-María Caro, director of HBO Max local original production for Spain; Clémentine Bobin, director of scripted original productions HBO Max for France; and Dirk Engelhardt, senior director of local production for Germany; Sian Palfrey, executive producer and head of Wall to Wall North, and Adam James, script editor at Wall to Wall North.

The jury described Grignon’s concept as “ambitious, imaginative, genre-driven, and brimming with creative potential.”

Grignon was part of six mid-level screenwriters from Europe – Peter Furrer (Germany), Ciron Gruffydd (U.K.), Almudena Monzú (Spain), Isabella Oliveira Parise Kröger (Germany), and Kaamil Shah (U.K.) — who were selected for the initiative which prepares talent for potential collaboration with Warner Bros. Discovery and HBO Max’s European programming teams. It includes a week of industry-focused workshops in London following initial training in France, covering topics such as personal branding, inclusive storytelling, peer mentoring and tailored pitch development. A Q&A with Anna Jordan, the screenwriter of “One Day,” “Killing Eve,” “Becoming Elizabeth” and “Succession,” was also organized.

“Julie-Anna’s passion, adaptability, and storytelling instincts showed that she is a standout voice to watch, and we’re thrilled to support her as part of the WBD Access x SMI Writers’ Programme,” said Bobin.

“Overall, the programme has been a great success, with our six participants clearly demonstrating the value and scope of scripted original content,” Bobin continued.

Marianne Guillon, Series Mania Institute director, said the “programme perfectly reflects our shared ambition: to champion new European voices and give them the best possible environment to develop bold and inclusive stories.”