Savannah Dooley
Encyclopedia
Savannah Dooley is an American screenwriter
and television producer
, best known as the co-creator of the television series Huge
.
, New York
to Winnie Holzman
, a writer, and Paul Dooley
, an actor. Dooley has said that her mother's work on My So Called Life, "doing some groundbreaking stuff with gay teenagers", helped her to come out
as a lesbian herself to her parents. She attended Bennington College
, where she studied screenwriting and video production, and graduated in 2007.
based on Sasha Paley's novel Huge, about a group of teenagers at a weight-loss camp. Schiff had been interested in directing the adaptation but, having been Dooley's longtime writing mentor, wanted her to write the script. Dooley completed the script but ABC Family dropped the project when the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike
began in November 2007 and halted development. When the strike ended, Dooley began to work on several other projects, including a pilot
for CBS
which was never picked up. In 2009, ABC Family approached Dooley again about rewriting her adaptation of Huge as a 10-episode television series. Since Schiff was unable to work full-time on the show and the network wanted an experienced producer, Dooley suggested that her mother Winnie Holzman
join the show as a writer and producer. Huge also features Dooley's father Paul Dooley
in a small acting role as the camp cook and her uncle Ernest Holzman as the director of photography.
Dooley wrote and directed a short film, The Misanthropes, in 2006, based on her own "conflict of identifying as gay"; reflecting on the short, she said, "I've always worked through my own personal shit in my writing." She made another short film, Snapshot, with Miranda Sajdak, about the first meeting between a girl's mother and her prom date, which was screened at the 2010 Outfest
.
Screenwriter
Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:...
and television producer
Television producer
The primary role of a television Producer is to allow all aspects of video production, ranging from show idea development and cast hiring to shoot supervision and fact-checking...
, best known as the co-creator of the television series Huge
Huge (TV series)
Huge is a short lived American drama series that aired on the ABC Family television network. The series is based on the young-adult novel of the same name by Sasha Paley. The hour-long drama series revolves around eight teens sent to a summer weight-loss camp called Camp Victory...
.
Early life
Dooley was born in ManhattanManhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
to Winnie Holzman
Winnie Holzman
Winnie Holzman is an American dramatist, screenwriter and poet. She created the ABC television series My So-Called Life, which earned her an Emmy Award nomination for writing in 1995...
, a writer, and Paul Dooley
Paul Dooley
-Personal life:Dooley was born Paul Dooley Brown in Parkersburg, West Virginia, the son of Ruth Irene , a homemaker, and Peter James Brown, a factory worker. Dooley was a cartoonist as a youth and drew a strip for a local paper in Parkersburg. He joined the Navy before discovering acting while at...
, an actor. Dooley has said that her mother's work on My So Called Life, "doing some groundbreaking stuff with gay teenagers", helped her to come out
Coming out
Coming out is a figure of speech for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people's disclosure of their sexual orientation and/or gender identity....
as a lesbian herself to her parents. She attended Bennington College
Bennington College
Bennington College is a liberal arts college located in Bennington, Vermont, USA. The college was founded in 1932 as a women's college and became co-educational in 1969.-History:-Early years:...
, where she studied screenwriting and video production, and graduated in 2007.
Career
Dooley was still in college when television producer Robin Schiff, a family friend, asked Dooley in 2007 to script a television film for ABC FamilyABC Family
ABC Family, stylized as abc family, is an American television network, owned by ABC Family Worldwide Inc., a subsidiary of the Disney-ABC Television Group division of The Walt Disney Company...
based on Sasha Paley's novel Huge, about a group of teenagers at a weight-loss camp. Schiff had been interested in directing the adaptation but, having been Dooley's longtime writing mentor, wanted her to write the script. Dooley completed the script but ABC Family dropped the project when the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike
2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike
The 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike, more commonly referred to as simply the Writers' Strike, was a strike by the Writers Guild of America, East and the Writers Guild of America, West ....
began in November 2007 and halted development. When the strike ended, Dooley began to work on several other projects, including a pilot
Television pilot
A "television pilot" is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell the show to a television network. At the time of its inception, the pilot is meant to be the "testing ground" to see if a series will be possibly desired and successful and therefore a test episode of an...
for CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
which was never picked up. In 2009, ABC Family approached Dooley again about rewriting her adaptation of Huge as a 10-episode television series. Since Schiff was unable to work full-time on the show and the network wanted an experienced producer, Dooley suggested that her mother Winnie Holzman
Winnie Holzman
Winnie Holzman is an American dramatist, screenwriter and poet. She created the ABC television series My So-Called Life, which earned her an Emmy Award nomination for writing in 1995...
join the show as a writer and producer. Huge also features Dooley's father Paul Dooley
Paul Dooley
-Personal life:Dooley was born Paul Dooley Brown in Parkersburg, West Virginia, the son of Ruth Irene , a homemaker, and Peter James Brown, a factory worker. Dooley was a cartoonist as a youth and drew a strip for a local paper in Parkersburg. He joined the Navy before discovering acting while at...
in a small acting role as the camp cook and her uncle Ernest Holzman as the director of photography.
Dooley wrote and directed a short film, The Misanthropes, in 2006, based on her own "conflict of identifying as gay"; reflecting on the short, she said, "I've always worked through my own personal shit in my writing." She made another short film, Snapshot, with Miranda Sajdak, about the first meeting between a girl's mother and her prom date, which was screened at the 2010 Outfest
Outfest
Outfest is an LGBT-oriented film showcase and festival in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1982 as the "Gay and Lesbian Media Festival and Conference", the name was changed to Outfest in 1994.-Programs:...
.