Crosby Allen-Jennings
Toi Pōneke Arts Centre and Pop Film are delighted to announce writer - Crosby Allen-Jennings has been selected as the 2026 Wellington Write Room Resident with his project Burnout Days.
After graduating from University where he studied commerce, humanities and visual arts, Crosby moved to Wellington to follow the dream he had been too afraid to acknowledge; filmmaking. With the help of some talented friends, he strung together a crime-comedy short called Foul Hooked that got him into the MFA Film course at Victoria University. During his time on the programme he made the short drama Life’s a Drag, which screened in 8 countries, 13 festivals, and received 9 awards from all around the globe. Since then, he has formed a filmmaking collective called 18th Circle with collaborators Louis Joblin and 2024-2025 Write Room resident Esteban Jaramillo - focusing on short analog horror. Early drafts of Burnout Days were developed as part of Crosby’s MA in scriptwriting at Victoria University’s Institute of Modern Letters in 2025.
Burnout Days is a queer coming-of-age story set in the boy-racing scene of Christchurch. Inspired by his own teenage years, the script addresses current shifting borders on masculinity, the perils of adolescent romance, and the dangers of sexual repression.
Crosby will be joined by producer intern Elizabeth Hodgson on the programme who will be shadowing and supporting the development work on the screenplay alongside mentors Robert Sarkies (Pike River, Scarfies, Out of the Blue) and Vicky Pope (Pike River, Went Up The Hill, Savage). Since graduating from Massey University with a Bachelor's in Creative Media Production, Elizabeth has established and produced two seasons of the independent short film series, Snap Shot Shorts, alongside a myriad of other short films, music videos and other creative projects.
Vicky Pope said: "We are so thrilled and thankful to be launching the eighth year of the Write Room programme with the support of Toi Pōneke Art Centre and Wellington City Council. Crosby and Elizabeth are both extraordinary talents and part of a new generation of Wellington filmmakers establishing themselves in the city. We are excited to support them to further their creative work and careers this year."
Write Room Wellington is a screenwriter residency programme offered in partnership with Pop Film, Toi Pōneke Arts Centre, and Wellington City Council Aho Tini 2030 Arts, Culture and Creativity Strategy. Each year a Wellington screenwriter is selected to undertake a 12-week residency to develop a draft of their feature film screenplay with the support of experienced industry mentors. The programme is now in its eighth year, with many Write Room screenwriters and producer interns progressing to receive further development support via NZ Film Commission and other programmes such as SEED. Most recently 2020 Write Room producer intern Thomas Coppell produced Paloma Schneideman’s debut feature Big Girls Don’t Cry alongside Vicky Pope, that premiered in the World Cinema Dramatic Competition at the prestigious Sundance Film Festival in January and will continue its festival run at other top international festivals such as SXSW and BFI Flare in the coming months.
Write Room Wellington recognises the challenges for New Zealand screenwriters to create space in their lives to write and find a place to do their work. The aim of the programme is to support screenwriters to develop their screenplay to a level where it can be pitched to a producer and secure further development funding and a pathway towards production.
For more information on other Toi Pōneke Residencies click here