Click here to read the full article.
“The Witcher” Season 5 co-producer Rae Benjamin, who is also the cowriter of the animated feature “The Witcher: Sirens of the Deep,” has been selected to receive this year’s Starz #TakeTheLead award at the Humanitas
Prizes awards show and toast next month, one of several honors the org revealed on Wednesday.
Benjamin will be presented the award by screenwriter/producer Russell T Davies (“Doctor Who,” “Queer As Folk,” “Years and Years”). The recipient is chosen among “mid-career writers” who exemplify the promise to “amplify narratives by, about and for women and underrepresented audiences.” As part of the prize, Benjamin will receive a $10,000 cash prize and mentorship from Starz executives.
“Rae Benjamin stood out immediately for her distinctive voice and fearless approach to storytelling,” said Starz original programming prexy Kathryn Busby in a statement. “We were equally impressed by her commitment to supporting emerging voices through her organization, In The Cut, which reflects the spirit of #TakeTheLead and Starz’s commitment to elevating underrepresented storytellers. Rae’s talent, curiosity, and commitment to meaningful storytelling will take her far, and it’s easy to see why she was selected as this year’s Starz #TakeTheLead Award recipient.”
Other finalists included Autumn Jimerson (“Forever”), William Yu (“The ‘Burbs”), Melody Cooper (“Power Book IV: Force”), Jonathon Roessler (“My Life with the Walter Boys”) and Sylvia Alcalá (“A Man on the Inside”).
“Through my writing, volunteer work with emerging artists, and company, In the Cut, it’s been my goal to create expansive and positive representation for marginalized communities,” Benjamin said in a statement. “Humanitas and Starz are both organizations that go beyond the mere checkbox of inclusion for its own sake, but truly champion innovative storytelling. The 2026 #TakeTheLead Award’s prize money will help support my upcoming short film focused on Black maternal health.”
As previously announced,“My So-Called Life” creator Winnie Holzman will receive this year’s Kieser Award. She’ll be presented the honor by “Thirtysomething” exec producers Marshall Herskovitz and Ed Zwick — who hired Holzman to be a writer on their show and later were EPs on “My So-Called Life.”
Also announced Wednesday, Humanitas’s 2026-27 New Voices Fellows have been chosen: Christina Ingraldi, Leon Lee, Alana Saab, Finn Wagstaff and Keith Walker. As part of the fellowship, they’ll participate in a six-month mentorship program for early-career television and screenwriters, be paired with writers for one-on-one mentorship and receive a $7,500 stipend in addition to other benefits. Writer Emmylou Diaz is the fellowship’s Program Advisor.
Humanitas shared its College Screenwriting Awards winners: Omid Iranikhah (David and Lynn Angell College Comedy Award) and Lauryn Bedford (Carol Mendelsohn College Drama Award). Bedford and Iranikhah will each receive a $20,000 cash prize and a script notes session with a professional writer. Humanitas program alums Lauren Goodman (“Snowfall”) and Hayley Tibbenham (“Dutton Ranch”) will present the artist development awards.
As part of the New Voice Fellowship program, Humanitas has this year launched a partnership connecting fellows with managers from Echo Lake Entertainment for an educational exchange.
“At its heart, this partnership reflects a shared belief that developing writers require mentorship, community, and access to people invested in their growth. We are grateful to Echo Lake Entertainment for working with Humanitas to equip the next generation of writers exploring the human condition in their work by helping to illuminate pathways for their stories,” Humanitas Executive Director Michelle Franke said in a statement.
Added Echo Lake partner Amy Schiffman: “We’re proud to be teaming up with Humanitas for this important initiative to support emerging writers. We envision this partnership as benefiting our management team as well as the New Voices Fellows.”
The Humanitas Prizes Awards Show & Toast will be held on Sept. 9 at Avalon Hollywood and hosted by writer, actor and comedian Ashley Nicole Black.
