Adrienne Shelly has been selected by the American Screenwriters Association (ASA) to receive ASA's prestigious Discover Screenwriting Award.

The award honors a writer who, perhaps for the first time, had his or her screenplay produced into a feature film or movie for television, which received wide distribution or broadcast, and, in the opinion of our Board of Directors and members, reflects the highest levels of artistic achievement in screenwriting. The American Screenwriters Association is proud to present this award and assist in recognizing the contributions and accomplishments of screenwriters.

Adrienne Shelly's film, Waitress, which she wrote and directed, was also nominated for the Humanitas Prize at the Sundance film Festival, and has been nominated for the 2008 Independent Spirit Award.


The other nominees for this year's Discover Screenwriting Award were :
Steven Conrad, The Pursuit of Happyness
Pierce Gardner, Dan in Real Life (co- written with Peter Hedges)
Daniel Giat, Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee
Nancy Oliver, Lars and the Real Girl
Prior recipients include Michael Arndt for Little Miss Sunshine, Dan Futterman for Capote, Paul Haggis for Million Dollar Baby, Antwone Fisher for Antwone Fisher, Nia Vardalos for My Big Fat Greek Wedding, and Milo Addica for Monster's Ball.
A presentation of the award to Ms. Shelly's family will follow this release.
The American Screenwriters Association encourages you to learn more about Adrienne Shelly by visiting her foundation's web site at www.adrienneshellyfoundation.org.