Sally McLean wins Best Screenplay at FICIMAD 2026
I am so delighted to share that it has been announced that I have been announced as the winner of the Best Screenplay Award in the TV & Web Series category at the Festival Internacional de Cine Independiente de Madrid (FICIMAD) in Spain for Dark Arcadia!
I am absolutely floored by this win. The competition was fierce with so many talented writers in the field from all over the world and to win this award just means so much to me.
FICIMAD gave extraordinarily high praise in their festival program when writing about Dark Arcadia. This sample is extraordinary: “Shakespeare’s words breathe freely in Sally McLean’s script … An intelligent narrative with an immense and rich world-building, where global folklore intertwines, where popular culture and Western literary mythology make a grand crossover in a single story, in a series that grabs you from the first episode with its brilliant plot twists and never lets go.”
And then they shared this in their announcement on social media: “As the writer, director, and one of the lead performers of the series, Sally McLean demonstrates remarkable creative vision, crafting a screenplay that reimagines Shakespeare’s characters and language through contemporary stories and themes. Dark Arcadia is a bold and imaginative work that bridges classical literature and modern storytelling, creating a unique and compelling narrative world.
An award-winning Australian filmmaker, actor, writer, and producer, Sally McLean is internationally recognized for her acclaimed series Shakespeare Republic, which has screened at more than 100 film festivals worldwide and received over 50 awards. Her work has also been the subject of academic study and has contributed to new conversations about adapting Shakespeare for contemporary audiences.”
Blushing. Unexpected and lovely and gobsmacking all at once.
A huge thank you to the FICIMAD jury & organisers for acknowledging my work as writer on the series with this award!
The series also won Best Costume Design for Jill Johanson, which is SO richly deserved, as Jill is a wizard and her work was extraordinary on the series. I am so thrilled for her being acknowledged in this way on the world stage!
This marks the 30th award for the series as it nears the end of it’s festival run, and I am so grateful to all the festivals and industry award organisations for showing the series so much love around the world.
Full credits & more info about the series: https://www.darkarcadia.com
Dark Arcadia is created & directed by Sally McLean, produced by Incognita Enterprises and funded via grants from the City of Melbourne, the British Shakespeare Association, Creative Victoria and Creative Australia through an Australian Cultural Fund BOOST Grant, as well as tax deductible donations from the general public via the Australian Cultural Fund.
