Sidney Butler is a writer and filmmaker from Houston, TX. A graduate from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, her work has been awarded by the Sundance Ignite Fellowship and the Disney Writing Fellowship. Over the last few years in Los Angeles, she has worked in multiple television writers' rooms including: Station 19, A Black Lady Sketch Show and Grown-ish before she was staffed on the Lee Daniels’ drama, Our Kind of People. Her scripted YA podcast, “Academy,” for Wondery and Amazon went #1 on the Apple fiction charts and later went on to win a 2025 AMBIE for Best Scriptwriting. Most recently, she was a writer for the HBO comedy, I LOVE LA. When she’s not writing, she enjoys binging the trashiest reality television (shout out Big Brother!) and trying to find the best Thai food in Los Angeles (Jitlada!)
“As a writer, I’m drawn to tell comedic stories about women in crisis. The ones who are flawed, messy and trying to figure themselves out. I love when ordinary life is heightened through witty dialogue and quirky characters. I also want to amplify the voices of young Black girls and make them feel seen in the coming-of-age genre.”
APPEARANCES
“ACADEMY” Wins the Ambie for Best Scriptwriting
“ACADEMY” Podcast Gets Myha’la Herrold
Sundance Ignite Fellows 2018 - Press Release
The NFFTY Podcast - Stevie’s Aliens
FELLOWSHIPS & GRANTS
Disney Writing Program ‘21
Sundance BOAN Feature Film Fellowship ‘19
Sundance Ignite Fellowship ‘18
Akhtar-Bhutta Fund for Student Producers Grant ‘17