Mara Brock Akil

Mara Brock Akil has written and produced over 400 episodes of television, leaving her mark on Hollywood. She’s received Essence Magazine’s Visionary Award and the Brandon Tartikoff Legacy Award by NATPE, and has been named in Variety and The Hollywood Reporter’s Showrunner Power Lists. In 2026 Mara was the recipient of the prestigious Norman Lear Award at the Producers Guild Awards. Her credits include writing and producing the hit show Girlfriends (2000-2008), The Game (2006-2015), Being Mary Jane (2013-2019), and executive producing Netflix’s STAMPED FROM THE BEGINNING which was on the Academy Awards® Documentary Feature Shortlist. Brock Akil’s most recent project was the critically acclaimed Netflix series adaptation of the 1975 Judy Blume novel FOREVER, starring Karen Pittman, Wood Harris, Lovie Simone, Michael Cooper Jr., and more. Mara was nominated for a WGA Award on behalf of her writing in FOREVER and the series was nominated for 4 Independent Spirit Awards. In 2021, Mara expanded her passion for non-profit work and started her very own non-profit writing residency in Los Angeles, the Writers’ Colony. The mission is to support up-and-coming underrepresented writers/creatives. She is delighted to continue the colony’s commitment to nurturing emerging writers, and providing them with exposure, access, and the tools they need to continue on their journeys. Most recently Brock Akil announced her debut novel, The Revelation of Dionne Daphne, on shelves June 30th.