Women Behind the Scenes Spotlight: Toni Graphia

Today’s Women Behind the Scenes spotlight is shone on television writer and producer Toni Graphia.

She is the daughter of a prominent Louisiana judge, who got her start as part of an apprenticeship program through the Writers Guild of America. In her own words she “went from opening fan mail to selling scripts in just a few years”. She is also a graduate of the University of California, Santa Barbara.

Toni’s earliest work on TV started as a writer for Life Goes On in 1989 as well as China Beach, Cop Rock and Quantum Leap in the early 1990’s. Not that long after, she wrote for Melrose Place and Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman where she eventually became a co-producer.

During the mid-90’s she was a writer on the short-lived series VR.5 and Chicago Hope, where she also served as a creative consultant.

At the turn of the century, she landed a job in the writer’s room for the fan favorite series Roswell, where she also worked as a consulting producer for its final season. In 2001, she wrote and executive produced the TV movie Earth Angels before becoming a co-executive producer and writer on the short-lived series Wolf Lake.

Two years later she was a writer and consulting producer on the acclaimed series Carnivale before shifted over to the reboot of Battlestar Galactica, working as a writer and co-executive producer. It is during this time that the series received a Peabody Award for “plotlines that are deeply personal and relatable, while never compromising their affinity and passion for science fiction”.

Over the last four years, she has worked as a writer and co-executive producer on the following shows: Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, the short-lived medical drama Mercy, the short-lived superhero series The Cape and the short-lived FOX mystery series Alcatraz.

Given all of her accomplishments to date, it will be very interesting to see what project she works on next.