Created in collaboration with the Van Leer Foundation, The Human Safety Net, Equimundo, and the American Institute for Boys and Men, the Parenthood Writers Fellowship will support four writers in developing compelling, evidence-informed film or television scripts about parenthood as a transformative human experience.
Each writer will receive a $15,000 grant, creative mentorship, and expert input, with the goal of shifting cultural narratives and inspiring broader recognition of parenthood’s human and societal value.
At the end of the Fellowship, each recipient will provide a revised version of their script and will be invited to attend the 2027 Lights! Camera! Impact! Storyteller Gathering during Venice Film Festival with their pitches.
Fee waivers are also available for eligible project submissions — writers can learn more about qualifying projects and apply for a fee waiver on the program submission page.
New program alert! The Black List and the Athens Film Office will select up to ten professional screenwriters to attend an intensive, residential development program in Athens based on their bold, audience-driven feature films and television projects as a part of the 2027 Owl Workshop.
Participating writers will receive high-level mentorship (mentors include our own Scott Myers!) and one-on-one script notes as a part of the Workshop. Participating writers will also have access to exclusive masterclasses, panels and networking events with experienced industry professionals.
The Workshop will take place in Athens, Greece from January 12-15 2027. Writers will be responsible for their own travel to Athens, so please make sure you can attend in-person before submitting your project. All accommodations and meals for participating writers will be covered throughout the duration of the program.
The Owl seeks audience-driven feature films or pilots for an international audience that combine distinct artistic vision with strong commercial potential and the flexibility to be produced or filmed in Greece, though submitted projects do not have to be actually set in Greece. Please note that this Workshop is open only to writers who have at least one professional, distributed credit in feature film or television.
Playwrights, we want to share your plays with the world as a part of The Black List x TRW Collection!
The Black List and TRW hope to license at least six plays and add them to The Collection each year — just imagine having your work performed by repertory companies, high schoolers or community theaters!
Check out the plays that have been published as a part of the TRW Collection so far. We’ll be announcing the next batch of published plays very soon too…
Submissions are open for a new collaboration with Zando imprint Evil Twin, which will identify one unpublished or self-published horror novel for a $25,000 publication deal!
Evil Twin launched in February 2026, and their first two titles — TAPEWORM by A.P. Thayer and MORSELS by Abe Moss — will be published later this year. Additional upcoming titles include MOTHER OF NIGHT by James Bennett, ANA MUST DIE (AGAIN) by E.J. Green and HELL PUPPIES by Neil Sharpson. Please visit their website to learn more about the imprint.
Mark that deadline down before it creeps up on you, novelists…
The NRDC Climate Storytelling Fellowship will grant $20,000 each to three writers to support revision of a feature screenplay or pilot that engages with climate change in a compelling way.
Please note that a maximum of 500 qualified scripts will be accepted for consideration for the 2027 Fellowship — and submit your project as soon as possible.
NRDC and The Black List will connect each fellowship recipient with industry professionals for additional mentorship and guidance. Past mentors have included Lucia Aniello (BROAD CITY), Dustin Lance Black (MILK), Roxane Gay (BAD FEMINIST), Brit Marling (ANOTHER EARTH), Daniel Scheinert (EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE) and more.
All scripts accepted for consideration in the 2027 NRDC Climate Storytelling Fellowship will receive one free month of hosting and one free evaluation. Submitting writers will be required to provide a brief description of how their project qualifies as a climate story when submitting for consideration. Please read all relevant submission details on the program page for more information.
The Black List and WIF will invite six promising non-professional television writers who are of an underrepresented gender (women, NB/GNC, and/or trans, and others) to the 2027 Episodic Lab.
Participating writers will explore script development, pitching, peer workshopping sessions, and master classes with established writers and industry executives. The Lab will run for four weeks in-person in Los Angeles beginning in March 2027. Writers can also apply directly through WIF.
We know December seems like an AWFULLY long time from now, but as always, those deadlines do have a way of sneaking up on us all…submit your pilot today.
If you are interested in submitting your work for consideration for any of the programs currently available on The Black List website and are unable to afford hosting or evaluations at this time, fee waivers are available. Once you receive your fee waiver, you’ll be able to opt into consideration for all programs for which you are eligible at no additional cost.
Even with the summer slow-down, we’ve had a very busy July here at The Black List! Let’s take a closer look at what we’ve been up to so far this summer…
First, a few project updates:
Jon Boyer’s 2013 Black List script FREE BYRD is set to star The Rock and will be directed by two-time Oscar nominee Greg Kwedar. The film is being produced by Ben Affleck and Matt Damon’s Artists Equity.
NDA, a 2024 Black List script by 2023 Black List x WIF Feature Residency alum Audrey Ellis Fox, is currently in production in New York! Rachel Zegler, Penn Badgley and Amy Ryan star in the thriller.
John Fischer’s CRUSH, a blcklst.com script discovery and 2025 Black List script that launched a studio bidding war last fall, is set to be directed by Julius Avery for 20th Century Fox.
2020 Disability List alum Sarah Granger was selected to participate in the 2026 Anarchists United Writers Discovery Fellowship, led by Lilly Wachowski.
Alyssa Hill’s 2016 Black List script THE HOUSEWIFE and Julia Cox’s 2024 Black List script LOVE OF YOUR LIFE are both set to premiere at the 2026 Toronto Film Festival!
Jenna Ortega and Rose Byrne are set to star in NASTY, a 2024 Black List script by Isabella Jarosz! Acclaimed filmmaker Mary Bronstein will direct the movie for Warner Bros. Clockwork.
Zachary Montague’s GANGLAND (fka KEEP QUIET) is now on VOD after being discovered on blcklst.com by director Vincent Grashaw. GANGLAND premiered at the Locarno Film Festival and stars Lou Diamond Phillips and Nick Stahl.
Taratoa Stappard’s MĀRAMA, which was developed as a part of the Black List x New Zealand Project and premiered at TIFF, has been named as one of the best horror movies of 2026 by Bloody Disgusting! MĀRAMA is also currently up for several Fangoria Chainsaw Awards.
Chad St. John’s MOTOR CITY, a 2009 Black List script, is now playing in theaters! The film stars Alan Ritchson, Shailene Woodley and Ben Foster.
This summer, we’ve been so fortunate to have the wonderful Kyla Standard and EJ Tomes interning with us as a part of the Academy Gold Rising program! Learn more about EJ and Kyla below:
And while you’re on our Instagram page, make sure to watch Franklin’s Substack piece “The Moral Case for Selling Out” in video form.
For more from Franklin, watch his recent appearance on the American Cinematheque Podcast:
He’ll also be on an upcoming episode of the brand new Birth of a Parent podcast from our collaborators for the Parenthood Writers Fellowship, Van Leer Foundation — stay tuned for that in September!
Data expert Stephen Follows recently shared a detailed analysis of annual Black List projects, “Does the Black List find talent or launch it?” which is well-worth your time…
Industry members, make sure to check out our newest Featured Projects, which are all about obsession: R.I. Hage’s THE AMIR’S JAZZ CLUB, Brian Gene White’s LOST MARBLES and Chelsea Spirto’s BRAIN SPOTTING.
Speaking of variations on a theme, make sure to check out our latest collaboration post with the WGF Foundation, which focuses on Disability Pride in July.
Los Angeles, we’ll see you TOMORROW at the American Cinematheque for a sold-out screening of Travis Braun’s ONE NIGHT ONLY, which was the #1 script on the 2024 Black List. The screening will feature a Q&A with Travis after the film — there will be a standby line at the door for those who missed out on tickets.
And finally, make sure to join us in August for the last Black List Happy Hour of the summer! We’ll see you at El Condor, no need to RSVP…
If you’re not already a member of the Black List website, here you go:
Writers: Create a free Writer Profile and whenever you’re ready (and only then) upload your project, order professional feedback, and explore the various opportunities we have from time to time.
Industry Professionals Register for an Industry Membership to discover new material before everyone else.
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