Black List Parenthood Writers Fellowship
Fellowship · 2026Prestige 72/100Feedback included
15,000 dollars each to four writers for scripts about becoming a parent. Fifty fee waivers available.
Deadlines & fees
- Opt-in deadlineNext deadline1 Sept 2026America/Los_Angeles$130
Dates and fees checked against the official site 9 Aug 2026.
Key facts
- Formats
- Feature, TV Pilot
- Eligibility
- 18+
- Required materials
- Completed feature screenplay or pilot teleplay, in English, hosted on the Black List with at least one pending or completed evaluation attached · A brief explanation of why parenthood is an important theme in your work and how it resonates in the script · If longlisted: a one-page personal statement, professional resume and short essay on how the project engages with parenthood themes
Applicants must be at least 18 and not a minor in their state or country of residence, and must be the sole owner of all rights in a wholly original, non-infringing completed feature screenplay or pilot teleplay of one hour or half an hour. Scripts must be submitted in English, with translations noting the original language. Writing teams are permitted provided every member complies. There is no income cap, no career-stage bar and no exclusion of represented writers. The theme gate is narrow: scripts must focus on the beginning of life. Two selection quotas apply: at least two of the four projects will focus on fatherhood or male caregiving, and at least one will be set in Europe in a country where The Human Safety Net operates, focusing on families at risk of social exclusion with children aged nought to six. No residency or nationality restriction is published, and the eligibility wording contemplates applicants outside the United States, but the page never states outright that non-US writers may apply.
Prizes
15,000 US dollars each to four writers, plus three meetings with an experienced creative mentor, access to a panel of subject experts spanning neuroscience, biology, psychology and anthropology, monthly cohort sessions with the other fellows, and an invitation to the 2027 Lights! Camera! Impact! Storyteller Gathering during the Venice Film Festival, where fellows present their pitches. Travel and accommodation terms for Venice are not published. Each recipient retains complete ownership of their work and the submission agreement carries no option, first look or first refusal, though it does include a broad release, indemnity, a name and likeness clause and binding arbitration in Los Angeles.
Judging
Up to forty projects are longlisted and asked for a one-page personal statement, professional resume and short essay. Up to ten are shortlisted and every shortlisted writer is interviewed by the Parenthood Fellowship committee. Four recipients are selected no later than 30 October 2026 and the fellowship commences in November. No mentors, expert panellists or committee members are named. Entrants receive the written Black List evaluation they purchased or were granted, which carries written and numerical feedback from a professional reader.
The PreList verdict
Fifteen thousand dollars each to four writers, six months to revise, three sessions with a creative mentor, and a panel of actual subject experts in neuroscience, biology, psychology and anthropology, which is an unusually serious research offer for a screenwriting fellowship. It ends with an invitation to present your pitch in Venice during the film festival. You keep complete ownership throughout, with no option or first look anywhere in the agreement.
The honest part: the theme gate is narrow and specific. This is not a fellowship for family drama broadly, it is for the beginning of life, pregnancy, and how becoming a parent reshapes a person across the first five years. Two of the four places are reserved for projects about fatherhood or male caregiving, and one for a project set in Europe about families at risk of social exclusion, so read those quotas as a map of where the room actually is. Cost of entry is the other thing to plan: your script must be hosted with an evaluation attached, which runs about 130 dollars for a feature or hour pilot from a standing start, or 30 if you reuse an existing evaluation. Fifty fee waivers exist, prioritised on financial need and underrepresented subject matter, but only for projects not previously hosted.
Apply if your script genuinely sits in that first-five-years territory. No income cap, no career-stage bar, representation irrelevant. Opt-in closes 1 September 2026, and if you need a new evaluation, remember they typically take around three weeks to come back, so leaving it to late August is cutting it fine.
Dylian Salvatore, Founder of The PreList · Updated 9 Aug 2026
Frequently asked questions
What does it cost to enter?
Your script must be hosted on the Black List with at least one evaluation attached. From zero that is 30 dollars hosting plus 100 for a feature or hour pilot, or 70 for a half hour, so around 100 to 130 in total. If you already have an evaluation you can reuse it and pay only the 30 dollar hosting.
Are there fee waivers?
Fifty, granting a submission at no cost, prioritised by demonstrated financial need and underrepresented subject matter. The important restriction: waivers are only available for new projects that have not yet been hosted on the Black List. How many remain is not displayed.
How narrow is the theme?
Narrow. Scripts must focus on the beginning of life: pregnancy, becoming a parent, and how the transition reshapes who you are, especially across the first five years. Two of the four places go to projects about fatherhood or male caregiving, and one to a project set in Europe about families at risk of social exclusion with children under six.
Can I apply from outside the United States?
Probably, though it is never stated outright. There is no residency or nationality restriction published, the eligibility wording refers to your state or country of residence, and one of the four places is reserved for a project set in Europe. But the page does not confirm it in words.
Is your script right for Black List Parenthood Writers Fellowship?
Upload your screenplay and The PreList scores how well it fits this fellowship: genre, format, eligibility and readiness, before you spend anything.
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