Greenlight Screenwriting Lab
Lab · 2026Prestige 60/100
Free, paid, six months of mentored development. And a production company takes a first option over everything you write on it.
Deadlines & fees
- Application deadlinePassed20 Mar 2026Europe/DublinFree
Closed for this cycle
The 2026 cycle opened on 2 March and closed on 20 March 2026 at 5:00pm, with shortlist interviews in the week of 4 May and six writers informed by 12 May. No timezone is published, though the organisers are Irish. The 2027 window is unannounced, but the cadence is the most stable of any Irish scheme we carry: four consecutive years with a late February or early March open, a deadline in the first three weeks of March, a residential weekend in Galway in May, a second in Dublin in October, and six writers plus three shadow editors every single year. The only drift is the deadline itself sliding from the first days of March in 2023, 2024 and 2025 to the 20th in 2026, so a March 2027 deadline is a reasonable expectation.
Dates and fees checked against the official site 9 Aug 2026.
Key facts
- Formats
- TV Pilot
- Genres
- Drama
- Eligibility
- Free to enterNo credit required
- Open to
- Ireland, United Kingdom
- Required materials
- An original one-hour or half-hour drama series or serial pilot episode as a PDF · A 2 to 3 page outline or pitch · A CV · An online form covering name, email, script title, logline, statement of interest and a diversity question · Shadow script editor applicants: a CV plus a personal statement
A LONE WRITER APPLIES DIRECTLY: no producer, company or attachment is needed. The gate is the opposite of the usual one, because it excludes the experienced rather than the unproven. Quoted: only writers who do not have a broadcast credit as a television writer or theatrical release as a feature film writer may apply, although produced short films of 20 minutes or less and episodes of soaps or continuing drama series are exempt. RESIDENCY IS PUBLISHED TWO DIFFERENT WAYS AND WE HAVE NOT RESOLVED IT. The National Talent Academy states the lab is open to any writers resident on the Island of Ireland and any Irish writers resident overseas, which admits Northern Ireland residents by construction. The Course Director's own site states applicants must be resident in Ireland or of Irish nationality, which is narrower. If you are in Northern Ireland, ask before you spend time on an application. Secondary sources add a minimum age of 18, writing partnerships of at most two, and one script per applicant; treat those as unconfirmed against primary sources. Shadow script editor places are open to Irish residents or citizens abroad with no prior broadcast script-editing credit. The working language is English, though writers fluent in Irish who wish to write in Irish are particularly welcomed. Diversity, equity and inclusion criteria are taken into account at shortlisting.
Prizes
PAID, BUT THE AMOUNT IS NOT PUBLISHED. Quoted: writers will be paid a fee for participating in the course and for completing two drafts of a one hour or 30 minute script. No figure appears anywhere, on either the host site or the Course Director's site. Entry is free of charge and there is no participation charge. RIGHTS, AND THIS IS THE HEADLINE TERM: all writers will be required to grant Danú Media a first option to acquire all rights in their script, and will be told within six months of delivery whether Danú Media wishes to exercise that option. So a free, paid lab run in association with a production company takes a first option over all rights in the script written on the course. READ THE NEXT PART TOO, BECAUSE IT IS WHY WE HAVE PUT THIS SO PROMINENTLY: that clause is published on the Course Director's site for 2026 and on the National Talent Academy's own 2023 page, but it does not appear on the Academy's 2024, 2025 or 2026 pages. The host organisation's current page omits the single most consequential term in the offer. No exercise price for the option is published.
Judging
Philip Shelley is Course Director. Nadine Flynn of Danú Media serves as script editor. Shortlisted writers are interviewed by a panel of industry professionals, in Dublin or on Zoom. Guest speakers in prior years have included writers from Kin and Hidden Assets, producers, and BBC commissioning executives. FEEDBACK IS EXPLICITLY NOT GIVEN: no feedback can be given on the scripts.
The PreList verdict
On the face of it, one of the best offers in Ireland: free to enter, a paid fee for participating and delivering two drafts, six months of mentored development under an assigned professional script editor, workshops, broadcaster guest speakers, a Dublin networking evening, and a course director who has run the Channel 4 Screenwriting Course for fifteen years. It is also aimed squarely at writers who have not yet broken through, since a broadcast television credit or a theatrical feature release disqualifies you. Four consecutive annual cycles with the same shape make it dependable.
Now the term you need to see, because the host organisation's own page does not show it to you. Every writer must grant Danú Media, the production company the lab runs in association with, a first option to acquire all rights in the script they write on the course, with the decision coming within six months of delivery. That is a real encumbrance on brand new work you developed yourself, and no exercise price is published. It is not necessarily a bad trade for an unproduced writer, but it is a trade, and you should price it in before applying.
What makes us flag it this loudly is where it appears. The clause is published on the Course Director's site for 2026 and on the Academy's own 2023 page, and it is absent from the Academy's 2024, 2025 and 2026 pages entirely. A prospective applicant reading only the official host page would never know. Two smaller things: residency is published two contradictory ways, so Northern Ireland writers should ask before applying, and the fee amount is never stated anywhere, only that one exists.
Dylian Salvatore, Founder of The PreList · Updated 9 Aug 2026
Frequently asked questions
What is the catch on a free, paid lab?
Rights. Every writer must grant Danú Media a first option to acquire all rights in the script written on the course, with a decision within six months of delivery. No exercise price is published. Note that this clause appears on the Course Director's site but not on the National Talent Academy's own 2026 page.
Am I eligible if I am in Northern Ireland?
Unclear, and worth asking first. The National Talent Academy says the lab is open to writers resident on the Island of Ireland, which includes you. The Course Director's site says applicants must be resident in Ireland or of Irish nationality, which may not. The two published versions differ and we have not resolved it.
How much am I paid?
A fee is confirmed for participating and completing two drafts, but no amount is published on any source. Entry itself is free and there is no participation charge.
Do I develop the script I applied with?
No. The script you write on the course is a new project, deliberately different from your entry script. Your entry script is a sample, and no feedback is given on it.
Is your script right for Greenlight Screenwriting Lab?
Upload your screenplay and The PreList scores how well it fits this lab: genre, format, eligibility and readiness, before you spend anything.
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