NHMC Series Scriptwriters Program

Eligibility and project requirements

You must be 18 or over and have a reliable internet connection for daily video conferencing. Entertainment industry experience is explicitly not required. Notably, there is no citizenship requirement: NHMC states plainly that you do not have to be a US citizen to apply, and no residency or work-authorisation rule is published at all, though the programme is otherwise framed around nationwide applications. There is also no Latino or Latine requirement: the programme is open to people of all races and ethnicities, though its framing throughout encourages aspiring Latine writers and describes selecting ten Latine writers from diverse backgrounds. Writing teams cannot apply; you must apply as an individual. Submit one properly formatted pilot or spec script, either one hour up to 59 pages or half hour up to 35 pages, in any genre including drama, dramedy, comedy, horror and animation. Features, short film scripts, novels, plays, poems and other alternative samples are not accepted. No exclusion of currently staffed writers is published.

Formats

TV Pilot

Page limit

59 pages

Eligibility

18+

Open to

United States

Deadlines & fees

Dates and fees checked against the official site 19 Oct 2026.

Prepare your entry

Prizes

No stipend, grant or payment to participants appears anywhere, so treat it as unpaid. What makes it remarkable is the cost side: NHMC states that thanks to its sponsors this is a completely free programme from the application through to the programme itself, so there is no fee at any stage and no waiver is needed. Being fully virtual, there is no travel or accommodation cost either. The only real cost is time, at roughly fourteen hours a week across eight weeks. RIGHTS: nothing is published. No rights, release or submission-agreement clause appears anywhere on NHMC's pages; whether one exists inside the application form itself could not be checked without applying, so this is unverified rather than confirmed absent.

Judging

Ten writers are selected. Mentors and selectors are not named, referred to only as professional writing mentors and professional industry writers. Because of application volume, judges are unable to provide feedback on submitted work, and materials are not returned. The programme runs fully virtually on Monday to Friday evenings and Saturday mornings Pacific time across eight weeks, at roughly fourteen hours a week. Note the live page carries a date error, giving a Monday start on a date that falls on a Tuesday, and labels Pacific deadlines as PST during months when Pacific time is on daylight saving.

Frequently asked questions