Screen Ireland Screenplay Development (Established Talent)

Eligibility and project requirements

Open to experienced Irish talent including individual writers, teams of writers, and writer and director teams, where applicants have at least one produced fiction feature film credit as a writer (including theatrical distribution, festival screenings or distribution on a major streaming platform) or television drama credits including animated shows. Credits on short films, adverts, documentary or non-fiction do not qualify. Teams pairing one experienced writer with one less experienced writer are eligible as a co-writing team. Producers must not be attached: an application including a production company or producer is automatically deemed ineligible. Live action or animated feature films only, made predominantly in English or Irish or a combination. A project may only be submitted to this programme twice; after a second unsuccessful application it is no longer eligible. Note a residency discrepancy in the official documents: the funding guidelines state all writers and directors must be resident in or born in the Republic of Ireland, while the scheme page states only that where more than one writer is attached, all must be Irish citizens or resident in the Republic.

Formats

Feature

Open to

Ireland

Deadlines & fees

Dates and fees checked against the official site 19 Oct 2026. That is longer ago than we aim for; confirm on the official site before entering.

Prepare your entry

Prizes

Up to 15,000 euro for an individual or up to 20,000 euro for teams of two or more. Screen Ireland warns that in light of pressure on resources, awards considerably less than the maximum are likely to be offered. IMPORTANT: this is a loan, not a grant. It is repayable in full on the first day of principal photography and must be carried as a line item in the production budget. It carries no interest, no premium is charged on repayment, and Screen Ireland takes no profit share. Unlike the Scottish equivalent there is no reinvestment account available to you: Screen Ireland's Development Locked Box is producer-only, and this scheme forbids producers. Copyright normally remains with the writer, though Screen Ireland may require a share.

Judging

Projects are assessed by members of the production and development team, sometimes joined by Business Affairs, Distribution and other departments, chaired by the Chief Executive or a designate. Panels may include external assessors. Development funding decisions up to 75,000 euro are made at a development meeting and ratified by the Screen Ireland board at the following board meeting. Prior consultation with the team is not required. Decisions are generally reached within 12 weeks of the submission deadline, and applicants receive a Project Decision Summary with brief feedback comments. Successful applicants must contact the Legal and Business Affairs Coordinator within two weeks of an offer or the project expires.

Frequently asked questions