Three individuals and two writing teams have been chosen to receive the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ 2025-2026 Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting, an international talent development program that supports non-professional screenwriters, the Academy announced on Monday. The recipients are Leo Aguirre of San Antonio, Texas; Lynn McKee of Queens, New York; Katla Sólnes of New York City; Omar Al Dakheel and Elie El Choufany of Los Angeles; and Sara Crow and David Rafailedes of Brooklyn.
Nicholl fellows receive direct support, ongoing resources and networking opportunities from the Academy; participate in events with Oscar nominees and winners, including pitch workshops, media training sessions, meet-and-greets and more; and receive ongoing career advancement support through the Gold Alumni Network Program, which provides continued access, opportunity, professional development and education for alumni of the Academy’s global talent development programs. All Nicholl fellowship recipient scripts are archived in the Academy Collection and are accessible through the Academy’s Margaret Herrick Library.
To identify this year’s potential fellows, the Nicholl program exclusively partnered with 40 universities, screenwriting labs, film festivals and filmmaker programs (including The Black List, which served as a portal for public submissions). More than 500 Academy members from all 19 branches volunteered to read and evaluate the scripts to determine the 10 finalists — an increase in Academy member participation by 149 percent — and a group of 23 Academy members, who serve on the Nicholl Committee, selected the fellowship recipients from the finalists.
The Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting Program is governed by the Academy Foundation board of trustees. The 2025-2026 Nicholl Committee was co-chaired by Academy Foundation board president and Academy governor Kim Taylor-Coleman and producers branch member Julie Lynn.
“We are thrilled to announce the recipients of the 2025-2026 Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting, a remarkable group of diverse and international new writers who represent the future of storytelling,” Taylor-Coleman said in a statement. “This continues the Academy’s longtime commitment to championing emerging talent from across the world. We extend our sincere thanks to all participating Academy members, to Franklin Leonard and The Black List for their collaboration, and to the universities, screenwriting labs, film festivals and filmmaker programs who submitted scripts to this year’s program.”
The 2025-2026 Nicholl fellows are (listed alphabetically by author):
Leo Aguirre (San Antonio, TX), “Verano”
Nicholl partner: Sundance Institute Screenwriters Lab
During a sweltering summer in Texas, a withdrawn teen’s world is upended when his parents decide to foster an asylum seeker from Central America — what begins as resentment evolves into unexpected friendship as the threat of deportation forces both boys to confront loss, identity and belonging.
Omar Al Dakheel and Elie El Choufany (Los Angeles, CA), “The Washroom”
Nicholl partner: Urbanworld Festival
In small-town Texas, a young imam fights for his community’s right to bury their dead while hiding a forbidden love that could cost him everything.
Sara Crow and David Rafailedes (Brooklyn, NY), “Satoshi”
Nicholl partner: NYU Tisch School of the Arts
After her family loses everything in the 2008 financial crisis, a teenaged anime-obsessed hacktivist realizes money isn’t fair…so she sets out to reinvent it with a new digital currency called Bitcoin.
Lynn McKee (Queens, NY), “I’m Ready to Go Anywhere”
Nicholl partner: The Black List
Desperate to escape the heat, chaos and danger of 1980s Phoenix, ten-year-old Patty must protect and parent her mom and little sister while crafting a plan to get them all out.
Katla Sólnes (New York, NY), “Eruption”
Nicholl partner: Columbia University School of the Arts
In the highlands of 1970s Iceland, a geologist’s wife finds her marriage tested when a wily American student arrives, stirring tensions as volatile as the surrounding volcanic landscape.
The 2025-2026 Nicholl finalists are (listed alphabetically by author):
Natalie Cutler, “Offside” (Nicholl partner: The Black List)
Adrian Morphy, “The 300 Year Old Man” (Nicholl partner: MFA in Scriptwriting & Story Design at Toronto Metropolitan University)
Benjamin Murphey, “Unconfirmed Bachelor” (Nicholl partner: The Black List)
Michael Oosterom, “Giants” (Nicholl partner: The Black List)
Shelley Patel, “With Her Hands Untied” (Nicholl partner: The Black List)
The Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting program has awarded 191 fellowships since 1986. The program was endowed by Gladys “Gee” Nicholl in honor of her husband, writer-producer Don Nicholl. Fellowships are awarded with the understanding that recipients will complete feature-length screenplays during their fellowship year. The Academy acquires no rights to the works of Nicholl fellows and does not involve itself in any commercial way with their completed scripts.
