The Writers Lab Unveils Fall 2026 Writer Selections for New York and Inaugural Los Angeles Intensives

The Writers Lab disclosed the roster of writers for its two fall intensives, marking the debut of a Los Angeles cohort alongside an established New York session. Backed by Meryl Streep and Nicole Kidman, the Lab focuses on women and nonbinary screenwriters over 40. The Los Angeles intensive will convene at Women In Film and the American Film Institute in October, with a subsequent five-day writing residency, while the New York program will be held at the Writers Guild of America East and Lincoln Center in November.

Participants include Maja Costa, Jennifer Derwingson-Peacock, Aurora Ferlin, Jessica Maison, Liz McClintock, Sarah Page, Elise Shin and Don Angelica Silva in Los Angeles, and Wendy Bednarz, Michelle Bonnard, Rebecca Brown, Kate Chrisman, Georgia Fu, Courtney Graham, Meghan Lennox and Charise Studesville in New York. Mentors this year feature industry veterans such as Susan Cartsonis, Anya Epstein, Amy Fox, Pamela Gray, Jenny Halper, Rita Hsiao, Meg Lefauve, Amenya Makuku, Mary Jane Skalski, Amber Sealey, Robin Swicord, Pat Verducci and Jamie Zelermyer.

Jurors include Kyra Sedgwick, Clea Lewis and representatives from Blossom Films, Tribeca Studios and the Writers Guild of America East. New collaborators include Alliance of Women Directors, Women in Film LA, American Film Institute and Film at Lincoln Center, with additional partners like New York Women in Film & Television, Roadmap Writers, The Black List and Film Fatales. A third intensive is slated for Canada in January 2027, and an Australian intensive is in development for 2027.