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WIF x The Black List Episodic Lab

Developing the projects and skills of promising non-professional television writers through workshops and master classes.

APPLICATIONS FOR THE NEXT CYCLE WILL OPEN FALL 2026.

The Episodic Lab is generously supported by the Golden Globe Foundation and ShivHans Pictures.

Achieving equitable cultural representation within our media narratives requires a representative number of skilled storytellers. The Episodic Lab, held in partnership with key collaborator and industry benchmarker The Black List, is designed to equip new television writers with the knowledge to build and sustain their careers. This program provides participants with support in craft, professional development, and networking toward advancing their livelihoods.

The Episodic Lab selects six to eight TV writers each year and runs for four weeks, with sessions including script development, pitching, a mock writers’ room, and roundtables with established writers and industry executives. Additionally, throughout the year, participants attend events and screenings that further expose them to the realities of life as professional writers.

Episodic Lab advisors and master class teachers have included writers from series including “Grey’s Anatomy,””Ted Lasso,”“Mr. and Mrs. Smith,””P Valley,”“Mindhunter,””High Potential,””The Vampire Diares,””The Walking Dead,””Outer Range,””Loot,””Snowfall,””Reboot, ””Chucky,” and many more.

All participants of the 2026 Episodic Lab will also become 2026 WIF Fellows, receiving an additional year of support.

Requirements to Apply:

IMPORTANT: Please note that applicants can apply through either WIF or The Black List, however, instructions are different for each platform.

To be eligible to apply through WIF:

  • You must be the sole and exclusive author of the television pilot submitted for consideration. Writing teams are eligible.
  • You cannot have received more than $25K in aggregate to date as compensation for television writing work.
  • You must be based in Los Angeles.
  • You must be available for in-person evening and weekend sessions during the month of March 2026.
  • WIF members can apply for membership rates, and non-members can apply for $40 per application. 
  • Through WIF, applicants can submit up to three scripts. Each script must be submitted through its own application, so fees and/or waivers are applicable per script. 

If you’d like to review the application before applying, you can find a PDF version linked here. For questions, please click here or contact support@blcklist.com.

Key Dates:

  • October 1, 2025 – Applications open
  • November 3, 2025 – Applications close
  • Week of January 19, 2026 – Short list applicants notified of status
  • Week of February 9, 2026 – Interviews
  • Week of February 16, 2026 – All applicants notified of status
  • March 3, 2026 — Episodic Lab begins

FAQs

    1. How are participants selected?
      WIF and The Black List select semifinalists from the initial applicant pool through separate jury processes. WIF’s preliminary jury includes agents, managers, writers, associates, executives, and WIF staff, and each script is guaranteed three reads of at least its first 15 pages. Strong scripts will be read in their entirety in order to determine if they advance. Finalists are selected by The Black List and WIF Lab managers and may be invited  to progress to the interview round. The participants are selected based on interviews, scripts, and ancillary materials.
    2.  How many scripts can I submit?
      Through WIF, applicants can submit up to three scripts. Each script must be submitted through its own application, so fees and/or waivers are applicable per script.
    3. Can I apply through both WIF and The Black List?
      Yes, you can apply through both, however as noted above, there are separate preliminary processes for the two organizations. If you are applying through The Black List, be sure to read their instructions and FAQs or contact SUPPORT@BLCKLST.COM for any additional questions about their process.
    4. Do I have to be a member to apply through WIF?
      You don’t need to be a WIF member to apply to this program. WIF members can apply at member rates and non-members can apply for $40 per application. For program-specific member benefits, please visit our membership page HERE.
    5. I have a writing partner who is also a woman, NB/GNC, and/or trans, or another underrepresented gender. Can we both apply?
      Yes, you can both apply, either through separate applications or jointly. However, each script will only receive three reads in the preliminary round, even if submitted twice, so a joint application is recommended. If the script is selected, you can both participate in the Lab.
    6. I have a writing partner who is a cis man. Can I still apply?
      Yes, you are still eligible to apply. In our effort to create equitable spaces in a currently male-dominated industry, should you be accepted into the program your partner would not participate in the sessions directly. However, you would be able to share appropriate script feedback with him.
    7. What is the time commitment of the Lab?
      Meetings are approximately two hours in length, twice a week—generally Tuesdays and Thursdays—in the evenings (PDT) for the full month of March 2026. Additional sessions, including some on weekends, may be scheduled as well.
    8. Will this program be conducted remotely or in-person?
      Sessions will take place in person in Los Angeles.
    9. When does the application close, and will tech support be available?
      The application deadline is November 3, 2025, at 11:59 p.m. PST. Technical support will be available until 6:00 p.m. PST that day. Please contact programs@wif.org with any technical issues before 6:00 p.m. PST—we will not be able to offer support after that time. Any technical difficulties occurring between 6:00 p.m. and 11:59 p.m. PST will be the responsibility of the applicant and will not warrant an extension or reopening of the application.
    10. What is the WIF Fellowship?
      All Episodic Lab participants will automatically become WIF Fellows. To explore the WIF Fellowship, please see the Fellowship page on our website.
    11. What is on the application?
      If you’d like to review the application, you can find a PDF version linked here.For any questions, please contact programs@wif.org.

Writer Fellows

2026 Episodic Lab

Adriana Ducassi

THE LEDGE

Adriana Ducassi

THE LEDGE

Adriana Ducassi is a Mexican/Italian filmmaker, writer and actor. She co-created Netflix’s hit digital sketch series “Go Off with Jess & Julissa” and the beloved sketch series “Guac Bottom,” in collaboration with L.A. Taco. Her film “The Eternity of Grief” world premiered as a Best Comedy nominee at Palm Springs ShortFest 2025. And she just completed the year-long Showrunners’ Mentorship Matters program alongside her creative partner, Nick Ducassi. As an actor, some favorite roles include work on Snowfall, NCIS, FBI, Law & Order SVU and Grey’s Anatomy, in addition to numerous indie films and award-winning off-broadway plays.

PILOT: THE LEDGE

Logline: Hurtling toward the death of their industry as their work becomes more important than ever, a rag-tag group of newspaper journalists do their goddamn best to cover Miami in the nineties

Amanda Kohr

CRICKETS

Amanda Kohr

CRICKETS

Amanda Kohr is an LGBTQ+ award-winning playwright, screenwriter, and journalist from Appalachia. After escaping a born-again Christian cult, she moved to Los Angeles and joined the cult of Hollywood. Her work explores obsession, sexuality, desire, and the death of girlhood, with plays developed and produced nationwide. She’s also a sex and relationships writer with bylines across major digital outlets. Her pilot Texts From Your Ex earned her a fellowship in the Outfest Screenwriting Lab, and she currently works with filmmaker Jason Reitman. Amanda hosts the podcast This Feels Bi, available on all platforms.

PILOT: CRICKETS

LOGLINE: After the disappearance of their first-place teammate, a group of competitive teen dancers and their stage moms begin to unravel, exposing the brutal cost of girlhood, ambition, and the need to be loved.

Briana Pozner

VIGILANTES

Briana Pozner

VIGILANTES

Briana is an Altadena-based writer and filmmaker originally from Denver, Colorado, where she attended an arts school before moving on to Sarah Lawrence College — continuing her long-standing commitment to avoid basic math. Her essays have appeared in The New York Times and The Huffington Post, and her short films have been Vimeo Staff Picks, featured on Adult Swim, and screened at Oscar-qualifying festivals nationwide. Her scripts have placed in many competitions including Austin Film Festival, Launch Pad, Big Break and have gone on to be Blacklist recommended.

PILOT: VIGILANTES

LOGLINE: Shaken by the injustice of his mother’s death, 15-year-old Mikey joins a covert group of neurodivergent outsiders, donning shoddy superhero personas, in their mission to overthrow their local police department. But as the squad’s notoriety grows, they must contend with the same power struggles they’ve sought to dismantle.

Katie Waldron

CASCADIA

Katie Waldron

CASCADIA

Katie Waldron is a writer from Santa Fe, New Mexico. She enjoys writing about eccentric, often obsessive women who discover purpose in the absurd. Katie finds inspiration in mythology and folklore, as well as the natural environment. She graduated from USC School of Cinematic Arts and has worked as a writers’ assistant on Outlander and God of War. Katie was one of the winners of the Hollywood Climate Pitchfest competition, sponsored by NBCUniversal, and a nominee for the Sundance Episodic Sloan Grant. Outside of writing, Katie enjoys working with animals and has volunteered on and filmed wildlife biology field studies.

PILOT: CASCADIA

LOGLINE: In the world of sparring environmentalists and loggers in Coastal Oregon, a wildlife biologist, a timber worker, and a pyromaniac punk come together to form an environmental activist group and navigate a blossoming love triangle.

Paige Wesley

THIN PLACES

Paige Wesley

THIN PLACES

Paige Wesley is a comedian, podcaster, and writer known for her unique ability to explore the intersection of the macabre and the mundane.

As the co-creator and host of Cult Podcast and co-host of The Horror Virgin, and Romancing the Pod, she has mastered the art of “genre-bending.” Her work is characterized by sharp dialogue, complex female protagonists, and a lighthearted approach to dark subject matter.

Paige Wesley is thrilled to introduce Thin Places to her portfolio. She hopes to continue to translate her digital and comedic success into bold, character-driven scripts for film and television.

PILOT: THIN PLACES

LOGLINE: Solar Springs, Nevada’s claim to fame is the alien abduction of 1987, but to Andie… it’s just home. When her mom is found wandering the desert confused, Andie returns to Solar Springs to find the skies may not be as empty as they seem.

Sessen Mengist

THE CHANGED

Sessen Mengist

THE CHANGED

Sessen is an Eritrean-American writer still reeling from the culture and temperature shock of emigrating from East Africa to the suburbs of Minnesota. Inspired by the sci-fi and fantasy stories that helped her escape from reality during those early years in the US, her writing often explores morality and relationships in hypothetical, fantastical worlds. She typically includes African elements to her stories, taking inspiration from African cultures, folklore, and mythologies. She is a 2024 Circle M+P x Anarchists United Writers Discovery Fellow and was featured on The Women’s List in 2025. Gratefully, she now resides in sunny LA.

I have attached a headshot. It was taken by Maxx Walske of maxx&me photography.

PILOT: THE CHANGED

LOGLINE: In a post-apocalyptic Africa where people with supernatural abilities are hunted, a hardened ex-soldier must traverse through the dangerous remnants of civilization to deliver her gifted sister to sanctuary.