NYU has revealed its 2026 selections for the Blacklist-inspired Purple List of the best production-ready screenplays from Tisch School of the Arts graduate students and recent graduates.
The five scenarios were selected through a blind reading process by industry insiders Kobayashi By Vincent Lee Akitola, Little Rhonda By Aisha Ford, Lychee girl By Mira Peng, Tours By Taylor Sangyun Lee and The other family Written by Juan Pablo Daranas Molina.
Notable filmmakers whose work has been included in previous editions of the Purple List, now in its 15th year, include Chloe Zhao, President’s cake Director Hassan Hadi, Judas and the Black MessiahShaka King, current Purple List President Cathy Yan (Gallery, Succession, Dead Pigs, Birds of Prey), Desiree Akhavan (Appropriate Behavior, Miseducation by Cameron Post) and Starling girlLaurel Parmet.
Nineteen of the scripts featured in previous editions of the list, founded by alumni Ashim Bhalla and Chandor Garrison and faculty member John Tintori in 2012, have been adapted into full-length feature films.
This year’s winners were selected by a panel of producers, writers, directors (including David Alan Bash, David Frankel, Donna Gigliotti, Molly Asher, Naomi Foner), cinematographers, sound editors and staff from organizations such as Brillstein, Paradigm, Gersh, Verve, Anonymous Content, Grandview, The Sundance Institute, The Gotham, Cinetic Media, Roadside Attractions and Searchlight.
Below is more information about each of this year’s scenarios, provided by the Purple List team.
Kobayashi (Sports Movie/Comedy) by Vincent Lee Akitola. The astonishing true story of Takeru Kobayashi—or how a skinny 22-year-old from Japan broke world records in Nathan’s famous hot dog-eating contest, turning the fringe scene of competitive eating into a hugely profitable American sports phenomenon. Vincent Lee Akitola is an Asian American filmmaker and MBA/MFA candidate at New York University who wrote the script for Kobayashi It is his second appearance on the purple list, then Blue comedy In 2024.
Little Rhonda (Coming of Age/Family Drama), written by Aisha Ford. Teenage Rain’s relationship with her estranged mother and foster father becomes complicated when she decides to make a short documentary for her high school film class about her mother’s recovery. Aisha Ford is an award-winning filmmaker whose most recent short films, Browniesa film executive produced by Spike Lee, won Best Director in the Reel Sisters of the Diaspora Oscar-qualifying competition.
Lychee girl (Coming of Age/Sci-Fi), by Mira Bing. In rural southern China in the 1990s, Yue is a dreamy trans girl who grew up as a boy. After her mother runs away from her abusive father and leaves her behind for the summer, Yu experiences surreal visions of a spaceship that draw her toward what she might become. Mira Ping is a writer and filmmaker from Hunan, China, who wrote and directed The Little Prince (S) for Disney Launchpad, which was released on Disney+.
Tours (Drama) Written by Taylor Sangyun Lee. Years after a violent shooting devastated a Presbyterian community, impending deportation forces two Korean American families to confront the limits of their tolerance. Taylor Sangyun Lee is a New York City-based filmmaker making his feature debut Tours Selected for the 2026 Sundance Screenwriters Lab and the 2025 TIFF & CJ K-Story Fund.
The other family (Thriller/Drama), written by Juan Pablo Daranas Molina. In crisis-hit Cuba, a desperate father sees a little girl wearing shoes stolen from his son. Determined to get them back, he engages in an obsessive hunt that tests the limits of his morals. Juan Pablo Daranas Molina is a Cuban film director and two-time Purple List recipient whose thesis film, produced by Spike Lee, was selected for the inaugural Corto Condorello program overseen by Paolo Sorrentino.
