Three individuals and two writing teams have been selected 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 Monday. The recipients were Leo Aguirre of San Antonio, Texas; Lynn Mackey of Queens, New York; Katla Solnes from New York City; Omar Al-Dakhil and Elie Al-Shoufani from Los Angeles; and Sarah Crowe and David Rafaelides of Brooklyn.
Nicole Fellows receive direct support, ongoing resources, and networking opportunities from the Academy; Participate in events with Academy Award nominees and winners, including workshops, media training sessions, meet-and-greets, and more; And receive ongoing support for career advancement through the Gold Alumni Network Program, which provides ongoing access, opportunities, professional development and education to graduates of the Academy’s global talent development programs. All Nicholl Fellowship transcripts are archived in the Academy’s collection and can be accessed through the Academy’s Margaret Herrick Library.
To identify this year’s potential Fellows, the Nicol Program partnered exclusively with 40 universities, screenwriting labs, film festivals, and filmmaker programs (including The Blacklist, which served as a portal for public applications). More than 500 Academy members from all 19 branches volunteered to read and evaluate transcripts to determine the 10 finalists—a 149 percent increase in Academy member participation—and a group of 23 Academy members, who serve on the Nicholl Committee, selected the fellowship recipients from among the finalists.
The Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting Program is governed by the Academy Foundation’s Board of Trustees. The 2025-2026 Nicholl Committee is co-chaired by Academy Foundation Board Chair and Academy Governor Kim Taylor Coleman and Producer Branch member Julie Lin.
“We are thrilled to announce the recipients of the 2025-2026 Nicol Fellowships in Screenwriting, an incredible group of diverse and international new writers who represent the future of storytelling,” Taylor Coleman said in a statement. “This continues the Academy’s long-standing commitment to supporting emerging talent from around 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 for this year’s program.”
The 2025-2026 Nicole Fellows are (listed alphabetically by author):
Leo Aguirre (San Antonio, Texas), “Verano”
Nicole’s Partner: Sundance Institute Screenwriters Lab
During a sweltering Texas summer, an isolated teenager’s world is turned upside down when his parents decide to sponsor a Central American asylum seeker – what begins as resentment develops into an unlikely friendship as the threat of deportation forces both boys to confront loss, identity and belonging.
Omar Al-Dakhil and Elie Al-Shafani (Los Angeles, California), “The Pigeons”
Nicole’s Partner: Urbanworld Festival
In a small Texas town, a young imam fights for his community’s right to bury their dead while hiding a forbidden love that could cost him everything.
Sarah Crowe and David Ravildis (Brooklyn, New York), “Satoshi”
Nicole’s partner: New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts
After her family loses everything in the 2008 financial crisis, the cartoon-obsessed teenage hacktivist realizes that money isn’t fair… so she sets out to reinvent it using a new digital currency called Bitcoin.
Lynn Mackey (Queens, NY), “I’m Ready to Go Anywhere”
Nicole’s Partner: The Blacklist
Desperate to escape the heat, chaos, and danger of 1980s Phoenix, ten-year-old Patty must protect and raise her mother and little sister while formulating a plan to get them all out.
Katla Solnes (New York, NY), “Eruption”
Nicole’s Partner: Columbia University School of Art
In the highlands of 1970s Iceland, a geologist’s wife finds her marriage on the line when a wily American student arrives, raising tensions as volatile as the surrounding volcanic landscape.
The 2025-2026 finalists are (listed alphabetically by author):
Natalie Cutler for “Infiltration” (Nicole’s Partner: The Blacklist)
Adrian Murphy, “The 300-Year-Old Man” (Nicole’s partner: MFA in Screenwriting and Story Design from Toronto Metropolitan University)
Benjamin Murphy, “B.A. Unconfirmed” (Nicole’s Partner: The Blacklist)
Michael Ostrom for “Giants” (Nicole’s Partner: The Blacklist)
Shelley Patel, “Her Hands Untied” (Nicole’s Partner: The Blacklist)
The Nicol Screenwriting Fellowships Program has awarded 191 fellowships since 1986. The program was awarded by Gladys “G” Nicol in honor of her husband, writer and producer Don Nicol. Fellowships are awarded on the basis that recipients will complete extended scenarios during their fellowship year. The Academy does not acquire any rights to the works of Nicolle Fellows and does not interfere in any commercial way with their completed texts.
