The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has revealed the exciting recipients of the 2024 Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting.
Four exceptional individuals and one talented writing team have been selected to receive this prestigious honor. Each individual and team will not only be awarded a $35,000 prize. They will also benefit from the invaluable mentorship of an Academy member throughout their fellowship year. In addition, they will actively participate in a week of virtual seminars and engage in a virtual meet and greet with the Nicholl Fellowships committee. they will also attend various in-person networking events. All culminated in a celebratory event in Beverly Hills on October 29th.
2024 Nicholl Screenwriting Fellows
The 2024 Nicholl Fellows are:
Alysha Chan and David Zarif (Los Angeles, CA), “Miss Chinatown”
Jackie Yee follows in her mother’s footsteps on her quest to win the Los Angeles Miss Chinatown pageant.
Colton Childs (Waco, TX), “Fake-A-Wish”
Despite their forty-year age gap, and the cancer treatment confining them to their small Texas town, two gay men embark on a road trip to San Francisco to grant themselves the Make-A-Wish they’re too old to receive.
Charmaine Colina (Los Angeles, CA), “Gunslinger Bride”
With a bounty on her head, a young Chinese-American gunslinger poses as a mail-order bride to hide from the law and seek revenge for her murdered family.
Ward Kamel (Brooklyn, NY), “If I Die in America”
After the sudden death of his immigrant husband, an American man’s tenuous relationship with his Muslim in-laws reaches a breaking point as he tries to fit into the funeral they’ve arranged in the Middle East. Adapted from the SXSW® Grand Jury-nominated short film of the same name.
Wendy Britton Young (West Chester, PA), “The Superb Lyrebird & Other Creatures”
A neurodivergent teen who envisions people as animated creatures, battles an entitled rival for a life-changing art scholarship, while her sister unwisely crosses the line to help.
The 2024 competition attracted a remarkable 5,500 script submissions from 80 countries.
The finalists, listed alphabetically by author, are:
- Kelly Beck-Byrnes, “Where the Boxelders Grow”
- Tate Hamilton, “Delivery Girl”
- Jamie Murphy, “Lights over Idaho”
- Adele Smaill, “No Ghosts Tonight”
- Justine Suh, “Deep”
A Global Competition
Established in 1985 with the generous support of Gee Nicholl in memory of her husband, Don Nicholl, the Nicholl Fellowships continue to nurture and empower emerging screenwriting talent. A key aspect of the fellowship is that the Academy acquires no rights to the fellows’ works. It maintains a strictly non-commercial relationship with their completed scripts.
The Academy Nicholl Fellowships Committee, chaired by Julie Lynn, comprises a distinguished group of Academy members representing various branches of the film industry. Their collective expertise ensures the selection of deserving fellows who demonstrate exceptional promise in the field of screenwriting.
Since its inception, the Nicholl Fellowships have awarded a total of 186 fellowships. Contributing significantly to the development of the next generation of screenwriters. In 2024, several past Nicholl fellows achieved notable success with their feature film and television projects.
The competition saw a remarkable influx of 5,500 scripts submitted from 80 countries around the world, underscoring the global reach and appeal of the Nicholl Fellowships.
