NRDC Climate Storytelling Fellowship

NRDC Climate Storytelling Fellowship is sponsored by The Black List, NRDC's Rewrite the Future program, The Redford Center, NBCUniversal, and CAA Community + Impact. Fellowship granting support to writers for revising a feature screenplay or pilot that engages with climate change in a compelling way.

2027 NRDC Climate Storytelling Fellowship | Greater Cleveland Film Commission 2027 NRDC Climate Storytelling Fellowship Posted Thursday, August 06, 2026 2027 NRDC Climate Storytelling Fellowship Submissions are open for the sixth annual NRDC Climate Storytelling Fellowship, a partnership between The Black List, NRDC’s (Natural Resources Defense Council) Rewrite the Future program, The Redford Center, NBCUniversal, and CAA Community + Impact.

The Fellowship will grant $20,000 each to three writers to support revision of a feature screenplay or pilot that engages with climate change in a compelling way through events, actions, character, emotions, plot, and/or setting.

In addition, NRDC will connect each fellowship recipient with the following professionals for feedback and guidance on their scripts: A credited professional screenwriter with an interest in climate storytelling NRDC’s Rewrite the Future program to advise on effective approaches to climate storytelling that are entertaining and impactful As applicable, one or more NRDC experts to advise on climate issues highlighted in the script After receiving these consultations, Fellows have six (6) months to complete a revision of their script.

Revised scripts may be reviewed for development by studios, agencies and/or production companies including Climate Spring, Creative Artists Agency (CAA), Hyperobject Industries, NBCUniversal, UTA, WME, and Yellow Dot Studios among others. Writers will retain all rights to their work.

At the end of the Fellowship, each recipient will provide NRDC with a short reflection of how the fellowship has advanced their work and/or career, a revised version of their script, and an overview of the changes they made during the revision process. Climate Spring will offer one dedicated meeting for each Fellow with a Climate Spring development executive to provide development advice and consultation on their script.

Climate Spring is dedicated to championing storytelling that transforms how the climate crisis is represented in film, TV, and popular culture by funding, consulting on, and supporting film and TV projects. A maximum of 500 qualified scripts will be accepted for consideration for the 2027 Fellowship . All scripts accepted for consideration will receive one free month of hosting and one free evaluation.

In order for a script to qualify for consideration, it must engage with climate through events, actions, character, emotions, plot, and/or setting. Writers are required to provide a brief description of how their project qualifies as a climate story when submitting for consideration.

If you meet these criteria and the NRDC team confirms your project is qualified for consideration, you will receive a notification confirming your submission is accepted. If your project is accepted, it will be automatically opted into consideration for the program and will receive a free month of hosting and a free evaluation. The writer does not need to take further action.

If your project is rejected, it is ineligible for submission. Scripts must be submitted for consideration no later than 11:59PM PST on December 4, 2026. All scripts received by the deadline will be reviewed by the NRDC team to determine whether or not they are qualified for consideration.

Writers who are interested in submitting to the 2027 NRDC Climate Storytelling Fellowship must do so via The Black List - submissions sent via email cannot be accepted. Each fellowship recipient will retain complete ownership of their work. The 2026 Fellowship mentors are Dustin Lance Black (UNDER THE BANNER OF HEAVEN; MILK), Stephen Markley (PARADISE), and J.

J. Philbin (ONLY MURDERS IN THE BUILDING; NEW GIRL).

Previous mentors have included Pamela Adlon (BABES; BETTER THINGS), Roxane Gay (WORLD OF WAKANDA; BAD FEMINIST), Dorothy Fortenberry (EXTRAPOLATIONS, THE HANDMAID’S TALE), Brit Marling (ANOTHER EARTH; MURDER AT THE END OF THE WORLD; THE OA), Daniel Scheinert (EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE; SWISS ARMY MAN), Mike Schur (BROOKLYN NINE-NINE; PARKS AND RECREATION; THE GOOD PLACE), Naren Shankar (THE EXPANSE, STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION), Sarah Treem (THE AFFAIR, HOUSE OF CARDS), and Scott Z.

Burns (AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH; CONTAGION).