Hada News
Doha Film Institute’s online Short Script Lab takes applications until 24 October
Emerging screenwriters and writer-directors have until 24 October 2026 to apply for the Doha Film Institute’s online Short Script Lab. The lab runs from 30 November to 12 December with three named mentors and a QAR 1,000 fee, according to DFI’s programme page.
The Doha Film Institute (DFI) is taking applications until 24 October 2026 for its online Short Script Lab, which helps emerging screenwriters and writer-directors finish a new draft of an original short-film screenplay. DFI’s programme page lists the lab as running from 30 November to 12 December 2026 in English, for writers at intermediate to advanced level, with a lab fee of QAR 1,000 (about $275, according to BroadcastPro ME).
The format mixes one-to-one online mentoring, independent writing and moderated peer discussion. DFI says the schedule includes eight days of group work, with five days set aside in between for writing alone. Participants must present a revised script to their tutors and the DFI team by the final day. They then submit another draft one month later and have a final one-to-one feedback session. The mentors named are script editors Antoine Waked and Ayman El Amir and project coach Céline Roustan. Sessions also cover packaging, such as the synopsis, intent note and mood board, and routes into short-film production.
Scripts developed in the lab may be referred to other DFI programmes: Qumra Shorts for Qatar residents, the Qatari Film Fund for Qatari directors, and Production Funding for directors from the MENA region. DFI notes that each has its own eligibility rules. BroadcastPro reports that DFI says its learning programmes have reached 3,078 participants through 264 workshops, including 712 Qatari participants.
Why it matters: this is one of the few mentored short-script slots in the region that runs fully online, with a stated referral path into DFI funding. The fee and English working language will filter applicants, so the 24 October date is worth acting on now.
Sources: Doha Film Institute, Short Script Lab 2026 programme page (checked 6 Oct 2026); BroadcastPro ME, 5 Oct 2026.
Watch next: selection notices before the 30 November start, and DFI’s next funding calls, where lab scripts can be referred.