Every entrant gets human-written coverage, with no AI. Two residents get two months one-on-one with Hirschbein and $1,000 each.
NEW YORK CITY, NY, UNITED STATES, November 5, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — BlockReel, the independent film platform used by more than 2,400 filmmakers, today opened submissions for the BlockReel Script Lab, a development program for feature and television writers led by WGA screenwriter Jonathan Hirschbein (A Prayer Before Dawn, Official Selection, Festival de Cannes; Bad Country; Marvel Studios’ Secret Invasion).
The Lab arrives at a hard moment for writers without representation. Since 2024, Coverfly, ScreenCraft, WeScreenplay and The Script Lab, long among the main gateways for new screenwriters, have all shut down. Most contests that remain return little more than a pass or a placement for the entry fee.
The BlockReel Script Lab works the other way around. Every writer who enters receives written coverage on their script, read in full and written by a professional human reader, whether or not they advance. At a time when AI coverage tools are everywhere, the Lab uses no AI to write coverage or to judge scripts.
The Lab is built on one principle, written into its reader guidelines: does this story hold us, and could only this writer have told it? Readers look for what no formula can supply: a distinct voice, characters who feel alive, and emotional truth on the page.
From the full pool, Hirschbein will select two residents for a two-month online residency running March 21 to May 21, 2027. Each resident works with him in six private one-on-one sessions, receives his notes on a revised draft and guidance on a pitch package, and is awarded $1,000. In May, each resident also has a one-on-one packaging session with producer John Lambert, the Lab’s Packaging Mentor, on production feasibility, IP strategy and preparing the revised draft for market packaging and financing.
“The next great independent films are sitting in someone’s drafts folder right now,” said Osman Arslan, founder and CEO of BlockReel. “The Script Lab is how we start finding them. Every writer who trusts us with their work gets professional notes, and the writers who reach the final round get real time with someone who has written at the highest level.”
“A great script should do more than just tell a story. It should leave a mark,” said Hirschbein, Head of Script Lab at BlockReel. “We’re not looking for safe pitches or scripts that have death-grips on the standard formula. We want original voices that scream and burn and have something to say. We’re here to find those writers, challenge their instincts, and help them craft something that no one sees coming.”
Arslan, a cinematographer and Dolby Vision certified colorist, built BlockReel to bring the tools independent filmmakers juggle into one place: crowdfunding, crew hiring, a film festival and streaming. The platform has grown to more than 2,400 filmmakers, among them Emmy winners, Golden Globe nominees and alumni of Sundance, SXSW, Cannes and Tribeca, without paid advertising. The Script Lab brings screenwriters into that ecosystem from the very first page.
Writers keep 100% of the rights to their scripts. After the residency, BlockReel has a 90-day first opportunity to negotiate with residents; any deal is separate, paid and optional for the writer.
The Lab accepts original feature screenplays (70–130 pages) and TV pilots (25–65 pages). Entry is $55 through December 15, $65 through January 10 and $75 through January 31, 2027. Submissions are open at blockreel.co/script-lab and on FilmFreeway.
About Jonathan Hirschbein
Jonathan Hirschbein is a WGA screenwriter. He co-wrote A Prayer Before Dawn (distributed by A24) and Road to Paloma with Jason Momoa, wrote Bad Country starring Willem Dafoe and Matt Dillon, and served as story editor on Marvel Studios’ Secret Invasion and Amazon’s The Greatest. He has projects in development with Scott Free and Freckle Films.
About John Lambert
John Lambert is a veteran producer, studio executive, visual effects supervisor and cinematographer whose visual effects and camera credits include Star Trek: The Motion Picture, Ghostbusters and Martin Scorsese’s Cape Fear. A former CEO of production and VFX studios in Hollywood and Canada, he now leads GravityLabs and advises BlockReel on packaging and production.
About BlockReel
BlockReel brings crowdfunding, crew hiring, a film festival, streaming and screenwriting development into one platform for independent filmmakers. BlockReel, Inc. is based in New York.
osman Arslan
BlockReel, inc.
scriptlab@blockreel.co
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