“This development lab was a game-changer for my screenplay, allowing me to deeply refine my story while receiving guidance that was specifically tailored to the stage of development I was in. It wasn’t a one-size-fits-all approach, it was a truly immersive and personalized experience that helped me push my script forward.” – Participant 2025
Script to Screen welcomes feature film projects (narrative or documentary) that are ready for an in-depth development process to apply for Story Camp Aotearoa 2026.
Story Camp Aotearoa is a unique stepping stone for any project prior to pitching, funding and production. This development camp, which has tikanga and Māoritanga embeded in its kaupapa, enables screenwriters and their teams to shut out the noise from their usual working environment and life, embarking on a five-day journey of deep story development. The unique location of the camp both informs and protects the wairua of our participants and their stories.
Each film and team is matched with leading industry experts as advisors who are chosen specifically for the needs of the project, and where it is at in its developmental journey. Alongside in-depth story sessions with advisors, Story Camp Aotearoa also includes project-based group workshops; workshopping with actors; industry panel discussions and guest advisors from other artforms.
Alumni films from Story Camp which have since progressed through to production are Human Traces, Cousins, The Justice of Bunny King, There’s No I In Threesome, Juniper, Nude Tuesday, Millie Lies Low, Ms Information and Caterpillar.
Q&A WEBINAR WATCH NOW:
Story Camp Aotearoa Kaupapa
Story Camp Aotearoa is an intensive Feature Film development lab run by Script to Screen. Participants stay onsite in Auckland for the duration of the camp. This unique opportunity provides participants the freedom to switch off from the outside world and be immersed in their project.
Over the course of the camp daily content may include: group work, 3-5 story development sessions per day, time for personal and project reflection, and team meetings.
Sessions can include the following elements:
Shared communal spaces allow for participants to connect at mealtimes and breaks, building new relationships and discovering and advancing their projects together.
Script to Screen alongside our volunteers provide the manaakitanga of the camp, which includes ensuring coffee, food and amenities are provided throughout the course of the camp.
Story Camp is made possible thanks to generous support from Te Tumu Whakaata Toanga New Zealand Film Commission.
📸 Pictured 2025 advisor Miriama McDowell with writer Jamie McCaskill (Hide the Dog). Photo by Evie Mackay
KEY DATES:
Applications open: Now, Monday 11th August 2025
Applications close: 1 PM, Monday 22nd September 2025
The residential development lab will take place from: Monday 16th – Friday 20th March 2026.
Travel costs for participants who live outside Auckland will be covered as part of the programme.
Shortlist Notified: End of October
Announcement: Early December
Team Zoom Meetings: 1-5 December
ABOUT STORY CAMP:
Story Camp Aotearoa is an intensive residential feature film development lab that fosters craft, voice and vision. Selected screenwriters and creative teams deepen their understanding of the needs of their script and project through one-to-one bespoke sessions with exceptional international and local advisors. A rigorous five-day lab it is designed to specifically meet the development needs of their feature film project.
This development camp, which has tikanga and Māoritanga embed in its kaupapa, enables screenwriters and their teams to shut out the noise from their usual working environment and life, embarking on a five-day journey of deep story development. The unique location of the camp both informs and protects the wairua of our participants and their stories.
The tailored developmental approach of Story Camp Aotearoa also includes project-based group workshops; workshopping with actors; industry panel discussions and guest advisors from other artforms.
Each film and team are matched with advisors who are chosen specifically for the needs of the project, and where it is at in its developmental journey.
WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR:
Stage of Development
Although we recognise the development process for feature films is as individual as the stories they are telling, Story Camp is designed to deep dive into the development process. Therefore, scripts or projects that are early in their journey may not benefit as much as others from this process. So, although we are not prescriptive about what draft your project should be at, we highlight that it is unlikely a first or early draft script or project would be selected.
We are keen to hear from writers, writer/directors, and filmmaking teams who have a feature film in development that they are ready to go deeper into their development process. These could be in the story development phase, the structural re-drafting phase or even at an advanced stage and getting close to production ready. We are happy to discuss the stage you are at and whether this is an appropriate route for you and your project prior to applying.
Please contact info@script-to-screen.co.nz to arrange a time to have a kōrero.
Your voice
Story Camp Aotearoa is all about supporting unique screen stories from Aotearoa. We are open to all genres. We are passionate about supporting stories that reflect who we are and the rich diversity of our communities and country. We encourage applications with scripts in Te Reo Māori, and those from our Pacific Island, Asian and other culturally diverse communities. We also encourage applications from other underrepresented communities like, but not limited to, those who identify as LGBTQi, *gender diverse, *disabled or neurodivergent.
If you have any access support needs to help you apply, please get in touch as soon as possible so we can help. info@script-to-screen.co.nz
SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS
Eligibility:
(Please contact Script to Screen if you are developing a co-pro prior to applying)
Provide the following via this form:
https://form.jotform.com/Script_to_Screen_NZ/story-camp-aotearoa-2026-apply
Upload
Please ensure ALL uploaded attachments are page-numbered and include a header with the applicant’s name and the project title.
Please provide one submission PDF document (no more than 10 pages) with the following:
If you are applying with a feature documentary, please also provide (if you have it) a link to some footage from/about the documentary you are applying with.
Application Fee
We have a nominal application fee of $30. If this is a barrier to you applying, please get in touch with us.
Please make your payment by midnight on Monday 22nd September 2025.
Account Name: Script to Screen Te Tari Kupu A Whakaahua
Account Number: 03 0255 0178775 00
Reference: StoryCamp – Applicant Name
Amount: $30
APPLY HERE:
Please apply via our online form: https://form.jotform.com/Script_to_Screen_NZ/story-camp-aotearoa-2026-apply
*Gender diverse is the umbrella term for the variation of gender identities in the gender spectrum (i.e. it encompasses gender identities such as transgender, agender and non-binary).
*A disability is defined as a long-term physical, mental, intellectual or sensory impairment which in interaction with various barriers may hinder full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others.
This definition comes from Article 1 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
📸 Photograph captured by Evie Mackay
Story Camp Aotearoa is a residential development lab for feature film that fosters craft, voice and exceptional storytelling. The programme is designed to meet the development needs of each writer and project. It provides a framework and environment that enables films to be rigorously developed, elevated and supported. Over the week, the participating writers and their collaborators workshop their feature film projects with exceptional local and international advisors.
The selectors had an incredibly difficult job in assessing the feature films submitted. We thank and value all the filmmakers who took the time to apply for this opportunity. Thank you for sharing your stories and aspirations with us.
Script to Screen is delighted to announce the filmmakers and their projects selected for Story Camp Aotearoa 2025. Huge mihi to our funders Te Tumu Whakaata Taonga New Zealand Film Commission for continuing to support this unique development kaupapa.
This year, we are excited to announce that through Script to Screen’s partnership with VicScreen in Australia, we will have a ninth team, Melbourne-based film Scorpio writer/director Allanah Avalon and producer Gabrielle Pearson attending Story Camp. This welcome addition will add another aspect of collaboration and community within the programme, and we hope to bring more international collaborations to this kaupapa in the future.
The team at Script to Screen is humbled by the mahi that has already taken place across the selected projects, and we look forward to helping to support and uplift them and their filmmakers during this residential development lab.
Congratulations to the filmmakers whose feature film projects will be developed through Story Camp Aotearoa 2025:
READ MORE ABOUT THE TEAMS HERE
Script to Screen is working in partnership with VicScreen in Australia, for Melbourne-based film Scorpio writer/director Allanah Avalon and producer Gabrielle Pearson to attend Story Camp.
Story Camp is made possible thanks to funding from the New Zealand Film Commission.
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📸 Photo by Evie Mackay
“One of the most important experiences a filmmaker can have before making a film.”
– Matthew J. Saville (2024 participant)
Story Camp Aotearoa is a residential feature film lab run by Script to Screen that cultivates writers and their projects by fostering voice, honing craft, clarifying vision and kaupapa through in-depth story sessions between international and local advisors and the selected filmmakers.
We welcome feature film projects (narrative or documentary) that are ready for an in-depth development process to apply. Selected writers or teams will participate in a rigorous four-day experience designed specifically to meet the development needs of their project.
Alongside in-depth story sessions with advisors Script to Screen will tailor the lab to include exploration opportunities through various approaches like project-based group workshops; directorial vision work, workshopping with actors; and collaborative teamwork and decision-making.
Since its inception Story Camp Aotearoa has been developed and guided expertly by Esther Cahill-Chiaroni. As she has now taken up a role at the NZFC, 2025 will see us take a new direction. Script to Screen Executive Director Dale Corlett will take over the leadership of Story Camp, bringing in various leading industry experts to help in the final development and delivery of the 2025 lab.
All lab advisors are chosen based on the development needs of each selected writer and filmmaking team, these decisions will further influence the shape and structure of the lab in 2025. Past advisors have come from a range of mediums. Refer to our website for more info.
Alumni of Story Camp who have progressed their films into production include Caterpillar (recently receiving NZFC production funding July 2024), Ms. Information, Cousins, The Justice of Bunny King, There Is No I In Threesome, Juniper and Nude Tuesday.
📸 Photo by Evie Mackay
Applications open: Tuesday 20th August 2024
Applications close: 1 PM, Monday 23rd September 2024
We will notify shortlisted applicants at the end of October. Selected applicants will be contacted in early December and announced soon after.
The residential development lab will take place in Auckland from 24-28 February 2025
Travel costs for participants who live outside Auckland will be covered as part of the programme.
Story Camp Aotearoa is a residential feature film development lab run by Script to Screen that fosters screenwriting craft, voice and vision through a rigorous interrogation of story. The lab is designed to meet the development needs of each selected writer, filmmaking team and project. Selected screenwriters, filmmakers and creative teams workshop their projects with exceptional international and local advisors through a bespoke developmental process designed specifically to meet the development needs of their feature film project. Story Camp supports the development of feature films, both narrative and documentaries.
WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR:
Stage of Development
Although we recognise the development process for feature films is as individual as the stories they are telling, Story Camp is designed to deep dive into the development process. Therefore, scripts or projects that are early in their journey may not benefit as much as others from this process. So, although we are not prescriptive about what draft your project should be at, we highlight that it is unlikely a first or early draft script or project would be selected.
We are keen to hear from writers, writer/directors, and filmmaking teams who have a feature film in development that they are ready to go deeper into their development process. These could be in the story development phase, the structural re-drafting phase or even at an advanced stage and getting close to production ready. We are happy to discuss the stage you are at and whether this is an appropriate route for you and your project prior to applying. Please contact info@script-to-screen.co.nz to arrange a time to have a kōrero.
Your voice
Story Camp Aotearoa is all about supporting unique screen stories from Aotearoa. We are open to all genres. We are passionate about supporting stories that reflect who we are and the rich diversity of our communities and country. We encourage applications with scripts in Te Reo Māori, and those from our Pacific Island, Asian and other culturally diverse communities. We also encourage applications from other underrepresented communities like, but not limited to, those who identify as LGBTQi, *gender diverse, *disabled or neurodivergent.
If you have any access support needs to help you apply, please get in touch so we can help. info@script-to-screen.co.nz
SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS
Please apply via our online form: https://form.jotform.com/Script_to_Screen_NZ/story-camp-2025-application-form
Eligibility:
Provide the following via this form:
Upload
Please provide one submission PDF document (no more than 10 pages) with the following:
Please ensure ALL uploaded attachments are page-numbered and include a header with the applicant’s name and the project title.
The following statements:
If you are applying with a feature documentary, please also provide (if you have it) a link to some footage from/about the documentary you are applying with
Application Fee
We have a nominal application fee of $25. If this is a barrier to you applying, please get in touch with us.
Please make your payment of the $25 application fee by midnight on Monday 23rd September 2024.
Account Name: Script to Screen Te Tari Kupu A Whakaahua
Account Number: 03 0255 0178775 00
Reference: StoryCamp – Applicant Name
*Gender diverse is the umbrella term for the variation of gender identities in the gender spectrum (i.e. it encompasses gender identities such as transgender, agender and non-binary).
*A disability is defined as a long-term physical, mental, intellectual or sensory impairment which in interaction with various barriers may hinder full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others.
This definition comes from Article 1 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
📸 Photograph captured by Evie Mackay
Script to Screen is delighted to award the creators of eight projects intensive development time at Story Camp Aotearoa 2024. Story Camp is a residential feature film development lab that fosters craft, voice and vision, with a programme designed to meet the development needs of each writer and project. Over the week, the participating writers and their collaborators workshop their feature film projects with exceptional local and international advisors.
This year, Script to Screen received 66 applications. Three experienced independent practitioners underwent a rigorous marking process, compiling a shortlist of 17 and ultimately selecting the eight projects to be developed at Story Camp in May.
The selectors were intrigued, moved, surprised, and made to laugh by the stories submitted and said it was a privilege to enter the writers’ worlds and walk in their characters’ shoes. We thank and value all the filmmakers who took the time to apply for this opportunity.
Script to Screen is excited by the depth and breadth of the work selected and looks forward to supporting the filmmakers to take their work further.
Congratulations to the filmmakers whose feature film projects will be developed at Story Camp Aotearoa 2024:
(Teams pictured from left to right)
READ MORE ABOUT THE TEAMS HERE
Story Camp is made possible thanks to funding from the New Zealand Film Commission.
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📸 Photo by Evie Mackay
Script to Screen is delighted to announce the nine projects awarded places at Story Camp Aotearoa 2022, a residential feature film lab that fosters craft, voice and vision. The programme is crafted to meet the development needs of each writer and project. Over the week, participating writers and their collaborators workshop their feature film projects with exceptional local and international advisors.
This year Script to Screen received 60 applications. Three experienced independent practitioners underwent a rigorous process, compiling a shortlist of 20 and ultimately selecting the nine projects to be developed at Story Camp in November. We would like to thank all the filmmakers who applied.
“It is always an enormous privilege to be invited in to people’s stories. The selectors and I were intrigued by many wonderful characters and worlds, and the final decisions were not easy. We are delighted with the breadth of exceptional stories coming to Story Camp”, says Story Camp Programme Director Esther Cahill-Chiaroni.
Congratulations to the filmmakers whose feature film projects will be developed at Story Camp Aotearoa 2022:
(Writers pictured from left to right)
Story Camp is made possible thanks to funding from the New Zealand Film Commission.
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