Stowe Story Labs helps emerging screenwriters, filmmakers, and creative producers get work made and seen. We do this through labs, workshops, mentoring, writers' retreats, and development programs. We look for good stories worth telling and people demonstrating a collaborative nature and the ability and capacity to do the work, regardless of previous experience.
Our application aims to learn about you, your work, and your vision for the project you are building. Thank you for considering our programs and for taking the time to apply.
You can subscribe to our newsletter here.
Thank you,
Team Story Labs
Learn more about us here: stowestorylabs.org
Background
Stowe Story Labs is a nonprofit dedicated to helping emerging and established screenwriters, filmmakers, and creative producers develop skills and projects. Our goal is to help advance our community members' work and through that to bend the world a bit through story.
We look for people demonstrating talent, a collaborative nature, a good story worth developing, and the ability to develop the project presented, whether or not they have experience in film or television.
This application is for admission and consideration for fee-based, fellowship, and scholarship slots to our 2025 Writers' Retreats:
- The Remote Writers' Retreat will run June 27 - July 1, 2025 online via Zoom
- The Stowe Writers' Retreat will run September 12 - 16, 2025 in Stowe, Vermont
- The Connemara Writers' Retreat will run October 13 - 17, 2025 in Connemara, Ireland
You can learn more about our Retreats here.
Although we charge for our programming, we work to keep the cost of programming as low as possible, and offer a number of full and partial scholarships and fellowships. Details about our fellowships and scholarships can be found here.
Application Process
The questions on the application ask about you, the project you are submitting, and your intent in making the film or show. Please answer questions as fully as possible. Be sure to submit a solid first draft of your screenplay or TV Pilot.
If applying for fellowships you may note on the application which fellowship you would prefer, but we consider all fellowship applicants for all applicable fellowships, creating more opportunity for support. Each fellowship has its own criteria and benefits. Please check the website for information about each fellowship.
If applying for scholarships please include a statement of need where indicated.
There is not a separate application process for these opportunities.
Our fellowships are awarded based on merit and our scholarships are offered based on merit and need.
Fees
The fee to attend the in-person five-day Stowe Writers' Retreat in 2025 is $2,850.00. Fees to this Retreat include all content, lunch, and dinner. The fees do not cover travel or lodging.
The fee to attend the in-person five-day Connemara Writers' Retreat in 2025 is $3,950.00 (this includes full room and board but not travel).
The fee to attend the online five-day Remote Writers' Retreat in 2025 is $1,800.00
We work with lodging partners to secure discounts to participants (and most include breakfast ...). We keep on the ground costs as low as possible during our programs.
Changes
We will notify all applicants of fee or schedule changes if/when they occur.
A Few Additional Notes
We do not provide feedback on projects through our submission process.
Please familiarize yourself with our programs and fellowships before applying.
You can of course reach out to us at info@stowestorylabs.org if you have questions.
We may well reach out to you with questions as we go through the application process.
As noted above, we look for talented people - regardless of experience or background - bringing us interesting stories.
Our mission includes breaking down barriers to entry in this complicated industry.
Dates and Deadlines
Early Bird Deadline ($45): January 29 (ends midnight US Pacific Time)
Regular Deadline ($50): March 3 (ends midnight US Pacific Time)
Late Deadline ($55): March 17 (ends midnight US Pacific Time)
Extended Deadline ($55): March 24 (ends midnight US Pacific Time)
Thank you for your interest in our retreats. Best of luck if you choose to apply. Please be assured we take the same care in our review processes as you have put into developing the work and making your application.
Team Stowe Story Labs
