An online platform & marketplace that helps new diverse voices emerge while servicing businesses looking for original & authentic story concepts or screenplays.
What began as a small partnership between @OpenScreenplay & @Muslim_KidsTV has grown into something historic, a nationwide theatrical release of the 1st #Muslim animated #film in the U.S.
🎥 Time Hoppers: The Silk Road
🗓 February 7 & 8
📍 In theaters nationwide
#Screenwriting
From a #screenwriting contest to the big screen.
#TimeHoppers: The Silk Road — the first #Muslim animated film to screen nationwide in the U.S.
📅 Feb 7–8
🎬 In theaters nationwide
Congratulations to @Muslim_KidsTV
Your vision and commitment made history.
#OpenScreenplay
At M Lab, we don’t just develop #scripts; we defend #voices.
🎬 #EXCEPTION is the latest proof of what happens when bold, authentic #stories break through the noise.
Written in our lab. Now #streaming on Watermelon+.
This is what it means to bring truth from #story to #screen.
🎉The Winner Abdullah Azizi
📍Los Angeles, California
1st‑generation Afghan American, grew up rarely seeing people like himself reflected in the media.🎬“An Elephant in the Dark” draws on the experience challenging us to question what we know when we only see part of the picture!
🎉The Winner Tom Garbe
📍Zeeland, Michigan
A Freelance #filmmaker who knows the power of landscapes. Both physical & ancestral. “Roots” is a tribute to heritage & belonging, capturing how our past shapes our future. Does a filmmaker’s eye change how we experience written stories?
🎉The Winner Kays Al-Atrakchi
📍Los Angeles, California
Born to a Middle‑Eastern family his work bridges cultures.🎬“Alter” dives into themes of identity and transformation, reflecting his own #bicultural journey. What unique sensibilities emerge when a writer straddles 2 worlds?
🎉The Winner Sandra Jackson-Opoku
📍Chicago, Illinois
Award‑winning #novelist brings her literary prowess to screen.🎬“Hotel Hades” is a witty, haunting exploration of limbo & redemption. An unexpected departure from her acclaimed novels The River Where Blood Is Born & Hot Johnny
🎉The #Winner Paul Sanchez
📍Woodland Hills, California
Latinx writer‑director crafts #stories of underrepresented voices.🎬“Donut Friends” turns a sweet obsession into a tale of community & acceptance. How his #filmmaking background influence the humor & pacing of the #story?
🎉The Winner Nabra Nelson
📍Los Angeles, California
In “The Secretly Liberal Muslim” she blends humor with critical commentary, exploring the tension between personal freedom & communal expectations. How does theatre background influence the pacing & dialogue of this #screenplay?
We’re proud to announce the 6 emerging screenwriters selected for the Summer 2025 M Film Lab!
These voices reflect the power of perspective, identity, and imagination.
They’ve just started their journey and you’re going to want to follow.
#OpenScreenplay#MFilmLab#FilmLabWinners
🎄+🌙= your next #story_concept
Open Screenplay’s #Eid at Christmas #contest is now open. Pitch a fun, commercial, feel‑good holiday film idea and you could win US $1,500 and possibly get it produced!
Submit up to ten‑page treatments https://t.co/goq9zqmr1W
Deadline: Sep 10 2025
#MFilmLab is now accepting applications for Spring2025 Program: Tales of Identity & Imagination
Open to writers of all backgrounds. If you have a screenplay that needs to be told, this is the place to bring it to life
Visit https://t.co/R7ssNk0Vsj for details.
#WriteABetterWorld
Exception just won Best of the Festival at the Toronto Shorts International Film Festival! We're honored to have had our film screened among so many incredible shorts. We're just getting started! Follow our journey: https://t.co/vzcRNHx0kU #ExceptionFilm#TorontoShorts
Open Screenplay & M Film Lab present the trailer for Exception! Directed by Rodrigue Hammal, this short film stars Waleed Zuaiter, Carla Valentine, and Matt Beidel. A powerful story by Palestinian-American writer Nader Yousef. Discover more: https://t.co/U2wRqrVikt
#Exception
"Exception" is the culmination of the M Film Lab Muslims in the West 2021 program. Nader Yousef developed the idea, and the resulting film has been officially selected for four film festivals! We are grateful for the recognition! Learn more at: https://t.co/U2wRqrVikt
Cheryl Tsai Perez has won the Spring 2024 M Film Lab for Women of Color! 🎉 Her script "Gum Shan (Gold Mountain)" has been optioned for production, and she will receive $1500 USD!
Learn more at: https://t.co/EJ1AGHczX9
#MFilmLab#WomenOfColor#GumShan#Screenwriting
Stream the award-winning short film Black Metal for free at https://t.co/OhM08ZUHK1
Black Metal was written and directed by Michael Johnson after winning the inaugural M Film Lab - Empowering Black Screenwriters, hosted on Open Screenplay. #OpenScreenplay#BlackMetal#ShortFilm
Connecting these incredible mentors with aspiring and deserving screenwriters is a privilege. We cannot wait to see what they create together! Learn more about the lab and mentors here: https://t.co/wVXpnrZMaE
#MFilmLab#WomenofColor#Mentorship#FreeWritingLab#OpenScreenplay