Funa Maduka’s Palmtrees partners NEON for inaugural screenplay incubator
Palmtrees, a screenplay development incubator created by Funa Maduka for writers from Africa, the Middle East, Latin America, South Asia, Southeast Asia, the Caribbean and Oceania has entered a partnership
- By Gbenga Bada
Palmtrees, a screenplay development incubator created by Funa Maduka for writers from Africa, the Middle East, Latin America, South Asia, Southeast Asia, the Caribbean and Oceania has entered a partnership with NEON for its inaugural cohort.
In a recent statement, the incubator made calls for Writers from eligible regions to apply with a treatment and the first 15 pages of a feature-length genre screenplay.
Those selected by the incubator will develop their scripts through intensive one-on-one work with dedicated story analysts. Writers are compensated for their participation throughout the program. The program culminates in a three-week in-person residency.
According to the statement, eight (8) to ten (10) writers from Africa, the Middle East, Latin America, South Asia, Southeast Asia, the Caribbean and Oceania will be selected for the program’s first cohort.
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‘The program is open to writers at every stage. palmtrees does not distinguish between first-time screenwriters and those with produced credits. Selection is based on the strength of the project and the clarity of the writer’s voice. There is no advantage to having prior credits and no disadvantage to not having them. Applications open March 31, 2026 at palmtrees.dev. The deadline for submissions is June 1, 2026,” the statement said.
Reacting to the partnership, Maduka said, “Tom and his team have built something rare. NEON has done more to expand the definition of world cinema in the last five years than any company in the business. They take real creative bets and that instinct is the basis for our collaboration.”
Responding to Maduka, Tom Quinn, founder and CEO of NEON said, “Some of the most vital voices in cinema today are emerging from places that have been historically underrepresented on the global stage. NEON is thrilled to partner with Funa and her team at Palmtrees to help identify and support this next generation of filmmakers.”
