Free Script Consultations for Mercury Subscribers

Get expert feedback and advice on your short or feature film scripts.

Our Writer-in-Residence program provides you with multiple sessions of feedback on projects to deliver impactful and sustained script development opportunities for writers.

An intake of up to five projects at a time will be selected to receive 1-on-1 script development sessions over three consecutive months.
There are three intakes across the 2026-27 financial year.

For each intake, one place is available per subscriber (i.e. a writer cannot participate in the same intake with multiple projects), and preference will be given to subscribers who have not yet participated in the program with the same project in the same year.

Intake 1:
Short film scripts up to 20 pages.

Submissions close 5pm Monday 31 August 2026.
Successful projects will be notified by Friday 4 September 2026.

A total of three 1hr consultations will be scheduled in September, October and November.
(See UPCOMING CONSULTATIONS for further details).

Intakes 2 and 3:
Short film scripts up to 20 pages AND feature film scripts up to 110 pages.
Dates to be announced.



Projects are selected based on writing quality, distinctiveness, and the potential to be produced and earn valuable screen credits.

Local consultations take place in the Shane Brennan Writers’ Room at The Mercury. Funded by Shane Brennan, President of the Australian Writers Guild from 2019 to 2023, the Mercury’s Shane Brennan Writers’ Room is a dedicated space for the craft of script developing and screenwriting. 



Interstate consultations will take place via Zoom and subscribers are welcome to book the Shane Brennan Writers’ Room for their Zoom meetings to take full advantage of the facilities at The Mercury while connecting with the industry interstate.

The Mercury would like to thank Shane Brennan for continuing to generously fund this initiative.