Jordan Peele and Universal reopen No Drama fund with $50,000 grants for new horror voices
Jordan Peele's Monkeypaw Productions is teaming up with Universal again to back a new round of emerging horror directors.
The pair announced on 22 September a second edition of the "No Drama" filmmaker initiative, which funds short films that could grow into features, as reported by Variety.
"No Drama" was developed by Universal's Filmmaker & Content Strategies group and launched in 2024 as a one-year, non-exclusive programme for new talent working in genre storytelling — meaning horror, thriller and other scare-led stories. The first group made five shorts that premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2025.
That first class has found traction. Eighty percent have since secured an agent or manager, according to Variety. Ariel Zengotita's short "Imago" screened at SXSW. Jared Leaf's "Spilled Milk" won the Audience Award for short narrative at the Pan African Film & Arts Festival and the HBO Short Film Award at the American Black Film Festival. The Royal Television Society also picked Charlie Dennis' "The Pigs Underneath" for an exclusive screening.
The new edition brings in a third partner. American Cinematheque, the Los Angeles film organisation, will give grants of $50,000 to up to three filmmakers to direct their submitted short scripts.
There is a clear brief. Entries must respond to the theme "Fear is universal. Monsters are personal" and must include a feature-length treatment, a short document laying out how the short could expand into a full-length film.
The finished films are already dated. They will premiere at Beyond Fest in 2027, the genre festival devoted to horror, sci-fi and cult cinema. Monkeypaw and Universal will then hold a first-look option, meaning they get the first chance to consider developing any of the shorts further.
For newcomers, this means a short shoot with money behind it and a direct line to a studio. Submissions are open now on American Cinematheque's website and close on 30 September at 11:59 p.m. PT, as reported by Variety.
