Platoon One Launches Online Horror Lab for 15 Screenwriters
Platoon One Films is starting a horror writing programme that will select 15 writers and help each of them develop a new screenplay. The company announced the Platoon One Horror Lab on 3 November 2026, according to Variety.
Each participant will bring an original horror screenplay, meaning a film script written from scratch rather than adapted from a book or earlier film. Over the lab, they will work on those scripts with guidance from people working in the field.
Platoon One describes itself as an independent production and distribution company. "Independent" means it operates outside the major studios. The company also handles international sales, which means selling films to buyers in other countries, and creative development, the stage where a script is shaped before filming. Its founder is Shiladitya Bora.
The programme runs for three months and takes place entirely online, so writers do not need to relocate to take part. Sessions are held on weekends. They will be led by screenwriters and directors from India and other countries.
The lab also opens a door to the industry. Participants will get the chance to pitch their projects to producers and industry figures through Platoon One's network. A pitch is a short presentation of an idea, usually aimed at winning interest and funding. For many writers, that meeting is the step between a script sitting on a hard drive and a project that might reach a cinema or a streaming service.
Platoon One has not yet named the people who will mentor the writers and teach the sessions. The company said it will announce its mentors and faculty in the next few weeks.
Horror has long been a practical genre for new writers. Stories can be built around a small number of locations and characters, which keeps costs down. A lab focused only on that genre gives the 15 selected writers a shared focus, and gives producers a single place to look for new ideas.
The coming weeks will show who is teaching the lab and which writers are chosen. The lab's three months will then turn those scripts into work that producers can read and discuss.
