THREE-PART PROGRAM RUNNING APRIL - AUGUST 2026

Producer Accelerator Program

Three-part training program for production companies in Newfoundland and Labrador designed to achieve strategic and predictable business growth, especially in the international marketplace, through skill-development, practical hands-on training, exposure to industry intelligence, networking, and mentorship. There are no fees to participate in this program.

APPLY HERE

DEADLINE: APRIL 6, 2026 AT 11:59 PM ET

PROGRAM OVERVIEW

PictureNL, formally known as the Newfoundland and Labrador Film Development Corporation, is the lead agency for the province for investments in film and television productions through its equity, tax credit and development programs. Through its five programs, the NLFDC offers local producers and outside producers/productions the support needed to help the province’s production sector to flourish.

Stowe Story Labs has been asked by PictureNL to run the Producer Accelerator Program. The program will take the selected production company teams through workshops and customized mentoring with top practitioners in production, sales, finance, development, and coproduction, among other skill sets.

This is an online program with a two-day, in-person midpoint program during the summer. The program will be led by Stowe Co-Founder David Pope with participation by Stowe Founder and Director David Rocchio.

The 2025 PictureNL cohort gathers in St. John’s, Newfoundland, Canada.

Orientation

In April, Stowe will hold a one-hour, group orientation to review the program structure and answer questions. This will be scheduled after enrollment is complete.

PART I: Two-Day Workshop

Part I of the program is a two-day online workshop designed to touch on important elements and core concepts related to creative producing and international co-productions, and to both build market knowledge and frame vocabulary for the later customized, individual mentoring program.

ACTIVITIES

Establish a roadmap for the program
Instructional content on international finance, international sales, co-production, and pitching
Presentations and Q&As with established industry mentors

PART II: Ongoing Mentoring and Two-Day In-Person Gathering

In Part II, the participating production companies will receive individualized work plans customized to specific goals, and through the individualized mentoring program will work toward these goals with top industry practitioners focused on key elements such as development, finance, production, and sales.

ACTIVITIES

One-on-one mentoring with subject matter experts specializing in market-oriented skills such as attachments, budgets, co-productions, festival strategy, finance, pitching, sales, and script development
Monthly status meetings
Monthly Presentations
Participants and the Stowe team will gather in St. John’s for a two-day gathering to anchor concepts covered in the program and offer presentations, Q&A sessions, and structured peer-to-peer time to advance the Program’s goals (dates to be set by start of program).

Producers Tyler Young (left) and Emily Troedson (right) talk creative production at the 2024 Producers’ Lab in Stowe, Vermont.

PART III: Closing

Part III will be a one-day online group meeting that will serve as a springboard to on-going communication, collaboration, and support.

ACTIVITIES

Share thoughts on the program and insights from the process
Go through a curated next steps process and discuss how participants intend to move forward
In-Conversation Interview and Q&A with top industry leader

Program Outcome

Participants will leave the program with insights and new skills to help them participate in the international film and television industry, with a strong understanding of international co-productions and approaches to building them, and will be ready to be competitive in the international marketplace, prepared to promote themselves to the world, and able to secure partnerships that will lead to inward investments.

APPLICATION PROCESS

The questions on the application ask about the company applying, the individual company member(s) (no more than two per company) who will participate in the program, the current slate of projects being developed, and the company's five year vision. Applicants will be reviewed along the following criteria:

Be a production company established in Newfoundland or Labrador
Have at least one producer credit on completed productions of the following nature:
- Television one-off production
- Television series production
- Feature film that received financing from a Federal and/or Provincial funding agency
- Participated in the Picture Start or Michelle Jackson Program
Participated in at least one international market or festival event
Must have multiple viable projects in development for international markets
Interested companies may reach out to Stowe at info@stowestorylabs.org and/or PictureNL at cyril@picturenl.ca with questions about the application or the program.

David Pope leads the 2025 Facing In / Facing Out Screenwriting Development Workshop at The Marketplace at the Galway Film Fair

The PictureNL Producer Accelerator Program will be lead by David Pope. In addition to being co-founder of Stowe Story Labs and a creative producer, script consultant, and screenwriter working internationally, he is the longstanding advisor and moderator of the Rotterdam Lab. David's ability to articulate process and required skills, facilitate conversation on important topics, and draw understanding from program participants is unparalleled and valuable. (Full bio below).

Meet the Stowe Program Team

David Pope (l) and David Rocchio (r) at 2024 Stowe Story Labs / Fís Éireann-Screen Ireland Connemara Writers’ Retreat, Renvyle, County Galway, Ireland

David Rocchio is an attorney, writer, and Emmy-nominated filmmaker. David conceived and co-produced with James Rogan The Gun Shop, an Emmy-nominated one-hour documentary commissioned by the UK Channel 4’s Cutting Edge series, where it premiered prime time and was awarded top reviews. It then played worldwide. David’s award-winning short films have played internationally, including the Cannes Short Film Corner and Italy’s Capalbio International Short Film Festival (Best of Capalbio). His most recent short film Gary, Jr. was produced and directed by Bertha Bay Sa Pan.

In addition to creating his own work, David founded and runs the nonprofit Stowe Story Labs, which is dedicated to helping top emerging screenwriters and filmmakers get work made and seen. Now in its fourteenth year, Stowe works with approximately 200 emerging talents annually at labs, retreats, workshops, advanced development programs, mentoring programs, and film production programs.

David’s last job as a lawyer was as Legal Counsel to Vermont’s then-Governor Howard Dean. He was a nationally certified EMT and member of the Mt. Mansfield Ski Patrol (Stowe, Vermont) for 22 years, and he remains an avid backcountry skier. David lives in Stowe. David's wife is proudly from Worsley.

Learn More

David Pope is a script consultant and screenwriter working internationally.

Script consultation projects include OBRAZ, candidate for Best International Film Academy Award 2026, TIGER STRIPES, winner Jury Prize Critics Week Cannes Film Festival 2023 and candidate for Best International Film Academy Award 2024, TAKE IT OR LEAVE IT, candidate for Best Foreign Language Film Academy Award 2019 and TRUTH OR JUSTICE, candidate for Best International Film Academy Award 2020.

Recent projects produced on which worked as script consultant include the feature films AH GIRL, 2026, LIONESS, 2025, NATATORIUM, 2024, LAST SENTINEL, 2023, SPLENDID ISOLATION, 2022, MAGIC MOUNTAINS, 2021 and the drama series’ IMPERIAL SPY for Fremantle. David was Creative Producer on feature film THE GOAT, 2023.

In addition to designing and delivering for Stowe Story Labs, he is the long standing annual advisor and facilitator for Rotterdam Lab at IFFRPro for producers.

David has been a creative consultant on Rawi Screenwriting Lab for Royal Film Commission – Jordan, facilitated the Convergence program funded by Screen Scotland and British Film Institute and is the script consultant for Funny Features delivered by Glasgow Film Festival and funded by British Film Institute. He is a regular script consultant for both MIDPOINT Institute and BoostNL.

He sits on the film committee of the Writers Guild of Great Britain and is an external expert for the Council of Europe Eurimages fund.

Recent screenwriting commissions include writing the latest draft of feature film TEMPELHOF, the feature film RULIN and rewriting the latest draft of the feature film SUMMER OF 81. David has a slate of projects in development through advance films.

Previous development and training clients include Warp Films, Creative Europe, BFI, Screen Scotland, New Horizons Studio+, Cannes Cinefondation, Creative England, Screen Ireland, Polish Film Institute, UK Film Council, BBC, BAFTA, Fremantle, National Theatre, British Council, Allfilm, KulturaTV, Cannes Film Festival, Film London, Lionhead Studios, Xingu Films, Irish Film Board, FAS Screen Training Ireland, and Estonian Film Institute amongst many others.

Learn More

Stowe Story Labs Mentors

2026 mentors will be confirmed upon enrollment. We were honored to work with a stellar pool of mentors in the 2025 edition of the program. For reference, below is information about those mentors. You can see a list of our ever-expanding mentor roster here.