<\/p>\n
EXCLUSIVE:<\/strong> Disney Entertainment Television has chosen its participants for the 2025-26 Directing and Writing Programs, talent development initiatives which connect emerging writers and directors with opportunities across DET\u2019s scripted and unscripted television slate.<\/p>\n \u201cThis year\u2019s cohorts reflect the bold, original voices that will help shape the next era of television,\u201d said Tim McNeal, senior vice president, Creative Talent Development and Inclusion, Disney Television Studios. \u201cThrough the DET Directing and Writing Programs, we have the joy of helping rising writers and directors build real momentum in their careers \u2014 offering hands-on experience, meaningful mentorship and access to a strong creative community that continues to support them well beyond the program.\u201d<\/p>\n More from Deadline<\/strong><\/p>\n The 2025-26 DET Directing Program is a yearlong initiative that guarantees participants the opportunity to direct on a Disney series, as well as receive guidance from industry professionals, shadowing and directing experiences, and access to Disney creative executives for learning and networking.<\/p>\n This year, the program will add Celebrity Family Feud, Coven Academy, Grey\u2019s Anatomy<\/em> and Reasonable Doubt<\/em> to its roster of scripted and unscripted directing opportunities. Other participating shows include The Bachelorette, Dancing with the Stars, General Hospital<\/em> and Project Runway.<\/em><\/p>\n The 2025-2026 directing cohort includes scripted directors Vanessa Beletic (Coven Academy<\/em>), Sammi Cannold (Grey\u2019s Anatomy<\/em>), Alejandra Lopez (General Hospital)<\/em> and Ryan Richmond (Reasonable Doubt); <\/em>and unscripted directors Jamala Gaither (Project Runway),<\/em> Gayle Galvez (Celebrity Family Feud),<\/em> Claire Gostin, Sagiv Karpel (Dancing with the Stars) <\/em>and Kiki Malone (The Bachelorette).<\/em><\/p>\n DET Directing Program alumni include Jennifer Arnold (Emily in Paris<\/em>), Tessa Blake (9-1-1<\/em> franchise), Pete Chatmon (High Potential<\/em>), Ryan Coogler (Black Panther<\/em> franchise, Sinners<\/em>), Zetna Fuentes (Pluribus<\/em>), Amin Kaderali (Grey\u2019s Anatomy<\/em>), Maggie Kiley (9-1-1<\/em>), Regina King (One Night in Miami\u2026<\/em>), Emmanuel Osei-Kuffour Jr. (Sh\u014dgun<\/em>), Nzingha Stewart (Daisy Jones & the Six<\/em>) and Jude Weng (Only Murders in the Building<\/em>).<\/p>\n 2026 DET Writing Program<\/strong><\/p>\n After nearly 40 years, the DET Writing Program continues to be a launchpad for emerging television writers, offering advanced career development and industry access. The program supports participants as they strengthen their samples, sharpen their voices, and build relationships with executives, showrunners, producers and alumni across the Disney Entertainment Television ecosystem.<\/p>\n Over the course of the program, writers take part in intensive workshops and professional development sessions, and are integrated into the creative community through meetings and mentorship. Participants are employed by Disney for one year with salary and benefits; if a writer staffs during that period, compensation transitions to WGA scale. The program has maintained a near-100% annual staffing rate for more than a decade, with last year\u2019s cohort staffing on 9-1-1: Nashville, Adults, Deli Boys, Far Cry, Shifting Gears, The Rookie <\/em>and Tracker.<\/em><\/p>\n These programs represent the best of what we can do as a creative community \u2014 identify exceptional voices and back them with real opportunities,\u201d said Jane Francis, executive vice president, Series, 20th Television. \u201cMy team is proud to champion this burgeoning talent by connecting them to series where they can develop their craft and kickstart their careers.\u201d<\/p>\n The 2026 Writing Program cohort includes Maya Florin, Mariam Girgis, Cassidy Lee, Noelle Liljedahl, Monica Lucas, Neiman & Aaron Outlen, Jenna Park and Ekaterina Vladimirova.<\/p>\n Notable program alumni include Jewel Coronel (The Chi<\/em>), Claudia Forestieri (Gordita Chronicles<\/em>), Raamla Mohamed (Reasonable Doubt<\/em>), Sierra Ornelas (St. Denis Medical<\/em>), Sabir Pirzada (Ms. Marvel<\/em>), Luvh Rakhe (Chad Powers<\/em>) and Peter Saji (Unprisoned<\/em>).<\/p>\n Best of Deadline<\/strong><\/p>\n Sign up for Deadline’s Newsletter<\/a>. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook<\/a>, Twitter<\/a>, and Instagram<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.yahoo.com \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" EXCLUSIVE: Disney Entertainment Television has chosen its participants for the 2025-26 Directing and Writing Programs, talent development initiatives which connect emerging writers and directors with opportunities across DET\u2019s scripted and unscripted television slate. \u201cThis year\u2019s cohorts reflect the bold, original voices that will help shape the next era of television,\u201d said Tim McNeal, senior vice […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2255881,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[25172],"tags":[436808,436806,436807,308201,436804,319835,436811,436810,436809,372938,403855,403439,436805],"class_list":["post-2255880","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-entertainment","tag-alejandra-lopez","tag-creative-community","tag-directing","tag-disney-entertainment","tag-disney-television-studios","tag-greys-anatomy","tag-maggie-kiley","tag-pete-chatmon","tag-professional-development","tag-reasonable-doubt","tag-senior-vice-president","tag-talent-development","tag-writing-programs"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Disney-Entertainment-Television-Unveils-2026-Directing-Writing-Program-Participants.jpeg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2255880","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2255880"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2255880\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2255882,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2255880\/revisions\/2255882"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2255881"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2255880"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2255880"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2255880"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}