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The Pasifika Entertainment Advancement Komiti has named the third cohort of its annual PEAK Writers Fellowship.
This year’s cohort includes Kanani Koster, Erin Lau, Sean Oketani, Neil Tinkham and Pouariʻi Tanne. Supported
by Netflix, the fellowship selects five up-and-coming writers whose work honors Pasifika (people of Pacific Islander descent) experiences, providing them with mentorship, professional development and networking opportunities as they continue to expand their professional television careers.
Founded by PEAK co-founder, director, screenwriter and showrunner Dana Ledoux Miller and co-managed by program manager and screenwriter Bryson Chun, the fellowship serves as the only Hollywood writing program created by a Pasifika storyteller.
“I’m so grateful that in this time of industry uncertainty, Netflix continues to invest in emerging writers,” Miller said. “Fellowships like this not only make it possible for our communities to steward our own stories from script to screen, they allow the five incredible writers in this year’s fellowship to challenge and upend expectations of who we are expected to be as artists.”
Each fellow is paired with an experienced industry mentor who helps refine their scripts to be professionally presented. Also included in the fellowship are weekly panels and conversations with writers, showrunners, executives, representatives, actors and other industry professionals, offering insight on the entertainment industry.
This year’s fellows will receive mentorship from Ryan Belezon and Jeffrey Gelber (“Boulevard”); Aminta Goyel (“Pivoting”); Lauren Thompson (“Ghostwriter”); and Michelle Giannusa (“Ripple”).
“We received a record number of applications this year, which shows how sorely this fellowship is needed,” said Averie Huffine, the interim executive director of PEAK. “But I think it’s also due to Netflix being synonymous with great programming, and the reputation of Dana and Bryson’s incredible mentorship.”
See the list of fellows below.
Kanani Koster — “Clinic Daze”
A half-hour dramedy following the ragtag yet passionate staff of an underfunded abortion clinic hustling to provide compassionate care to their patients, all while navigating their own chaotic personal lives.
Koster is a native Hawaiian writer and director. Her work uses raunchy blue comedy to hide a desire to make a difference in this world. Kanani is a 2024 American Film Institute directing alum, 2024 ‘Ohina Lab Fellow and ‘23 Punky Aloha Scholar for Kanaka ‘Ōiwi and Pasifika Creatives. Her work has been supported by the Tribeca Film Festival, Gotham’s Project Market, Visionary Justice Story Lab and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. Her shorts have played at AFI Fest, SeriesFest, Hawai’i International Film Festival, and the Smithsonian Museum.
Erin Lau — “The Hālau”
“The Hālau” is a one-hour family drama that follows 16-year-old Maile Johnson who, after her mother’s death, is forced to live with her estranged family on Oahu and enter the world of competitive hula dancing.
The Native Hawaiian filmmaker explores empathy, redemption and legacy through her work. She has been supported by the Sundance Institute, Tribeca Studios, Film Independent, Ryan Murphy’s Half Initiative and more. Her work spans narrative, documentary and episodic storytelling and has been featured on the Criterion Channel, Netflix and PBS.Lu’s most recent directing credit was for Fox’s action-packed procedural “Rescue: HI-Surf.” She is also currently a fellow in the 2026 ImagineNATIVE Screenwriting Series Lab and the Sundance Institute | The Asian American Foundation (TAAF) Accelerator.
Sean Oketani — “[Pair]adise”
Two queer, hapa Hawaiian best friends decide to ditch their jobs as hotel servers and spend the day playing tourists in Waikīkī.
Oketani is a Native Hawaiian writer, director and storyteller born and raised on the island of Oʻahu. He graduated from Chapman University’s Dodge College of Film and Media Arts with a BFA in television writing and production. He wrote and produced his undergraduate thesis, “Gay Church,” a short-form comedy pilot. He has worked across the programming, education, and outreach departments at the Hawaiʻi International Film Festival (HIFF). In 2025, he was selected as an ʻOhina Labs Writers Fellow and received the ʻOhina Judge’s Award for his short film script, currently in pre-production.
His work often draws from the intersection of his identities and perspectives, navigating both lived and inherited experiences. He is passionate about crafting compelling narratives that explore the contradictions and overlaps of identity, culture and belonging. He is inspired by Indigenous and Pasifika cinema; queer art and literature; and the influence of digital culture, both on and offline.
Neil Tinkham — “West Coast Chamorus”
A straight-laced Chamoru father must confront his past as a gangbanger when he returns to Los Angeles with his son for medical treatment.
Tinkham is a Chamoru filmmaker originally from Guam. His work reflects his island upbringing and the Chamoru diaspora community. His short movies have received funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the Pacific Islanders in Communications and the Guam Council for the Arts and Humanities Agency. His work has screened at film festivals and regional museums and received distribution. In 2018, Neil’s feature-length screenplay “Jungle” was optioned by New Zealand-based production company Popgun Filmmakers, and, in 2022, his screenplay “The Taotaomona” was selected for the Second Annual Indigenous List, compiled by the Sundance Institute, ImagineNative and The Black List. Other scripts Tinkham has written have placed in screenwriting labs and competitions, including the Ohina Filmmakers Lab and the Page International Screenwriting Awards.
Pouariʻi Tanner — “The Assistant”
When a Māori current affairs crew arrives in Hollywood to profile its Indigenous stars, they discover their promised access doesn’t exist and must navigate the assistants, gatekeepers and strange characters operating behind the scenes of the Indigenous entertainment industry.
Tanner is a Cook Islands writer and producer based in Rarotonga. Her work draws on her experience across Indigenous film, television and media, using comedy and character-driven storytelling to explore the strange intersections between island communities and larger cultural institutions. She previously worked with the Sundance Institute’s Indigenous Program and created and produced the documentary series “Turtle Town” in the Cook Islands. She is currently developing three short films through Pasifika TV’s film masterclass, to be completed and released in 2027. Through her production company, Pacific Standard Time, she is developing original film and television projects from the Pacific.
