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The Killer Shorts Horror Short Screenplay Competition
Killer Shorts Horror
Contact
Web:
https://killershorts.com
Email:
info@killershortscontest.com
Contact: Alison Parker, Contest Director
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(4.3/5.0) |
| Feedback: |
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(4.0/5.0) |
| Signficance: |
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(4.0/5.0) |
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Categories
Objective
Killer Shorts: Short Scripts, Features, & Short Stories
Got a horror script or short story? We want to read it.
Killer Shorts is a premier launchpad dedicated to discovering, championing, and launching new voices in horror and dark genre filmmaking. Founded in 2019, our competition connects writers with the industry professionals who actually greenlight, manage, and cover genre cinema.
Whether you are a master of micro-budget proof-of-concepts or the creator of the next great studio franchise, your work belongs here.
Expanding to Feature Screenplays
We believe the short format is the ultimate industry equalizer. Hits like Lights Out and The Backrooms proved that Hollywood’s next viral obsession starts as a micro-budget proof of concept. Show More
Deadline/Entry Fees
| Deadline | Date Days till: |
Entry Fee |
|---|---|---|
| First Wave | June 5, 2026 | $20.00 |
| Earlybird | August 7, 2026 51 |
$25.00 |
| Regular | October 31, 2026 136 |
$30.00 |
| Final | December 4, 2026 170 |
$35.00 |
| Extended | December 31, 2026 197 |
$40.00 |
| Extended | December 31, 2026 197 |
$40.00 |
Submissions close at 11:59 PM PST on the listed deadline date. Questions can be directed to support@killershorts.com.
WinningScripts Pro 25% Off Coupon
Notification: February 15, 2027
Eligibility
Anyone in the world. If under 18, with parental consent.Rules
For a full list of rules, please visit the official website.Awards
This year's jury includes:- John Zaozirny — Literary Manager & Producer, Bellevue Productions
- Tananarive Due — Author & Producer (The Twilight Zone, Horror Noire)
- Barbara Crampton — Actress & Producer (Re-Animator, Jakob's Wife, Suitable Flesh)
- Lucas Ford — Producer, Ford Films (The Backrooms)
- Sophie Carroll — Creative Director, ALTER & DUST at Gunpowder & Sky
- Xavier Burgin — Director (Horror Noire: A History of Black Horror)
- Jed Shepherd — Filmmaker (Host, Flashback, Blair Witch Doc)
- Gigi Saul Guerrero — Director & Co-Founder, Luchagore Productions (Satanic Hispanics, Culture Shock)
- Aaron B. Koontz — Producer & CEO, Paper Street Pictures (Shelby Oaks, Scare Package)
- John Squires — Editor-in-Chief, Bloody Disgusting
- Julian Terry — Filmmaker (Whisper, The Nurse, They Hear It)
- Chelsea Lupkin — Senior Programmer at Short of the Week & Filmmaker (Flagged, Lucy's Tale)
- Glenn Cockburn — Literary Manager, Meridian Artists
- Jenn Wexler — Filmmaker (The Sacrifice Game, The Ranger)
- Jason Tamasco — Producer, Traction Pictures
- Melody Cooper — Producer & Writer (Beasts of Prey, Two Sentence Horror Stories, Law & Order: SVU)
HORROR SHORT SCREENPLAY CATEGORY - PRIZES
Top 3 Winners- The Killer Trophy & Winner Laurels.
- Industry Circulation: Your script sent to our network of horror producers.
- The Scream List: Elevated placement increasing visibility among industry professionals.
- Stage 32 Pro Package: 60-min Career Development Call, Short Script Coverage, and FREE “Search for New Blood” contest entry.
- The Winner’s Bundle: Final Draft 13, Shudder memberships, ISA Connect Memberships and access to Robert McKee’s Horror Webinar Series.
- Horror Fan Bundle: Rue Morgue Magazine Subscription and Fright Rags Gift Card.
- Plus all Finalist prizes below.
- Finalist Laurels & Script Directory Publication.
- Final Draft 13 Software License.
- Production Suite: Seed & Spark Consultation and We Make Movies Gold Membership.
- Stage 32 Access: Script Coverage, Next Level Webinar and 50% off “Search For New Blood” entry.
- Plus all Semifinalist prizes below.
- Semifinalist Laurels & Script Directory Publication.
- Stage 32 Package: Next Level Webinar and 20% off “Search For New Blood” entry.
- Quarterfinalist Laurels.
- Exclusive Discounts: Reduced rates for Stage 32 contests and partner services.
- $5,000 cash prize.
- The Killer Trophy & Winner Laurels.
- Bellevue Productions First Look: Guaranteed script review by literary manager John Zaozirny.
- Plus all Top 3 & Finalist prizes below.
- Industry Circulation: Your script sent to our premier network of horror producers.
- The Winner’s Bundle: Final Draft 13, Free Feature Script Entry to ScriptHop’s Gauntlet, and We Make Movies Gold Membership.
- $50 Deep Cuts Coffee Gift Card.
- Plus all Finalist prizes below.
- Finalist Laurels & Script Directory Publication.
- Seed & Spark Crowdfunding Consultation.
- Plus all Semifinalist prizes below.
- Semifinalist Laurels.
- The Script Directory: Logline publication in our curated industry database.
- Quarterfinalist Laurels.
- $500 Cash Prize & Winner Laurels.
- The Killer Trophy.
- 6 Month ISA Connect Membership.
- Plus all Top 3 prizes listed below.
- Industry Circulation: Script sent to our network of horror producers.
- The Scream List: Elevated placement increasing visibility among industry professionals.
- Final Draft 13 Software License.
- Creator Bundle: Stan Winston School Membership, We Make Movies Gold Membership, and Script Revolution Rockstar memberships.
- Stage 32 Pro Perk: 100% off “Search For New Blood” contest entry.
- Plus all Finalist prizes below.
- Finalist Laurels & Script Directory Publication.
- Stage 32 Access: Free Stage 32 “Next Level” Webinar and 20% off “Search For New Blood” contest entry.
- Placement Laurels (Semi or Quarterfinalist).
- Exclusive Discounts: Reduced rates for Stage 32 contests and partner webinars.
- The Killer Trophy & Winner Laurels.
- Pro Consultation: One-on-one 30-minute meeting with author and screenwriter Chris Hicks (I Am Not Alone).
- Official Publication: Featured story placement on the Killer Shorts website.
- Plus all Top 3 & Finalist prizes below.
- Winner Laurels.
- Industry Circulation: Your work sent to our network of horror producers and literary reps.
- Plus all Finalist prizes below.
- Finalist Laurels.
- Scrivener Software: Professional writing license for prose and screenwriting.
- Stage 32 Access: Free “Next Level” Webinar and 50% off “Search For New Blood” entry.
- Semifinalist Laurels & Script Directory Publication.
- Education & Discounts: Free Stage 32 Webinar and 20% off “Search For New Blood” entry.
- Quarterfinalist Laurels.
- Stage 32 Discount: 20% off Stage 32 “Search For New Blood” entry.
Killer Shorts Horror
Contact
Web:
https://killershorts.com
Email:
info@killershortscontest.com
Contact: Alison Parker, Contest Director
Report Card |
||
| Overall: |
|
(4.0/5.0) |
| Professionalism: |
|
(4.3/5.0) |
| Feedback: |
|
(4.0/5.0) |
| Signficance: |
|
(4.0/5.0) |
| Report Cards: |
|
|
|
Have you entered?
Submit a Report card
|
||
Categories
Contest Comments
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The Killer Shorts Horror Short Screenplay Competition
Contact
Web:
https://killershorts.com
Email:
info@killershortscontest.com
Contact: Alison Parker, Contest Director
Report Card |
||
| Overall: |
|
(4.0/5.0) |
| Professionalism: |
|
(4.3/5.0) |
| Feedback: |
|
(4.0/5.0) |
| Signficance: |
|
(4.0/5.0) |
| Report Cards: |
|
|
|
Have you entered?
Submit a Report card
|
||
Categories
Contest News
Killer Shorts Announces Quarterfinalists
Quarterfinalists have been selected from more than 1,000 submissions to the 2026 Killer Shorts Horror Short Screenplay Competition.
Main Category Quarterfinalists
TINO GARCIA GROSS, (Wash) Cycle of Violence
MICHELLE CAMPBELL, Amarillo
LUCY FOSTER, ANSWER MAN
MATTHEW LAYDEN, Back Piece
LYNDA HILLIKER, BE MY BABY
OLIVIA LOCCISANO, Be Not Afraid
SHAINA AIDAN, Behind Closed Doors
HELOISE CHUNG & BRANDY CARIE, Bibi
ANDREW GIBBS, Black Candy
BENJAMIN LUK, Buttons †
ELAINE FROST, By Yourself
JEAN FERNANDEZ, CAIN
PHILLIP MCSWEEN, Can I Borrow Your Demon?
MATILDA SZYDAGIS, CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW
NOLAN LAMPSON, CAPTURE
MELISSA PEREZ GELT, Changing †
PIERRE DEMERY, Closing Time †
MARCO RODRIGUEZ, Collector
KES NAVE, Crisis
SEAN KENEALY, Cut
MATTHEW HILL, CUT!
ERIC GORODETSKY, Dead Air
LEON MASTERS, DEAD DAUGHTER
EISLINN GRACEN, Deerest Darling
CLAUDIA BARCENAS, DEI Murders
SEBASTIAN WAVERLY, DORMANT
JOSE CRUZ, Dress Up
VILDE ØKSNES, Drive Safe
CALEB GEORGE, Eat Me Alive
MARY ROBERGE, Elevator Jack
TODD JONES, Emancipation
JUAN GOMEZ JR & DANIELLE OMELAS, Enmity
ROSS LOVELL, Feeding The Foxes †
RICHARD GARRY, Food Chain
ED O’GOWER, Gnomey Gnutkins Is Out Of Copyright
ADAM WARD, GONE FISHIN’ †
ANTHEA JONES, Good Child †
MARISA MARTINEZ, Got Milk?
RYAN CURTIS, GRAVEN
JOSHUA DAVID MATTHEWS, Grim
KARELINE CASTOR, Hangtown Fry
STEPHEN TRAMONTANA, Hidden Treasure
MARK ROCHON, High Stakes at Sundown
SAPPHIRE SANDALO, How Was Your Day? †
PAUL STARKEY, Hyde and Seek
KYLE HARRIS, In Recline
KATIE WALKER-COOK, In Sheep’s Clothing
CHRIS WILTZ, In the Freezer
CARA MARSHALL, In With the Storm †
JENNIFER LYNN WARREN, Jimmy
SHERICE GRIFFITHS, Jinx
MIKE MURPHY, JOEY SALAMI’S HALLOWEEN
STEVEN LEE, Kathy and Jeb
JOHAN SPIROLAZZI, Keep Digging
MICHAEL SHEETZ, Keepsake
CATHERINE CASEY, KILLJOY
MATTHEW YONGUE, Limbo
CHRISTOPHER GUERRERO & RYAN GILMOUR, LOCUST GROVE
COLE MCCABE, Lovebirds
LEE BACON, Lure
MONICA CROWELL, Lure
MICHAEL CLIFTON, Lyla’s Last Dance
MICHAEL MORRA, Mercy
STEPHEN GRAVES, Mister Mittens
ARRAN CRAWLEY, Mother Wound
SANCHEZ TAYLOR, My Other Half
MICHAEL PISATURO, No Faces
SEBASTIAN WATSON, No Fishing
KERMET MERL KEY, Nyarlathotep
SETH KELMAN, Only You †
TOPE OGUNDARE, Orchid Thieves
CARLOS TKACZ, Outside
IAN BAASKE, Polaroid
CONOR KILLMURRAY, Puppy Love
JASON RICE, QuickBites
MICHELLE IANNANTUONO, Recycled
RICK ARGIRO & KOLE HICKS, Reverie
SALVATORE LIUZZI, Riding with the King
VIKTOR HERRMANN, RockABilly
ROSE VATEL, Saint Arnold †
TEX GRESHAM, Sara
KEN TEUTSCH, Second Honeymoon
MATT FINLAY, SEVERED
MITCHELL ALAN BANKS, Shredded
FRANCESCA PAZNIOKAS, Super Absolutely
KEV DOOLEY, Terms & Conditions
DAKOTA LASKY, That’s Not Mason Gladwell
ARI DONNELLY, The Ballad of B9-G
DARREN BAILEY, The Bellows
SCOTT A. WEISS, THE BIG DARK
SEAN REIDY, The Boy in the Orchard
JEREMY FEIGHT, The Buggerer
TAYLOR SHOFNER, The Cockatrice
LIAM FITZPATRICK, The Frame
CHERISE KEOWN, The Hind Woman
GREG KACZYNSKI, The House of Man
PATRICK KOEPKE, The Lantern Man
MIKE UNDERWOOD, The Last Dance of Victor Hall
CHERELLE ANN SARAH HIGGINS, The Little Black Boy
MICHAEL HAAS, The Monster Within
JULIA DIDDY, The Offering
RENUKA SINGH, The Offering
RACHEL YELDING, The Stopping House
JACK CAMPION, The Toadman Cometh
EDWARD ROWETT, The Village Witch
JESSICA MCLAUGHLIN, The Widow’s Itch
LEE COTMAN, There Were Signs
JOAN MAO, THEY STILL REMEMBER
JOHN BURDEAUX, This Vehicle Has Been Checked for Sleeping Children
SARAH RICHARDSON, Toe to Toe
BRIANNE NORD-STEWART, Tricky Me
MARISA GREEN, TRUNK
RACHEL RICHARDS, Tulpa
CHRIS VANDERHORST, TV-MA
CHRIS LEE, Wagashi
ANDREW MARON, We’ll Be In Touch
SHANE THOMPSON, Welcome to Our Cabin
SAM DAS, What Remains
BIANCA BINA, Who’s there?
WALKER MACDONALD, Wookalark
1-PageQuarterfinalists:
KIMBERLY DIVAD, A Paralysis
P.M. RAYMOND, A Pretty Smile
ROSS LOVELL, Always
ANDREW DUNSTAN, Amma
SANCHEZ TAYLOR, Appeal
WILLIAM DREW, Arke Takes the Stairs
GIOVANNA UMPIERREZ, Backbone
CASS COOPER, Beaming
JOSE CRUZ, Bed and Board
GIOVANNA UMPIERREZ, Blackberry
KELLY ASHER, Canvas
MICHAEL BRENNAN, Carla’s New Suit
EVAN BAUGHFMAN, Constant December
TANNER CALL, Dead Line
IAN DELEÓN, Donna’s Summer: An Abduction Story
ANNIE WILDER, Fallen Man
JASON TURER, Glug Glug
LIAM FITZPATRICK, Guess Again
JOEY MILLER, Hunger
SHAUN BALAND, Hush, Little Baby
SEAN REIDY, I Hate Camping
TOM SCHRACK, Instructions
DEREK MCHUGH, Jukebox
AVI HEIKKINEN, Laundry Day
PAUL STARKEY, Loose Lips
TARYN CRANKSHAW, NO FEELINGS WERE HURT IN THE MAKING OF THIS FILM
COLBY HELTON, Nothing Yet
JAMES ALLEN, PARTY BLOB
JUSTIN BURFORD, Peeping Tom
OLIVIA LOCCISANO, ProtoTyke
EMMA HUANG, Ritual
ARTHUR MOLLENHOFF, Rubber Duckie
ROSE VATEL, School Shopping
OTIS HAMMER, Sensory Deprivation
HUGO DABAS, Shadowboxing
CHRISTOPHER WHITE, SKINNY
CALEB DILLON, TALKBOY
ZACHARY LENTZ, The Cookout
DAVID HO, The Daughter and the Doll
INÊS REIS, The Homebody
MAUREEN TRINH, The License Plate Game
CYLE BROOKS, The Merging
RICK J. LUCAS, The Rending
JOSE CRUZ, The Shaft †
DEVIN GARDNER, Think Tank
ILIAN MANDEV, Time’s Up
RICK ARGIRO, Tools
TJ BERRY, Weakness Leaving the Body †
STEPHEN CHEN, What Big Muscles You Have!
DARREN HINCHY, WOKE
Short Story (Prose) Quarterfinalists:
RACHEL MCCAULLEY, A Massive Catastrophe of Epic Moral Proportions
NICHOLAS THOMAS, A.Eye
ARIC HARRISON, Alligator Boy
AUSTIN LANGLEY, Apple Tree
ROBERT CREEKMORE, Bristles
ANDREW NEWALL, Broken Image
NICHOLAS PALILUNAS, Creature In The Black Night
C.T. ROEMER, Death Socks
AKUORKOR ALLOTEY, Doggy in the Window
P.M. RAYMOND, Don’t Drink the Water
TIYAN NEWMAN, Eden
MARK RENSHAW, Fungi
TOM BROWNGARDT, Gravestone Concussion
MILLIE PRICE, Harold aka Fed by Pain
MIKE AD, Hulled Out
SAINT LAZARE, La Jambe Rouge (The Red Leg)
NICK BUCHHEIT, WAKE. LOOK. DREAD.
AARON STURGEON, Mama Ruth’s Drawer
ROSEMARY MINUCOS, No Takesies Backsies
MARTIN DELANEY, Nothing Is Scary Any More
CHARLES WILCHER, Only When It Rains
ROB ULITSKI, PSA
SHANNON WESTON, Rendered Speechless
P.M. RAYMOND, Rent Party
SCOTT PIERANGELO, Room 08051212
JULIE ANN SLABY, Ruby Writes Her Name Across the Sky
JORDAN ANDREW, Runaway
TRAVIS WILLIAMS, Shattered
DANIEL BODDICKER, Shucked, or The Gay Corn Demon Story
RUARIDH CURRIE, Swifty Brown
MARY KURYLA, Taunt
BROOKE SOLOMON, Texas Tea
K FERNANDEZ, The Hallway Hallucination
TRAVIS WILLIAMS, The Lamb
MARK RYAN & HARLEY ADAMS, THE LAST SHEAF
ALEC KLUSZA, The Photographer
TJ BERRY, Things That Came Through with the Baby
GABRIEL COFIELD, To Reach New Horizons
NOA SARACEN, Withering in the Wasteland
C LENZ, Yesforatu
Updated: 02/16/2026
The Killer Shorts Horror Short Screenplay Competition
Contact
Web:
https://killershorts.com
Email:
info@killershortscontest.com
Contact: Alison Parker, Contest Director
Report Card |
||
| Overall: |
|
(4.0/5.0) |
| Professionalism: |
|
(4.3/5.0) |
| Feedback: |
|
(4.0/5.0) |
| Signficance: |
|
(4.0/5.0) |
| Report Cards: |
|
|
|
Have you entered?
Submit a Report card
|
||
Categories
Submit Report Card
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