San Jose, CA 95113
(408) 638-0644 (voice)
Web:
Click here
Email: screenplay@cinequest.org
Contact: Angela Ostermeier, Screenwriting Competition Coordinator
Report Card |
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(4.5/5.0) |
| Professionalism: |
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(4.1/5.0) |
| Feedback: |
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(4.3/5.0) |
| Signficance: |
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(4.3/5.0) |
| Report Cards: |
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Have you entered?
Please submit a Report card.
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Cinequest voted Best Film Festival by USA Today Readers.
Cinequest voted Best Film Festival by USA Today Readers. The Cinequest Screenplay Competition empowers global screenwriters through discovery, recognition, and opportunity. Cinequest loves writers, and we welcome you to submit your screenplay or teleplay to our renowned competition. The Top 10 Finalists receive many empowering benefits including: passes to the Cinequest Film & Creativity Festival and the exclusive Writers Celebration, plus exposure to leading industry players and inspiring luminaries.
Finalists are presented alongside high profile Maverick Spirit awardees like: J.J. Abrams, Lawrence Kasdan, Chuck Palahniuk, Neil Gaiman, Philip Kaufman, Michael Arndt, Diablo Cody, Dennis Lehane, Jason Reitman and more at the highly anticipated Writers Celebration during the Cinequest Film & Creativity Festival. Show More
| Deadline | Date | Entry Fee | Days till Deadline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Early Bird | July 12, 2019 | $45 Features; $30 Short; $40 Teleplay (60min);$30 Teleplay (30min) | |
| Regular | September 20, 2019 | $55 Features;$40 Short; $45 Teleplay (60min); $40 Teleplay (30min) | |
| Late | October 11, 2019 | $65 features; $50 Short; $55 Teleplay (60min); $50 Teleplay (30min) | |
| Extended | November 1, 2019 | $70 Features; $55 Shorts; $60 Teleplay (60min); $55 Teleplay (30min) | 13 |
Notification: March 15, 2020.
All genres accepted. Especially seeking drama, comedy, thriller/mystery, action, drama, sci-fi, action, bio-pic, rom-com, horror, and highly original material.
Script must be submitted in English and must be properly formatted according to industry standards.
Length (not including title page):
Only PDFs will be accepted for submission. Printed scripts are not accepted.
Script must be properly formatted according to industry standards.
Please include ONLY your script’s title on the cover page so that readers may remain unbiased in their decisions. Your FilmFreeway tracking number will automatically be assigned to your uploaded script.
Maintain your full contact information in your FilmFreeway registration. Do not include any contact information on your submitted script.
RESTRICTIONS
Once the entry is received no rewritten/corrected pages will be accepted.
Submission fees are collected by FilmFreeway. Cinequest does not accept payment by cash, check, or money order. There is no entry fee refund for any scripts submitted.
Winning scripts by more than one writer will have the prize split evenly between members of the writing team.
Any script that becomes purchased, optioned, goes into production, or is produced before the final Jury decision on February 19, 2020, will be eliminated from the competition with no entry fee refund. Scripts written as adaptations of other works must have secured rights before being submitted.
FEEDBACK & NOTIFICATIONS
Contestants will receive 3 lines of consolidated reader feedback on their script if requested.
Writers will be notified on their status in the competition via the email address provided at time of registration. Please include screenplay@cinequest.org in your contact lists to receive these notifications. See below for selection process:
FEATURE-LENGTH SCRIPTS:
1st Place
(1) Receives $5000 USD cash prize. Winning script by more than one writer will have cash prize split evenly between members of the writing team. (2) Presented with an inscribed Crystal Award during Cinequest Film & VR Festival. (3) Amenities listed in Finalist sections.
Cash Award Value: 5,000 U.S. Dollar
Top Three Finalists
1) Opportunity to have script read by top level industry producers and writers (Jury will be announced in July 2019)
2) All of the amenities of the Top 10 Finalists
Top Ten Finalists
(1) Recognition (script title, genre and tagline) on Writers Celebration event page on Cinequest Film & VR Festival website. (2) Recognition (script title, genre and tagline) in printed Cinequest Film & VR Festival Guide (3) Invitation to Cinequest Film & VR Festival with two Artist festival passes (passes valued at $1,000). (4) Exclusive invitation to Writers Celebration (March 2020), which includes a BUSINESS OF WRITING FORUM, WRITER MEETS PRODUCER MIXER to connect with industry leaders, PITCH TRAINING & CHALLENGE to a panel of industry powerhouses, and an inspiring MAVERICK SPIRIT luminary event. (5) Special discounts and rates on accommodations during Cinequest Film & VR Festival.
SHORT FILM SCRIPTS:
1st Place
(1) Receives $1000 USD cash prize. Winning script by more than one writer will have cash prize split evenly between members of the writing team. (2) Presented with an inscribed Crystal Award during Cinequest Film & VR Festival. (3) Invitation to screen winning short at a future Cinequest Film & VR Festival. Film is limited to a 20-minute run time (maximum). Cinequest is not responsible for the production of the film. (4) Amenities listed in Finalist sections.
Cash Award Value: 1,000 U.S. Dollar
Top Three Finalists
1) Opportunity to have script read by top level industry producers and writers (Jury will be announced in July 2019)
2) All of the amenities of the Top 10 Finalists
Top Ten Finalists
(1) Recognition (script title, genre and tagline) on Writers Celebration event page on Cinequest Film & VR Festival website. (2) Recognition (script title, genre and tagline) in printed Cinequest Film & VR Festival Guide (3) Invitation to 2020 Cinequest Film & VR Festival with two Artist festival passes (passes valued at $1,000). (4) Exclusive invitation to Writers Celebration (March 2020), which includes a BUSINESS OF WRITING FORUM, WRITER MEETS PRODUCER MIXER to connect with industry leaders, PITCH TRAINING & CHALLENGE to a panel of industry powerhouses, and an inspiring MAVERICK SPIRIT luminary event. (5) Special discounts and rates on accommodations during Cinequest Film & VR Festival.
TELEPLAYS (60 MINUTES):
1st Place
(1) Receives $1,000 USD cash prize. Winning script by more than one writer will have cash prize split evenly between members of the writing team. (2) Presented with an inscribed Crystal Award during Cinequest Film & VR Festival. (3) Amenities listed in Finalist sections.
Cash Award Value: 1,000 U.S. Dollar
Top Three Finalists
1) Opportunity to have script read by top level industry producers and writers (Jury will be announced in July 2019)
2) All of the amenities of the Top 10 Finalists
Top Ten Finalists
(1) Recognition (script title, genre and tagline) on Writers Celebration event page on Cinequest Film & VR Festival website. (2) Recognition (script title, genre and tagline) in printed Cinequest Film & VR Festival Guide (3) Invitation to 2020 Cinequest Film & VR Festival with two Artist festival passes (passes valued at $1,000). (4) Exclusive invitation to Writers Celebration (March 2020), which includes a BUSINESS OF WRITING FORUM, WRITER MEETS PRODUCER MIXER to connect with industry leaders, PITCH TRAINING & CHALLENGE to a panel of industry powerhouses, and an inspiring MAVERICK SPIRIT luminary event. (5) Special discounts and rates on accommodations during Cinequest Film & VR Festival.
TELEPLAYS (30 MINUTES):
1st Place
(1) Receives $1000 USD cash prize. Winning script by more than one writer will have cash prize split evenly between members of the writing team. (2) Presented with an inscribed Crystal Award during Cinequest Film & VR Festival. (3) Amenities listed in Finalist sections.
Cash Award Value: 1,000 U.S. Dollar
2nd Place
1) Opportunity to have script read by top level industry producers and writers (Jury will be announced in July 2019)
2) All of the amenities of the Top 10 Finalists
Top 10 Finalists
(1) Recognition (script title, genre and tagline) on Writers Celebration event page on Cinequest Film & VR Festival website. (2) Recognition (script title, genre and tagline) in printed Cinequest Film & VR Festival Guide (3) Invitation to 2019 Cinequest Film & VR Festival with two Artist festival passes (passes valued at $1,000). (4) Exclusive invitation to Writers Celebration (March 2020), which includes a BUSINESS OF WRITING FORUM, WRITER MEETS PRODUCER MIXER to connect with industry leaders, PITCH TRAINING & CHALLENGE to a panel of industry powerhouses, and an inspiriting MAVERICK SPIRIT luminary event. (5) Special discounts and rates on accommodations during Cinequest Film & VR Festival.
San Jose, CA 95113
(408) 638-0644 (voice)
Web:
Click here
Email: screenplay@cinequest.org
Contact: Angela Ostermeier, Screenwriting Competition Coordinator
Report Card |
||
| Overall: |
|
(4.5/5.0) |
| Professionalism: |
|
(4.1/5.0) |
| Feedback: |
|
(4.3/5.0) |
| Signficance: |
|
(4.3/5.0) |
| Report Cards: |
|
|
|
Have you entered?
Please submit a Report card.
|
||
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San Jose, CA 95113
(408) 638-0644 (voice)
Web:
Click here
Email: screenplay@cinequest.org
Contact: Angela Ostermeier, Screenwriting Competition Coordinator
Report Card |
||
| Overall: |
|
(4.5/5.0) |
| Professionalism: |
|
(4.1/5.0) |
| Feedback: |
|
(4.3/5.0) |
| Signficance: |
|
(4.3/5.0) |
| Report Cards: |
|
|
|
Have you entered?
Please submit a Report card.
|
||
Rubbish by John Dilley & Seth Corr has been named the Feature Screenplay Winner of the 2017 Cinequest Screenwriting Competition.
Wheelman by Jeremy Rush has been named the Feature Script Winner of the Cinequest Screenwriting Competition. Shiva by Vishnu Sekar won the Short Script Competition, and the TV Script Winners were Brooklyn Bus by RJ Marx (60-minutes) and Patient by M. Rowan Meyer (30-minutes).
Saint Chloe by Stacie Shellner (Feature), The Yard by Eugenie Carabatsoshas (Short), and Awareness by Sean Corrigan (Teleplay) have been named the winners of the Cinequest Screenwriting Competition for 2014-2015.
Breathe has been named the winner of the 2014 CineQuest Film Festival Screenplay Competition. Travis Neufeld's The Tinwife was the winner of the Short Screenplay Competition.
Cinequest has announce that The Imperfect Cell, Mister Dunbury’s Exotic Lunatic Caravan, and Marcus were the winners of the Cinequest 14 Screenwriting Competition.
San Jose, CA 95113
(408) 638-0644 (voice)
Web:
Click here
Email: screenplay@cinequest.org
Contact: Angela Ostermeier, Screenwriting Competition Coordinator
Report Card |
||
| Overall: |
|
(4.5/5.0) |
| Professionalism: |
|
(4.1/5.0) |
| Feedback: |
|
(4.3/5.0) |
| Signficance: |
|
(4.3/5.0) |
| Report Cards: |
|
|
|
Have you entered?
Please submit a Report card.
|
||
An interview with screenwriter Vishnu Sekar regarding the Cinequest Writing Competition.
A: 'Shiva' is the name of my script and my protagonist -- a young man obsessed with Bollywood films in Sri Lanka during the 1980's. He's racially profiled and arrested by cops for a crime he didn't commit. They torture him to elicit a false confession. Shiva makes an elaborate prison escape that begins to unravel as a fantasy inspired by his favourite Bollywood film.
Q: What made you enter this particular contest? Have you entered any other contests with this script? If so, how did you do?A: I liked some of the former Maverick Winners like JJ Abrams and Neil Gaiman, who happens to be one of my favourite writers.
My script has been selected as a semi-finalist in the Page International Screenplay contest. I'm still waiting for the final results.
A: Yes, the awards were great for a short screenplay.
Q: How long did it take you to write the script? Did you write an outline beforehand? How many drafts did you write?A: I did write an outline, but I had most of the screenplay in my head the moment I conceived the premise. I usually follow a rough outline when I write. I seriously can't tell you how many drafts I wrote because I kept getting feedback and tweaking my script. The changes were small from one draft to another, but I think they made all the difference. It's difficult to say how long I worked on this because I write several screenplays simultaneously. When I wait for feedback on one script, I draft another, and so on.
Q: What kind of software did you use to write the script, if any? What other kinds of writing software do you use?A: I used Celtx, but I have moved on to Highland, which I find easier and more intuitive to use.
Q: Do you write every day? How many hours per day?A: I don't write every day because I have to balance writing with my day job. I write for about six to eight hours, four days a week. Sometimes, I write all day every day, even after work, if I'm nearing a contest deadline or if my creative juices are flowing. I intend to write more hours regularly in the future.
Q: Do you ever get writer's block? If so, how do you deal with that?A: I do get writer's block. Sometimes I have to step away from the project and work on something else. Or I go for a walk. Meditation helps. I look to films, books and music for inspiration. If nothing works, I silence my inner critic and I force myself to write even if it doesn't sound good to me. I usually keep a note and come back to that point, later on, to see if it can be improved.
Q: What's your background? Have you written any other screenplays or television scripts?A: I've got a BA in Film and English and I've worked in the media before. I've written a number of screenplays and teleplays that have placed well in writing contests.
Q: Do you live in Los Angeles? If not, do you have any plans to move there?A: I live in Sydney, Australia, but I'd like to move to LA soon.
Q: What's next? Are you working on a new script?A: I'm currently working on a TV pilot set in Boston that I want to submit to contests and pitch. I'm going to adapt the pilot into a graphic novel and pitch to a publisher or self-publish it via Amazon.
