A list of categorized screenplay contests, ranked and sorted by screenwriters. Find the best contest for your screenplay or television script.
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Final Deadline: 07/20/2019
The NHMC Television Scriptwriter’s Program is designed to familiarize participants with the format, characters and storyline structure of specific shows that are currently on the air. The five-week, *total immersion workshop is mentored and guided by former NBC V.P of Script Development, Geoff Harris and is conducted in Sherman Oaks, CA. A total of 10 writers are accepted nationwide from an established network of non-profit agencies, schools, universities, guilds and media organizations.
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Final Deadline: 07/26/2019
Broadening its mission to cultivate opportunities for and about women, SeriesFest is proud to partner with Big Swing Productions (founded by Emmy®- and Golden Globe®-winner Kyra Sedgwick, Meredith Bagby and Valerie Stadler) for the Women Writing Competition to discover and celebrate bold new series with a distinctly female perspective. The script writing competition gives female artists the opportunity to share diverse ideas through visual media and create unique and powerful roles for women.
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Final Deadline: 07/29/2019
The Slamdance Screenplay Competition is dedicated to discovering and supporting emerging writing talent. We welcome screenplays in every genre, on any topic, from anywhere in the world. A unique feature of the competition is providing constructive feedback for every entrant. In addition to this, we also offer a more intensive coverage service for a supplementary fee.
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Final Deadline: 07/30/2019
To promote and support new talent by creating real and original opportunities. To make Hollywood more accessible than ever before to more aspiring screenwriters, American Gem Short Script Writing Contest: presented by Filmmakers Magazine and Write Brothers, is forming strategic alliances with the powers that be in Film, TV and Literary Publishing.
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Final Deadline: 07/31/2019
To make Hollywood more accessible than ever before to more aspiring global screenwriters, Filmmakers is forming strategic alliances with the powers that be in Film and TV Script Writing; who are in search of top Screenplays & Writers... Filmmakers Championing Emerging Artists. FilmMakers International Screenwriting Awards has been in existence since 2000 (formerly known as The Radmin Company / FilmMakers.
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Final Deadline: 07/31/2019
Awards Ceremony at a Film Festival! Screenplay Festival winners get that rarest of experiences for a writer; applause from an audience. Our winners get to come out from behind the keyboard and be celebrated! Now Accepting Television Scripts! The writers spoke, and we listened. We have now added four categories to our contest for television scripts.
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Final Deadline: 07/31/2019
To make Hollywood more accessible than ever before to more aspiring screenwriters, 1st TV Script Writing Competition is forming strategic alliances with the powers that be in Film & TV, who are on the lookout for exceptional talent and TV scripts. The 1st TV Script Writing Competition is presented by FilmMakers Magazine. It wasn't that long ago that for a writer to get discovered he or she had to reside in or around Hollywood.
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Final Deadline: 07/31/2019
The Filmmatic Comedy Screenplay Awards were created to locate and expose up-and-coming comedic screenwriters, as well as to empower and educate those talented writers still waiting for their invitation into the mainstream film and television industries. Competition is open to comedic feature-length and short works, screenplays and teleplays.
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Final Deadline: 08/05/2019
The "Set in Philadelphia" Screenwriting Competition (SIP), which is presented by the Greater Philadelphia Film Office offers over $20,000 in cash prizes. Screenwriters world-wide are invited to submit an original feature length screenplay or TV pilot length screenplay that COULD be produced in the Greater Philadelphia Metropolitan Area. Scripts are judged on their overall quality, and the extent to which they project "shootability" in the Greater Philadelphia region.
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Final Deadline: 08/07/2019
Enter now for a chance to have your script read by professional actors! Every script submitted is in the running to be one of 2 scripts chosen to be read in front of our audience and an Industry Insider at a West Hollywood Theatre. Our event can also be Live Streamed. So if a writer is selected from outside LA they will be able to watch online and receive feedback live from the Insider, the audience, and the online viewers - as if they are sitting in the theatre.
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Final Deadline: 08/15/2019
Do you have a great script but don't have the access to the industry to move it forward? That's what we're here for. This is the 10th season of the ISA Fast Track Fellowship. With each passing year we continue to find fresh and original voices to pair up with eight veteran industry mentors for an intense, career-launching week in Los Angeles.
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Final Deadline: 08/15/2019
MISSION: To provide industry exposure and support to television screenwriters who are looking to have their stories told. FEEDBACK: We believe that writers need feedback to improve, which is why we provide the judges’ score cards to every entrant at no additional charge. PROMISE: We promise to give all scripts two rounds of scores and there will be a total of six rounds of scores to ensure fairness and transparency.
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Final Deadline: 08/15/2019
Founded by longtime residents and movie veterans alike, the Sherman Oaks Film Festival looks to showcase the best undiscovered movies in the heart of Los Angeles. The neighborhood that was home the mall in Fast Times At Ridgemont High deserves a world class film festival! The Sherman Oaks Film Festival has a category for unproduced screenplays of any length, feature or short or in between.
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Final Deadline: 08/18/2019
Our Director of the Screenplay Competition is a working writer himself. We carefully select our Judges and try to assist the screenplay winners in their journey to sell their manuscripts. Exposure is half the battle. Our priority has always been the writer. Read our reviews on FilmFreeway and you'll see what past writers and filmmakers think of our competition.
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Final Deadline: 08/20/2019
New York New Stories Screenplay Contest is an exciting new script competition seeking submissions in the following categories: Short Film, TV/Web Pilot. New York New Stories is dedicated to discovering and celebrating the work of screenwriters from all backgrounds and all levels of experience. Our mission is to elevate unique and creative stories that are ready to be told.
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Final Deadline: 08/28/2019
We have teamed up with several creative partners looking for Features and TV Pilots with unique voices and original stories. Our goal with this contest is to discover great writers then connect their authentic stories to those creative partners, and we are looking for the best writing in all of these genres: Action/Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Family/Holiday, Mystery/Crime, Historical/Biopic, Horror/Thriller, Sci-Fi/ Fantasy, Western and Young Adult (YA).
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Final Deadline: 08/30/2019
The objective of the Moondance International Film Festival is to inspire, motivate, promote and encourage the best writers & independent filmmakers, from every country in the world, and to inspire a greater understanding about the vital role of the arts in enhancing creativity, community spirit, and the preservation of our cultural heritage.
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Final Deadline: 08/31/2019
OUR FOCUS IS TO DISCOVER THE BEST NEW SCREENWRITING TALENT FROM AROUND THE WORLD How do we do that? 19 Oscar & BAFTA Winning Judges will read the final round of submissions. 75 Production Companies, Agents & Managers are signed up to read each year’s best scripts. 50+ Directors are on our roster to read the best Feature screenplays.
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Final Deadline: 08/31/2019
The Houston Comedy Film Festival opened for submissions in 2008 and we had our first event in 2009. We are looking for a diverse palette of comedy screenplays with the following categories. 1-40 pages is considered a short and 41-150 pages is considered a feature in our world. 1) Comedy Short & Comedy Features 2) Dark Comedy Short & Dark Comedy Feature 3) Comedy TV Episode, Sitcom, or Webisode: Short & Feature (commonly called a Teleplay) 4) Romantic Comedy Short and Romantic Comedy Feature 80% of the submissions go to the Comedy Short & Feature Categories, which are the most competitive.
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Final Deadline: 08/31/2019
The Austin Comedy Short Film Festival held our first event in 2015. This event has been bi-annual since the beginning. We are looking for a diverse palette of comedy screenplays with the following categories. 1-40 pages is considered a short and 41-150 pages is considered a feature in our world. 1) Comedy Short & Comedy Features Screenplays 2) Dark Comedy Short & Dark Comedy Feature Screenplays 3) Comedy TV Episode, Sitcom, or Webisode: Short & Feature (commonly called a Teleplay) 4) Romantic Comedy Short and Romantic Comedy Feature Screenplays 80% of the submissions go to the Comedy Short & Feature Categories, which are the most competitive.
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Final Deadline: 08/31/2019
OUR FOCUS IS TO DISCOVER THE BEST NEW SCREENWRITING TALENT FROM AROUND THE WORLD How do we do that? 12 EMMY & Golden Globe Winning Judges will read the final round of submissions. 43 Production Companies, Agents & Managers are signed up to read each year’s best scripts. 50+ Directors are on our roster to read the best TV Pilot scripts.
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Final Deadline: 09/20/2019
The Filmmatic TV Pilot Awards were created to locate and expose up-and-coming TV and web-series writers, as well as to empower and educate passionate and talented screenwriters still waiting for their invitation into the mainstream industry. Competition is open to TV pilots, webisodes and inventive TV-series scripts of all genres. Season 4 results will post by November 15, 2019.
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Final Deadline: 09/21/2019
Welcome to the WRPN Women's International Film Festival, where distribution and feedback opportunities abound for films made by women, or films that carry subject matter relating to concerns particular to women's issues. WWIFF is a sister festival to the Depth of Field International Film Festival, a FilmFreeway “Top 100 Reviewed” festival alumni.
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Final Deadline: 09/30/2019
Our panel of Hollywood industry professionals is looking for the next great drama and comedy TV pilots for network, cable and online platforms! Accepting web series and non-traditional series pilots as well. Three winners will receive cash awards and introductions to industry professionals. The Industry Jury: This year's jury is our best one yet! Our industry judges are looking for fresh voices in comedy and drama writing for television and web series! Our mission is to connect great TV writers with great TV producers, managers and development executives.
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Final Deadline: 09/30/2019
The Portland Comedy Film Festival, ranked in the Top 100 on FilmFreeway, is a unique forum for international independent comedy filmmakers to showcase their comedy films in Portland, Oregon. The Portland Comedy Film Festival is a bi-annual event, searching for funny and engaging films and screenplays to entertain a comedy loving audience.
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Final Deadline: 10/13/2019
WriteMovies has been helping writers succeed since 1999! Now in our 20th anniversary year, we are currently accepting entries to our Fall 2019 Screenwriting Contest! Grand Prize: $2000 A year of free script development worth up to $3200 Guaranteed pitching to industry Exclusive prizes from InkTip Get free entry to the contest when you commission a script report, with Judging Feedback from just $89 Through our exclusive arrangement with TALENTSCOUT INTERNATIONAL MANAGEMENT (TSIM) we can guarantee the contest winner representation.
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Final Deadline: 10/15/2019
Our intention is to help open doors for the aspiring television writer. There are four categories you can submit to, which include 1 hour existing spec scripts, 1/2 hour existing sitcom spec scripts, original pilots, and reality programs. This competition is designed with the TV writer and crossover screenwriter in mind. The participants we have chosen to read the winning scripts are individuals from established production companies.
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Final Deadline: 10/30/2019
To discover innovative, marketable, high-concept projects for studio-level development, including feature screenplays, TV material, and media content.
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Final Deadline: 10/31/2019
Filmmatic coined a slogan, "Hidden screenplays never get produced". As writers, we spend a lot of our precious time crafting unique scripts, yet we hardly ever employ an equal level of passion when attempting to get our work into the "right hands". The exposure and prestige one can gain from placing or winning a screenplay competition is invaluable, but what do you say this time around we also get you PITCHING! Let's get proactive, let's pick a production company that makes sense for our project, tell them we were a Pitch Now Finalist or Winner, and get them to review our work, now not later ;) All 100 finalists will be able to pitch to a studio or production company of their choice via Virtual Pitch Fest! The competition is open to feature-length and short works, screenplays and teleplays.
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Final Deadline: 10/31/2019
The Atlanta Comedy Film Festival is a unique forum for comedy filmmakers and screenwriters from all over the world to showcase their creative works in Georgia. This bi-annual event opened in 2016 and is growing with every event. Television shows and films like Stranger Things, Coming to America 2, The Walking Dead and many others of all genres are shot on location in the state of Georgia, making it one of the busiest production hubs in the US.
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Final Deadline: 11/01/2019
We are all about giving agents, showrunners, and executives exactly what they now are looking for: Spec pilot teleplays that showcase you, the new writer operating at your very best. If the suits love the writing of a spec pilot, they have the best reason in the world to trust the writer to come through in the development process. A strongly-written spec pilot shows you’re ready for the gig.
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Final Deadline: 11/01/2019
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.
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Final Deadline: 11/03/2019
Our Manager Panel. Your Script. Coverage Ink's Get Repped Now is not actually a contest - it's a promotion. From Sept. 3 through Oct. 20, 2019, all scripts submitted to www.coverageink.com or www.getreppednow.com for coverage which score a 'consider' (or better) for script are elevated to our manager panel (appx. the top 5%.) We work with the top literary managers in town, and they are looking for the best writers around.
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Final Deadline: 11/18/2019
The fellowship program was developed to honor dedicated writers and to help further their creative process and skills. Writing in itself is a journey and we would like to facilitate the process by giving the fellows the opportunity to be surrounded by like-minded professionals and individuals. Application Requirements: Completed application and fee.
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Final Deadline: 12/15/2019
The BlueCat Screenplay Competition, now in its 22nd year, is accepting submissions for its 2020 competition. Founded in 1998 by award-winning writer Gordy Hoffman, BlueCat has supported thousands of screenwriters through written analysis provided to all entrants, many of whom have gone on to successful careers in the film and television industry.
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Final Deadline: 12/31/2019
The Oregon Short Film Festival is a showcase of independent short films from around the world. We accept short screenplays of all genres that are 40 pages or less. Action Comedy Dark Comedy Drama Experimental Family Fantasy Horror Romantic Comedy Science Fiction
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Final Deadline: 01/09/2020
The Australian International Screenwriting Awards (AISA) is a screenwriting competition committed to the discerning selection, recognition, and professional growth of emerging screenwriters from all over the world. Australia, our home base, is a perfect merging of big cities and abundant nature. From big waves and rainforests to mountains and the massive outback.
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Final Deadline: 01/22/2020
The First 10 Pages Script Competition recognizes and showcases exceptional feature and television writing in all genres.
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Final Deadline: 02/06/2020
We love New York and we love film! We especially loves films shot, set, about, or written and produced and starring New Yorkers! And by New Yorker, we mean New Yorkers from the State, the City, and around the world. Even New Yorkers who haven’t made it here yet. We love you all. (And no, you don’t have to be from here to submit your scripts). We are a passionate group of artists who care deeply about nurturing, developing, and furthering the careers of the next generation of New York City filmmakers and screenwriters from the U.
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Final Deadline: 03/19/2020
Mission: Faith in Film is dedicated to forging a screenwriting competition that will launch the careers of filmmakers focused on adding the element of faith to their films and facilitate established filmmakers in transitioning into making more faith films. Our aim is to build a festival that will introduce faith based films to mass audiences, ultimately, giving them the same multi platform release schedules and revenue streams that traditional studio films and high end independent films enjoy; and to inspire, showcase, support, and develop filmmakers of all faith’s to make great faith based films that leave others touched, moved and inspired; and filmmakers and distributors empowered to make and distribute more faith and family films.
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Final Deadline: 03/19/2020
We are a team of artists that want nothing more than to support the next generation of filmmakers and screenwriters from around the world. Specifically, those storytellers that passionate about telling stories about our communities in the U.S. and abroad, from inner city Atlanta, LA, New York, Oakland, Detroit, Chicago, and Milwaukee to Africa, Brazil, and the Caribbean, to Wall Street and the streets of London to the NBA.
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Final Deadline: 04/10/2020
New York International Screenplay Awards is an international screenplay competition for screenwriters who aspire to connect with the USA industry workers and explore the US markets. NYISA winners will be connected to the US film industry by InkTip Magazine, iPitch. tv, and Script Mailer. They’ll be registered for free at CreatersVault, and will receive free screenwriting courses from Script Reader Pro, plus, detailed analysis and free consultations by Coverage Ink… And much more! NYISA’s valued jury members are industry professionals such as Producers, Script Doctors, Directors, Actors and Screenwriters.
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Final Deadline: 04/22/2020
The True Story Screenplay Competition recognizes and showcases feature screenplays and television scripts based on, or inspired by, true stories.
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Final Deadline: 05/15/2020
The Holly Weird Film Festival (HWFF), founded by Festival Director Jack Truman, celebrates independent films of all genres that feature a distinct vision, a unique voice, or an avant-garde challenge to what is expected or accepted. HWFF provides a venue for narrative, documentary, experimental and avant-garde film and video. Holly Weird is dedicated to celebrating all types of creativity from the worldwide independent film community.
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Final Deadline: 05/19/2020
The Diversity Film & Script Showcase recognizes and showcases screenplays featuring an Under Represented Lead Character OR Filmmaker (Writer or Co-Writer, or Director, or Producer).
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Final Deadline: Monthly.
WILDsound Monthly Screenplay Festival offers screenwriters at all levels the fantastic opportunity of hearing their scripts read out loud using Top Professional Actors and seen by 10000s of people online, including producers and agents. At least 5 winning readings done every single month. Click the website info and watch the winning videos.
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Final Deadline: Ongoing - submit anytime.
Submit a TV SPEC SCREENPLAY or ORIGINAL TV PILOT (monthly deadlines) and get the chance to see your script read out loud at our Screenplay Festival using professional actors. Shown online on the YouTube channel that garners 1000s of views. CLICK the website link for examples of past winners. A great way to get your words out there and obtain the Agent you're looking for or just get your script seen by more people.
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Final Deadline: Last day of each month
A monthly competition for members of Talentville.com who have uploaded full length, drama or sitcom screenplays at the site. Script are reviewed and rated via a peer review system among the members, with the top three rated scripts becoming a finalist at the end of each month. All finalists receive professional coverage by Scriptapalooza, with the order of finish being judged solely by them.
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Final Deadline: Monthly.
FULL FEEDBACK on the first moments of your screenplay from our committee of Professional Screenwriters, Production Heads and Script Consultants. Are you just starting off your screenplay and want immediate feedback on your first scenes/first moments of your script?
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Final Deadline: Monthly.
To provide a great platform that allows screenwriters to compete against each other for recognition, and prizes.
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