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A list of contests offered as part of a workshop or script reading program. Make your screenplay better!
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Final Deadline: 10/30/2017
Submissions are now open for the Athena IRIS Screenwriting Lab. The lab is designed for female writers who have not yet had a feature-length fictional script produced. Screenplays must include one or more strong female characters in leadership roles at the center of the story and must be feature-length narratives.
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Final Deadline: 11/01/2017
The Middlebury Script Lab is a new, free opportunity for emerging screenwriters (1st or second script). This one-week residential lab will bring six emerging writers to the idyllic Bread Loaf campus in Ripton, Vermont (11-17 January, 2018). The Lab offers free room and board, plus mentoring support and partial travel reimbursement. It is financed through the Fund for Innovation at Middlebury College.
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Final Deadline: 11/06/2017
The CineStory Foundation has always believed in helping writers find their voice. We’re entering a world in which the ways to tell stories are limitless. Those stories always begin with a blank page. Our goal with the TV/Digital Series Retreat is to assist writers, whether they long for the collaborative nature of Television or they dream of going out on their own to create their own web series.
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Final Deadline: 11/06/2017
The Universal Writers Program identifies experienced and up-and-coming screenwriters with unique points of view that build upon the Studio’s commitment to telling stories and creating films that reflect the vast diversity of our audiences. The Program inclusively develops storytellers with the intent to incorporate multicultural and global perspectives in screenwriting.
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Final Deadline: 11/13/2017
Through personalized feedback from experienced industry professionals and other writers in the program, Screenwriting Fellows will gain the tools to revise and refine their scripts for production. The Screenwriting Lab also helps to further the careers of its Fellows by introducing them to film industry veterans who can offer guidance on both the craft and business of screenwriting.
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Final Deadline: 01/04/2018
We are looking for innovative and compelling storytelling, for characters that surprise and challenge you, for words that pop off the page, and for narratives that twist and turn like a country back road. This year we’re accepting both feature scripts and pilot scripts; you’re more than welcome to submit in both categories.
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Final Deadline: 01/17/2018
The Sundance Institute is interested in supporting original, compelling, human stories that reflect the independent vision of the writer and/or writer/director.
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Final Deadline: 01/31/2018
Nickelodeon's Writing Program offers aspiring television writers from around the globe, with diverse backgrounds and experiences, the opportunity to hone their skills while writing for our live action and animated shows. Participants will have hands-on interaction with executives writing spec scripts and pitching story ideas. The Program, developed to broaden Nickelodeon’s outreach efforts, provides a salaried position for up to one year (for Domestic writers) and up to six months (for International writers).
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Final Deadline: 02/28/2018
It's been hailed by L.A. Weekly as the festival with "THE WORLD'S SEXIEST DARKEST CRIME SHORT FILMS." Saturday, May 27th, Dave and Buster's hosts THE L.A. NEO NOIR, NOVEL, FILM, AND SCRIPT FEST V (LANNEFF). This festival is brought to you by Carey Westbrook and Associates, whose students include the Academy Award nominated producers of Blue Valentine, A Place Beyond The Pines, Men of Honor, and Soul Food.
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Final Deadline: 03/01/2018
Recognition for bloody good scripts and writers.
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Final Deadline: 05/08/2018
To recognize excellence in screenwriting of shorts and features in a wide variety of genres.
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Final Deadline: Contact contest for deadline info.
Praxis Centre for Screenwriters is a non-profit organization devoted to the professional development of Canadian screenwriters and filmmakers. Located in Vancouver, Canada, we serve to support and stimulate the production of innovative Canadian feature films though screenplay and screenwriter development. We run the compeition twice a year, with deadlines of June 30th and Dec.
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Final Deadline: 06/02/2017 (expired)
To seek out and employ culturally and ethnically diverse new writers. The annual submission period for the Writing Program opens during the month of May. Specific dates vary year to year.
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Final Deadline: 05/31/2017 (expired)
For over 30 years, the Warner Bros. Television Writers’ Workshop has been the premier writing program for new writers looking to start and further their career in the world of television. The list of graduates who have gone on to do great things is long: Terrance Winter (Boardwalk Empire), Marc Cherry (Desperate Housewives), Greg Garcia (My Name Is Earl) and Felicia Henderson (Soul Food) to name a few.
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Final Deadline: 04/15/2017 (expired)
CineStory is a national non-profit dedicated to nurturing emerging screenwriters through mentorship programs. Winners of our competition have gone on to pen films such as IRON MAN, CAKE, THE CHILDREN OF MEN, BALLAST, KING OF CALIFORNIA and 11:14. One of the main goals of the CineStory Feature Retreat is to select up-and-coming screenwriters for our four-day intensive program held in the Fall.
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Final Deadline: 07/31/2017 (expired)
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: Contact contest for deadline info.
The TSA is a professionally oriented organization, striving to develop more avenues to help our members and community prepare for the real world of the entertainment business.
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Final Deadline: Contact contest for deadline info.
Sponsored by the the Djerassi Resident Artists Program , the Djerassi Residency Award/SFFS Screenwriting Fellowship will provide a one-month residency at the Djerassi Resident Artists Program for an emerging or established screenwriter in 2012. Located in a spectacular setting in the Santa Cruz Mountains, forty miles south of San Francisco, the Djerassi Resident Artists Program provides artists with uninterrupted time for work, reflection and collegial interaction in a professionally supportive and inspirational environment.
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Final Deadline: Contact contest for deadline info.
To foster excellence in screenwriting that features gay characters, history, or themes important to the gay community, and relevant to our world. Up to four full length finalists and up to six shorts finalists will be named by September 1 annually, and those scripts will be performed as enhanced staged readings at the Hoover-Leppen Theater of the Center on Halsted in Chicago.
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Final Deadline: 04/30/2016 (expired)
Working from this A-list logline, you’re challenged to create up to the first 15 pages of an original script based on the given concept. Make it your own - drama, action, comedy... anywhere your imagination takes you. Break out your scriptwriting software and get to work, because the Industry Insider Screenwriting Contest gives you the unique opportunity to turn one of these three loglines into a solid spec screenplay that could be your ticket to Hollywood success.
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Final Deadline: Contact contest for deadline info.
The Astana International Action Film Festival Screenplay and Short Film Competition is a holiday of fun-filled movies. Every summer famous actors, director and producers making dynamic action films gather in the capital city of Kazakhstan.
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Final Deadline: Contact contest for deadline info.
The festival, presented in a university setting and around the beautiful Shoals area, provides attendees with an exceptional lineup of quality workshops, panels, screenings, networking opportunities and informal interaction among filmmakers and all guests. Our priority is to discover emerging talent and promote their work by reaching, educating, inspiring, and entertaining audiences with the best in cinematic art.
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Final Deadline: Contact contest for deadline info.
This independent film lab will provide a five-day long intensive in an idyllic setting in Chatham, New York, to refine and perfect your screenplay. Room and board will be included. The influence of a new generation of filmmaking, the web, the change in platform viewing, the difficulty in finding finance and the need for succinct and powerful storytellers is forcing the industry to take notice of the short film.
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Final Deadline: Contact contest for deadline info.
From page to production, from production to profession, the Brownfish Short Film Festival NYC (BSFFNYC) is dedicated to helping filmmakers get their films seen, distributed and grow their career paths by showcasing short films under 20 minutes competing for cash awards in the categories: Comedy, Drama, Documentary and Animation. The BSFFNYC presents a Short Screenplay Competition where short screenplays 15 pages and under have staged reading and compete for cash awards in the categories of Comedy and Drama.
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Final Deadline: 06/30/2016 (expired)
Some of today’s most exciting storytelling happens on the small screen. From dramas like Empire, Mr. Robot and The Leftovers to comedies like Black-ish and Transparent, television has evolved to become the writer’s realm, where the most talented scribes rule season after season. Sound like a dream job? Then get ready for your chance to break in to the dynamic world of writing for TV! The Industry Insider Television Writing Contest is a one-of-a-kind competition that offers every entrant the unique chance to learn about the Industry, while also creating and writing a television pilot script.
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Final Deadline: 08/15/2016 (expired)
Media images represents the most recognizable commodity in the world. The implied messages of media form the world views of millions. In the United States and globally, African, Asians, Blacks, Hispanics and Latinos are severely underrepresented in mass media, and are most often shown in marginal roles when featured. As independent content creators, we can the talents and creativity to change the narrative of the diaspora stories.
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Final Deadline: Contact contest for deadline info.
The NHMC Television Writers Program focuses on the writing of an original TV pilot or a spec episode of a series currently on TV, conducted in an environment that simulates a TV Writers Room. The five-week, total immersion workshop is guided by former NBC V.P. of Script Development, Geoff Harris and is conducted in Studio City, California. 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: 03/30/2017 (expired)
The Writers Lab, produced by IRIS and New York Women in Film & Television and funded by Meryl Streep, is open for submissions of screenplays by women over the age of 40 ABOUT THE LAB The Writers Lab brings 12 women screenwriters over the age of 40 with promising scripts together with outstanding professional female filmmakers for an intensive four-day screenwriting retreat of one-on-one meetings, panel discussions and other activities designed to inspire the artists; to prompt rigorous creative exploration; and, through revision, to cultivate first-rate cinematic stories.
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Final Deadline: 12/15/2016 (expired)
ScriptFest and the Great American PitchFest were created by writers, for writers – just like you. The event started in Canada with the first Great Canadian PitchFest in 2003. Thirteen years later, the event has expanded to Los Angeles, California and London, England. The event has helped thousands of writers from around the globe to connect with industry decision makers.
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Final Deadline: 01/23/2017 (expired)
The Writers Assistant Network is teaming up with Roadmap Writers for the second annual WAN Writers' Workshop to reward ten amazing up-and-coming writers to workshop their material with top showrunners and other well-established creatives, then get read and very possibly REPPED by of agents and managers at dozens of major companies.
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Final Deadline: 03/04/2017 (expired)
The HBO Access Writing Fellowship provides mentorship for up to eight diverse, emerging storytellers. Following a one-week intensive of Master Classes, participants are immersed in eight months of mentoring by HBO Creative Executives, as each participant develops a script suitable for HBO or Cinemax.
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Final Deadline: 05/31/2017 (expired)
An Italian Don. A Young Wizard. A High School Vampire Slayer. An Underdog Boxer. A Debonair MI-6 Agent. A Competitive Bridesmaid. You know these classic characters just by their brief descriptions. Iconic movies and TV series come from iconic characters that we never forget. Whether they haunt us, inspire us, excite us or help us see things in a different light, a stand out script needs a compelling protagonist.
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Final Deadline: 07/16/2017 (expired)
This four-day intensive will set the groundwork for the Spring Writers' Retreat, ongoing mentoring and coaching, and, at the end of the process, participation in a major film market, high-level pitch meetings, being prepared to go into production independently and / or starting a meaningful crowd-funding campaign. You will learn skills and be exposed to opportunities to get your work made and seen.
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Final Deadline: 10/22/2017 (expired)
21st Century Fox Inclusion is excited to announce the launch of the 2018 Fox Writers Lab (“FWL”). Applications are open September 25th, and will close on October 22nd or once Fox has received 750 complete applications (whichever comes first). The Fox Writers Lab is a highly seleFor writers labctive initiative designed to nurture experienced writers who have diverse voices, backgrounds, and life experiences.
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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: Monthly. Please visit website.
Each month, three $5000 full scholarships to the Writers Bootcamp Online Professional Membership (OPM) are awarded, including an opportunity to compete for an annual writing/development deal with Writers Boot Camp Productions and/or a studio, network or independent producer. The Writers Boot Camp Fellowship is unlike any other. Aside from having three winners a month, Creative Categories change each month, reflecting viable genres and project parameters for both features and original TV series.
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