Creative Screenwriting Unique Voices Screenplay Competition

Objective

Deadline/Entry Fees

Notification: Quarter-Finalists: February 1, 2024; Semi-Finalists: February 22, 2024; Top 10 Finalists: March 14, 2024; Grand Prize: April 11, 2024.

Rules

• All writers from all countries are welcome to enter the competition; however, all scripts must be submitted in English, and entry fees must be paid in U.S. dollars.
• Scripts must be the original work of the author(s) and may not be encumbered by any third party.
• Scripts that have been sold, produced for a profit, or are currently under option are not eligible.
• Novels, short stories, stage plays, treatments, synopses, reality show concepts, and/or spec scripts for existing TV series are not eligible. Your script must be an original screenplay or teleplay.
• Screenplays adapted from your own self-published books, plays, or other source material are eligible if you have retained all rights to your work.
• Adaptations from other works are permissible provided you have the writer’s written permission to adapt the work.
• Adaptations of works in the public domain are permissible.
• Scripts are accepted via the site or other 3rd party platforms in PDF form only. No printed materials are accepted.
• Collaborative work is eligible; the writers are responsible for the distribution of the competition prize(s).
• The writer understands that a script analysis can take up to 90-days turn-around time and may not be received before the end of the contest.
• Promotions must be used at the time of submission and will not be added to previous submissions.
• Multiple entries are permissible.
• Once a script has been entered into the competition, we will only accept substitutions of new drafts or corrected pages if you contact us within 24 hours. After that, under no circumstances will we accept changes. If you wish to submit a revised draft of your script, you must enter it as a new submission and pay the appropriate entry fee.
• Writers under the age of 18 years old must have parent or legal guardian’s permission to participate.
• Competition applicants must accept without reservation the decisions rendered by the judges.
• Writer understands that it is his/her sole responsibility to register Material with the U.S. Copyright Office and/or with the Writer’s Guild of America or the appropriate agency in his/her country.
• Payments to be accepted via Paypal only. MOst major credit cards accepted.
• By entering this competition, and in the event you are declared a finalist, you understand and accept that Creative Screenwriting will be free to use your name and likeness for advertising or promotional purposes without additional consideration.
• Contestants are under no obligation to participate therein.
• Contestants may submit their screenplay to any other person, competition, producer, agent, publisher, and/or organization and will retain all rights to their screenplay.
• No agreement for compensation, other than the prizes, has been implied.
• Prizes may be distributed in the rate of 1 package per person based on the highest placement and not per winning screenplay, depending on the request of the sponsor.
• The cash prizes will be distributed within 90 days of TOP 3 Notification.
• Decisions of the Judges are final and may not be disputed. The Judges will adhere to our competition guidelines; however, the competition and its administrators may not be held responsible for any errors or omissions on the part of the Judges.
• Length requirements are as follows: 1). Full-Length Features: 80-130 pages. 2). TV Pilots: Up to 70 pages.
• If you order feedback you may be charged separately $2 for each page over 130 pages, or the reader may only read the first 130 pages.
• Please do not enclose synopses, casting suggestions, letters, resumes or photos with your submission. They will not be forwarded to the Judges.
• You understand that your logline and screenplay will be reviewed by our staff and/or our panel of Industry Judges for evaluation. You also understand that any one of the staff or judges may have been or may be exploring ideas similar to yours, and you hereby waive any claim that Creative Screenwriting Magazine or Creative Screenwriter LLC, its staff or judges may have misappropriated any ideas or portions of your submission logline or screenplay.
• The writer understands and accepts without reservation that he/she is an independent contractor and that Competition Administrators are not responsible for withholding any taxes or payments to any government agency, at any level, be it state, local or federal.
• Except where prohibited by law, participation in the contest constitutes each entrant’s consent to Creative Screenwriting and its agents’ and contest sponsor’s use of entrants’ names, likenesses, photographs, and/or personal information for promotional purposes in any media, worldwide, without further payment or consideration. All uses of a entrants’ information are in accordance with our Privacy Policy.
• BY ENTERING THE CONTEST YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT YOU HAVE READ AND AGREE TO THESE CONDITIONS. You agree to release and hold harmless Creative Screenwriting and Creative Screenwriter LLC. its subsidiary, parent and affiliated companies, Prize contributors, judges, screenplay readers, Sponsors, and any other organizations responsible for administering, advertising or promoting the Contest, and every one of their respective members, directors, employees, agents and representatives (collectively, the “Released Parties”) past and present from and against any and all claims, expenses, and liability, including but not limited to damages and negligence to property and persons, including but not limited to invasion of privacy, defamation, slander, libel, violation of right of publicity, copyright, infringement of trademark or other intellectual property rights relating to a participant’s Entry, participation in the Contest and/or acceptance or use or misuse of Prize; provided however, that such release will not apply to any commercial exploitation of the script by a Released Party in violation of your rights under applicable copyright law; and (c) indemnify, defend and hold harmless the Creative Screenwriting and its Sponsor, agents and employees from and against any and all claims, expenses, and liabilities (including reasonable attorneys fees) relating to an entrant’s participation in the Contest and/or entrant’s use or misuse of Prize. Employees of Creative Screenwriting and their immediate families are ineligible to participate in this contest. Any such submission will be immediately disqualified. ENTRY TO THIS CONTEST IS VOID WHERE PROHIBITED or restricted by any Federal, State or Local law. Voided entries will be refunded. Recipients’ eligibility will be verified before cash is awarded and the winner may be required to sign an affidavit of eligibility. By entering the contest, you authorize us to use any trusted third-party online and cloud-based services and databases for hosting, managing and/or transmitting your submission file(s).
• To enter the Creative Screenwriting Screenplay Contest you must agree to the Rules.

Awards

Grand Prize
$2,500

The Grand Prize Winner will be selected from the Genre Winners and receive an additional $2,500 Cash, a 60 Minute Pitch Consultation with Jess Hinds ($400 value), a 60 Minute Writing Consultation with the Editor of Creative Screenwriting, and a Featured Article on Creative Screenwriting. The winning script will be shared and promoted to industry partners looking to produce unique work.

Genre Winners
$500

Ten outstanding writers will be selected, one from each of the ten genre categories, to receive $500 Cash and "Meditative Writing" by Jess Hinds ($315 value). Winning scripts will be shared and promoted to industry partners looking to produce unique work. Genre Winners will go on to be considered for the Grand Prize.