Scriptapalooza is the perfect screenwriting prize this quarantine

This quarantine has been a blessing in disguise for up and coming screenwriters. Now you can’t blame your lack of time on writing. If you’ve been dancing a script idea around in your head, but lacked the time to get the words on paper, it’s time to put pen to paper and get to work.

Of course, you need a platform to share your amazing piece once it’s finished. How about one of the top screenwriting competitions in the market today? Scriptapalooza gets your script in the faces of the right people, while also giving you the tools to improve as a writer. 

The international screenwriting competition is still going strong after 20 plus years of competition, and is finishing up its application period for the 2020 competition. There is no time to waste: Scriptapalooza’s deadline is April 13th, so here’s a brief list of why this is the competition for you. 

Prizes galore to help you build your screenwriting career

If you make it to be one of the 30 finalists, you’ll get a free copy of the Movie Magic Screenwriter and Dramatica Writer’s Dreamkit from Writer Brothers. In addition, you get a 6 month membership for the International Screenwriters’ Association Connect program. 

Of course, if you’re a semifinalist, you’ll also get access to Scriptapalooza’s producer network for a full year. Making it to the finals, you can expect a variety of prizes to show up on your doorstep. On top of all this, first place also gets $10,000. 

But even if you don’t make it that far, the winner for each genre (Action/Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Family, Science Fiction, Thriller/Horror, and Historical) also gets $500 on top of any other prizes they win. You got a lot of opportunities to win big. 

Short scripts get something good too

Those who prefer the short form style of writing won’t get cut off either. Top three short film writers will receive access to the producer network, top two get registration for intellectual property rights for their work, and first place gets a $2000. Not too shabby for short film writers.

Keep in mind, the top 15 quarter finalists also get recognition and promotion of their work through Scriptapalooza as well. So it doesn’t hurt to try and get yourself some attention, whether you’re writing a full length feature or short film. 

Easy to enter

If you’re ready to enter the competition that discovered the writers of movies like Legends of Oz: Dorothy’s Return, Queen Sized, and Enchanted Christmas, then you have to act quickly. The final deadline for Scriptapalooza is April 13th. 

It’s $65 or $45 for your feature or short film script respectively. Enter online now through Scriptapalooza’s website, so you can score your chance at fame, fortune, and the Hollywood dream.

We were delighted to sit down and chat the contest with the team at Scriptapalooza themselves.

Write Now, Write Here 

What’s the mission of Scriptapalooza? Our mission every day is get your script into the hands of people that can either buy it, option it or make the movie. That being said, our biggest priority is to always have the best producers reading all the screenplays, because that’s the most important thing. That’s what a screenplay competition should be doing. We have over 125 producers involved with reading all the entries that are entered. The biggest challenge is having other less scrupulous competitions mimic your website, or copy your ideas in promoting writers. I just roll my eyes and keep focused on our goal, which is to open doors for writers, no matter where they live. Being a champion of writers is what ultimately sets us apart from the rest. 

What’s one unique piece of advice you’d give to writers who enter your contest? Don’t rush it. Make sure you submit the best script you can. Don’t worry, we’ll be here next year. 

What’s the best thing writers can do if they place in, but don’t win the contest? Writers should always be writing and have other material ready. Also, they should market themselves, as in contacting local papers and mentioning that they won Scriptapalooza. Just getting the word out there is important. 

When a writer wins, what can they expect from you and your contest? And what can writers do to be best prepared for capitalizing on a win? If the writer gets to be a Semifinalist or higher, they will be promoted for an entire year by Scriptaplaooza. What that means is we will pitch/call producers on their behalf about their script. No other competition in the world does that. 

Are there any special elements of the script your readers are looking for that you can share? Well we don’t believe in readers because readers can’t do anything with your script. All the reading at Scriptapalooza is done by producers, managers and agents. We go right to the source, that being a producer, manager or agent, these are the people that can set-up a meeting, option your script, take it to the studio or outright buy it. 

Why is your contest valuable to writers? When we started in 1998, there were a few competitions that mattered and about 50 that didn’t. Now, they are still a few that matter and hundreds that don’t. I feel it’s difficult for new writers to navigate through these competitions and pick the right ones to submit to. Writers are constantly inundated with false and misleading ads, quotes and websites that give the illusion that these new competitions have connections to the industry. Well, most don’t. And after doing this for 22 years, we can say that. The value in submitting to Scriptapalooza, is that you have 22 years of experience, connections and relationships that we have built in order to get you through the door. 

Do you think entering contests is a good path for all aspiring writers? Absolutely. All you have to do is visit our website and click on HEADLINES, you will see 22 years of writers getting jobs, meetings, agents, their script optioned or even sold. 

FINAL DEADLINE is April 13 www.scriptapalooza.com