Big Apple Film Festival Screenplay Competition
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About
2023 Big Apple Film Festival (fall edition) will take place November 3-9 in the heart of NYC, celebrating its 20th year! The event includes theatrical screenings and premieres, Agents and Managers Conference, as well as additional industry networking and mentorship sessions.
In addition to film screenings, the festival includes a Screenplay Competition, Agents and Managers Conference and Agents and Managers Networking Lab, along with year round industry networking and mentorship sessions. The festival also concludes each season with an Awards Presentation and Reception.
AGENTS AND MANAGERS CONFERENCE
BAFF Agents and Managers Conference provides career advice, strategies, guidance and networking opportunities with top agents and managers representing filmmakers and screenwriters. The conferences will assist filmmakers and writers in strategies for acquiring representation, selling/option/licensing material to TV/streaming networks, theatrical market, production companies, studios, distributors and more...
Participating agents and managers include reps from:
● William Morris Endeavor
● The Gersh Agency
● APA
● Kazarian/Measures/Ruskin & Associates
● A3 Artists Agency● Magnolia Entertainment
● Kaplan Stahler Agency
● Anonymous Content
● 3 Arts Entertainmentand more...
YEAR ROUND INDUSTRY NETWORKING AND MENTORING SESSIONS
In an effort to support, and connect filmmakers, screenwriters and series creators to industry professionals throughout the year, BAFF offers a series of year round networking and mentorship sessions.Networking conferences throughout the years have included representatives from agencies, management companies, studios and production companies including William Morris Endeavor, The Gersh Agency, A3 Artists Agency, Anonymous Content, Sony Pictures, 20th Century Fox, Magnolia Pictures, NBCUniversal and many more..
INDUSTRY JURORS
Top screenplay finalists will be reviewed and judged by our esteemed group of industry professionals, Juror throughout the years have included agents and managers from Anonymous Content, APA, and Art/Work Entertainment, as well as producers who have developed projects for Netflix, Warner Bros., Hulu, Paramount, Showtime, NBCUniversal, more...
THIS SEASON'S INDUSTRY JURORS INCLUDE:
● Trent Anderson (Literary Manager, Anonymous Content)
● Danny Alexander (Agent, APA)
●Darly Freimark (Producer, Independent Spirit Award nominee, produced projects for New Line Cinema, Warner Bros., Hulu, Netflix, NBC's Peacock Network and more)
●Beverly Neufeld (writer and former development executive of Juntobox films, co-chaired by Academy Award winner Forrest Whitaker, adjunct professor at USC School of Cinematic Arts)
● Spencer Robinson (Literary Manager, Art/Work Entertainment)
● Caytha Jentis (Writer, Director, Producer, films released by Warner Bros, ABC, available on Amazon, Apple TV, Roku, Vudu, and more)
●Hollie Overton (Series Writer, CBS All Access, Sony Pictures Television, HBOmax, Hulu)- As well as additional award winning and award nominated BAFF alumni...
TESTIMONIALS
"Since being a finalist with Big Apple, I was signed by A3 (Abrams) and have taken meetings with Starz, Lionsgate, and Anonymous Content (among others). I was also recently a Semi-Finalist for the Sundance Episodic Lab!" -Maia Henkin
"My feature script The Tenant recently became a finalist in the Big Apple Film Festival. This accolade moved my script onto Coverfly's Red List. This helped in querying representation and getting signed by a literary manager."
-Janet J. Lawler
"I wanted to thank you, I have signed with an agent. I met her because of the Big Apple Film Festival" - Andrea Careri (BAFF screenplay winner, Agents and Managers Conference participant).
"Two of the agents I’ve practiced-pitched to have requested my script and one has followed up with a phone call to discuss representation. Your service is career-changing" - Nate Bynum (screenwriter)
PREVIOUS SCREENPLAY COMPETITION WINNERS AND FINALISTS INCLUDE:
●Shia LaBeouf (SAG Award, People's Choice Award and Independent Spirit Award nominee),
● Caytha Jentis (written, directed, produced projects for HBO, Amazon)
● Ron Friedman (Emmy nominee and WGA Award winner)
● Jyllian Gunther (Emmy Award winner, producer for NBC, ABC, A&E)
● Kent Moran (feature films have been released by Warner Brothers, Netflix, Showtime, Paramount+, Starz, Apple, Hulu, Amazon, Hallmark, Lifetime, LMN, Regal Cinemas)
● Rosemary Griggs (2x Quarter Finalist, award winning author, published by Fence Publishing)
● Larry Collins (Emmy Award Winner, NBCUniversal/Peacock Network)
● Henry Sarwer-Foner (Directors Guild of Canada Award nominee)
●Daniel Talbott (writer ABC's "The Conners", "The Mist" produced by The Weinstein Company and Spike TV)
●Michael Vaynberg (writer, director Cannes Film Festival selection 9.8 m/s²)
● Ken Krauss (writer of Tom, Dick, & Harriet for the Hallmark Channel)
● Kevin Emerson (author of over twenty novels published by HarperCollins, Random House, Scholastic)
●Linda Shayne (writer, director Undercover Kid released by WARNER BROTHERS, HBO Family, Little Ghost distributed by PARAMOUNT video airing on HBO)
● Chris Phillips (Finalist - Sundance Institute Development Track, Award for Overall Excellence in Playwriting New York International Fringe Festival)
● Maia Henkin (Second Round Austin Film Festival Screenplay Competition, repped by Abrams Artists Agency)and many more...
AGENTS AND MANAGERS NETWORKING LAB
In addition to our screenplay competition, submitters are also welcome to enter their projects for consideration into our Agents and Managers Networking Lab. Selected projects will be invited to a series of direct access meetings with multiple agents and managers, designed to provide writers the opportunity to share information on their projects and receive valuable feedback.
Lab meetings will take place virtually allowing all selected writers to participate remotely.
Participating agents and managers in previous seasons have included representatives from: The Gersh Agency, Culture Creative, APA, Anonymous Content, Magnolia Entertainment and more...(This season's participating agents and managers will be announced in early fall 2023)
NOTE: Agents and Managers Networking Lab is separate from the Big Apple Film Festival Screenplay Competition.
Benefits
Our network of professionals from previous years have included representatives from: HBO, NBCUniversal, Academy Award winning Killer Films, William Morris Endeavor Agency, The Gersh Agency, APA Agency, Magnolia Pictures, Film Rise(distributor of numerous Oscar Award winning and Emmy Award winning films), Emmy Award winning Gigantic Productions, Cinepointe Advisors(legal counsel on numerous Oscar nominated films), Academy Award nominated and Emmy Award winning filmmakers, Academy Award and Emmy Award winning screenwriters, Fimmakers with projects released through Sony, Disney, Lions Gate, HBO, Showtime, Netflix, Amazon Studios, Hulu, and theatrically, as well as staff writers for CBS, ABC, Lifetime, and more...
These meetings are designed to provide winning screenwriters with direct access and live interaction with industry professionals to provide strategies, guidance and mentorship to emerging screenwriters.
Conferences take place virtually allowing participants to join remotely.
2. Winning screenplays will be promoted to Big Apple Film Festival's list of alumni filmmakers, many of which include filmmakers who have had film released theatrically, as well as on numerous major distribution platforms, including Netflix, Hulu, Amazon, HBO, iTunes, NBCUniveral and more...
3. Winners will receive a complimentary all access badge to Big Apple Film Festival events, including film screenings, Agents and Managers Conference, additional industry conferences and awards reception.
4. Winners will receive a complimentary InkTip listing, which will provide access to InkTip's entire network of producers, filmmakers, agents and managers. Producers have made over 400 films discovered thru InkTip.
5. Agents and Managers Networking Lab selections will be invited to attend a series of small group conferences with agents and managers. Selected writers will be given the opportunity to share information on their current projects and receive feedback.
Writer Success
Announcements
Rules
1. Big Apple Film Festival Screenplay Competition accepts feature length screenplays, series/episodic pilot scripts and short scripts. Feature length scripts must be a minimum of 60 pages and no longer than 150 pages. Series/episodic and short scripts must under 60 pages.
2. Submitted screenplays can not have been optioned, purchased, or otherwise produced at the time of submission.
3. Writers may submit as many screenplays as they’d like to the competition, however each script requires a separate application and payment.
4.All entries must be submitted in English.
5. Submissions must include the title, author(s) and any relevant registration or copyright information.
6. Screenplays must be submitted in PDF or MS WORD.
7. All screenplays are considered complete once they are received by the Big Apple Film Festival. No revisions or updated copies will be accepted.
8. Submission fees are non-refundable.
9. Please be sure to read all rules and regulations prior to submitting your project.
10. SUBMITTERS MUST HOLD ALL NECESSARY RIGHTS AND CLEARANCES TO ALL MATERIAL SUBMITTED TO BIG APPLE FILM FESTIVAL, LLC
