ScreenCraft Drama Competition
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About
Benefits
THE PRIZES
Grand Prize Winner
The overall grand prize winner in either feature or TV category will be welcomed to the Writer Development Program and receive personal introductions and phone calls with one or more top Hollywood literary manager(s), producers, or industry exec. who are looking for talented emerging Film & TV screenwriters.
ScreenCraft's genre specific relationships include companies like Paramount Network, Netflix, HBO Max, AMC, Macro, and over 150 other Hollywood managers, agents, producers, and development executives.
ScreenCraft has a proven track record for getting writers signed with managers, agents, and staffed in writing rooms.
They'll also receive:
- - Personal Introduction to industry professionals.
- - Accepted into the Writer Development Program
- - $1,000 cash award
- - An exclusive invitation to a Finalist+ workshop to position yourself and your writing to the industry
- - Mentorship meetings with Erica Lipez and Malcolm Mays
Feature & TV Winners
- - $500 cash award
- - Accepted into the Writer Development Program
- - An exclusive invitation to a Finalist+ workshop to position yourself and your writing to the industry
Finalists
- - Guaranteed Meeting with an Industry Professional
- - An exclusive invitation to a Finalist+ workshop to position yourself and your writing to the industry
Grand Prize Mentors
Erica Lipez
Writer and Showrunner
Erica Lipez is the Showrunner and Executive Producer of WE WERE THE LUCKY ONES for Hulu. Previously, she was an Executive Producer on JULIA for HBO Max and THE MORNING SHOW for Apple. Additional writing credits include BATES MOTEL and SUITS.
Malcolm Mays
Writer, Director, Actor
MALCOLM MAYS is recognized for his performances in the television series POWER BOOK III: RAISING KANAN (Starz) and SNOWFALL (FX). He was featured in several episodes of THEM (Amazon), and contributed as both a writer and story editor during the second season of the series. Mays' project COVERS presented at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival, where he took on the roles of writer, director, and lead actor. Additionally, he has penned scripts for Warner Bros such as NEW JACK CITY 2 and FERGUSON: THE MICHAEL BROWN STORY, as well as STEAL AWAY for Amazon and the LEGO LEBRON SPORTS MOVIE for Universal. The Hollywood Reporter recognized Mays as "The Next Big Thing,” solidifying his status as a multitalented artist on the rise.
Judges
Kathleen Gardner
Creative Executive
Kathleen Gardner is a development executive for the director Jon Watts, helping to manage a slate of projects across both film and television. Upcoming projects include STAR WARS: SKELETON CREW for Disney+, WOLFS starring Brad Pitt and George Clooney for Apple, and FINAL DESTINATION 6 for New Line Cinema. Kathleen is a native of Virginia and a graduate of USC’s Peter Stark Producing Program and the University of Virginia.
Alex Bloch
Manager
42 Management and Production
Alex is a Literary Manager based in London after coming from New York where she started her career working in production. At 42 Alex began working for partner Cathy King and now represents a diverse list of writers, directors, and creators across Television, Film, and Theatre. She is always looking for new ways for clients to work across various media and works to champion new and fresh voices internationally. Clients include 2022 BAFTA Breakthrough Marley Morrison (Sweetheart), Award-winning Berlin based filmmaker Natalia Sinelnikova (We Might As Well Be Dead), and BAFTA winners Neasa Hardiman (Happy Valley, Hit & Run, The Power, Sea Fever) and Keri Collins (Convenience), Michal Aviram (writer on Fauda and creator of Munich Games), Isla Van Tricht (Writer & EP on Concordia), BAFTA nominated Writer /Performer Yolanda Mercy.
Lameese Hassen
Junior Manager
Marathon Management
Born and raised in the southwest suburbs of Chicago, Lameese came out to Los Angeles five years ago to pursue the entertainment industry. She began as an assistant to Jai Khanna, a former manager at Brillstein Entertainment Partners, under their finance-production company, Oakhurst Entertainment. Lameese is currently a Junior Manager and Executive Assistant to Robert Lazar at Marathon Management.
Scott Schulman
Literary Manager
Schulman Management
Scott Schulman is a Literary Manager who has staffed many writers. One of his clients sold one of their pilots to Netflix in 2022. He also went on to sell 2 more movies that year. He got his start working at Fremantle in business affairs in both scripted and non-scripted television. He then went to A3 Artist Agency for a year as a junior agent in below the line packaging. Scott then pivoted to management and joined More/Medavoy. Scott went off and started Schulman Management in 2018. He began representing actors and then transitioned to signing writers/directors/producers. He currently has a roster of emerging voices and is adamant about breaking the barrier for women by helping get their voices heard. He is currently doing business with 21 Laps, Sugar 23, Phoenix Pictures, Omaha Productions, Harpo, Yoruba Saxon, Megamix, Boatrocker, Mar Vista, CBS and Netflix. Scott served on the Board of Directors for the entertainment organization, HRTS Associates and was also nominated as a Visionary of the Year candidate in 2022 by the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS). Scott also sits on the Los Angeles Hofstra University alumni chapter which mentors emerging industry talent.
Jacob Hayman
Literary Manager
Citizen Skull
An Executive Assistant at Endorse Management Group by 2019, Jacob was invited to join the CSA BIPOC Mentorship Program and HRTS Mentorship Programs in 2020 and 2021, respectively. Having begun his career in casting, he formerly served as a feature Assistant, commercial Coordinator, and unscripted Associate Casting Producer. The three features he has worked on as Casting Director have won Best Drama at Cinequest (Trust), Best Actress at DTLA Film Festival (This Is Your Song), and been nominated for Best Comedy Feature and [2x] Best Actor at the Smodcastle Film Festival (Wine Club). In 2023 he joined up with Citizen Skull as a Literary Manager/Producer, where his LGBTQIA+, genre, and comedy-heavy roster presently includes past winners of the Austin Film Festival, Slamdance, and WGA Awards, among many further placements and nominations. Occasionally, he also does research assignments and script coverage for Academy Award-winner Fred Roos. Most recently, his producing debut, Fudgie Freddie, premiered at Beyond Fest before being nominated for Best Midnight Short and Best Actor at FilmQuest.
Guaranteed Signing Partner
Anders Lykke
Manager
Locus Entertainment
Anders is the visionary behind Locus Entertainment, a boutique literary management company, and the creative force behind The Casino Theatre, an industry-acclaimed showcase. With a rich background as an international attorney specializing in Antitrust and Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A), his career has spanned cities like Copenhagen, Brussels, and London. In 2015, he transitioned to UFuse Entertainment, taking on the role of literary manager and representing high-profile clients such as Josh Schwartz, James Vanderbilt, Matt Nix, Chris Fedak, and Dan Lin (Lin Pictures), among others. In 2017, Anders established Locus Entertainment aimed at nurturing and promoting emerging screenwriters with a global perspective. In collaboration with CoverFly and Meindl Acting Studios, he founded the Casino Theatre in 2019. This innovative platform is dedicated to showcasing the finest unproduced screenplays, brought to life by skilled actors before a select audience of industry professionals.
Writer Success
Announcements
Rules
At the program's request, Coverfly will automatically remove your title page for you if you include one when submitting to this program.
Submissions are accepted via electronic submission only.
Entry fees are as listed on the site and checkout form. No coupon or discount is applicable on a previous entry.
Optional feedback from a professional reader may be requested at the time of entry. Requests for feedback can be done through Coverfly.
Entries may be any length -- the standard 1/2 hour is between 20 - 40 pages, and the standard hour long is between 40 - 70 pages, and the standard feature is between 85 - 120 pages. Any script submission longer than 120 pages will incur a $.50 per page overage fee for each page over 120 if it does not include feedback and $1 per page if the entry does include feedback.
There is no limit to the number of projects you may submit.
Entries must be received on or before the deadline dates by 11:59PM Pacific Time, and submission fee payment must be made in full at time of the submission. All entry fees are non-refundable.
All submitted material must be owned by the writer(s), however the material may be based on other works not owned by the writers.
Material must be submitted by the writer. Material written by writing teams must be submitted by one of the writers, with consent of the other(s).
If a writing team is chosen as a winner, prizes will be given to the person who submits the project. Each team is responsible for dividing or sharing any prizes awarded as they deem fair (whether there is a cash value or not).
Substitutions of either corrected pages or new drafts of the entered material will be allowed for a limited time with a $6 reentry fee through Coverfly. Please proofread your script carefully before submitting.
It is recommended that original material be registered with the WGA or The Library of Congress before submitting to any competition, however we do not require registration.
Contact info may be included on the cover page of the screenplay, however it is not required. ScreenCraft uses Coverfly to manage submissions and automatically removes cover pages before scripts are read by the judges.
ScreenCraft claims no ownership nor option on your work. All ownership and rights to the scripts submitted to this contest remains with the original rights holders.
The decision of the judges will be final and cannot be contested in any manner. There is no score on a scorecard that guarantees advancement to the next level as advancement will be based on all scores in the competition.
In the event a juror, partner organization, or prize partner is no longer able to serve in their specified capacity, ScreenCraft will make its best effort to secure a replacement. ScreenCraft is not responsible for the failed delivery of any prize package by a juror, sponsor, or partner organization.
ScreenCraft reserves the right to change deadline and announcement dates at any time.
ScreenCraft reserves the right to amend these rules at any time.
For a full list of rules and eligibility please visit ScreenCraft.