Vail Film Festival
Vail Film Festival Screenplay Competition
2021
Reads in Coverfly
Active Since 2004
THE VAIL SCREENPLAY COMPETITION IS A VEHICLE FOR ASPIRING SCREENWRITERS TO HAVE THEIR SCRIPT READ BY ESTABLISHED PRODUCERS, MANAGERS, AND AGENTS.
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About

The 18th annual Vail Film Festival Screenplay Competition is a vehicle for aspiring screenwriters to get their script read by established film producers, managers, and agents who are actively working at the top level of the film industry. The winning screenplays will be recommended to top-tier Vail Film Festival industry contacts. Additionally, the winning screenplay will be read byOscar nominated producer Shaun Redick and Yvette Yates of Impossible Dream Entertainment, and the winning Television Pilot will be read by Miramax Television’s Amanda Klein.

The Vail Film Festival Screenplay Competition welcomes Feature screenplays, Short screenplays, and Television screenplays.

Benefits

FEATURE SCREENPLAY PRIZES

1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners will be included in a national press release and be listed on the Vail Film Festival website. The winning feature screenwriter will have their script recommended to key decision-makers at leading entertainment companies and read byOscar nominated producer Shaun Redick and Yvette Yates of Impossible Dream Entertainment

SHORT SCREENPLAY PRIZES

1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners will be included in a national press release and be listed on the Vail Film Festival website. The winning short screenwriter will have their script recommended to key decision-makers at leading entertainment companies.

TELEVISION SCREENPLAY PRIZES

1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners will be included in a national press release and be listed on the Vail Film Festival website. The winning television screenwriter will have their script recommended to key decision-makers at leading entertainment companies and will be read by Miramax Television’s Amanda Klein.

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2024 2nd Places on Coverfly

Top 1%
TV Script  · Sci-fi  · 60 Pages
In a near-future world where thoughts shape reality, a compassionate scientist and a group of extraordinary empaths must fight a covert, militarized faction bent on controlling humanity's consciousness. Think INCEPTION meets BLADE RUNNER 2049.
Denver, CO
Steve Brown, a graduate of the UCLA Professional Program in Screenwriting, holds dual degrees in Journalism and English from the University of Arizona. In 2023, he transitioned from corporate copywriting (for popular brands such as Nintendo and Kaplan Test Prep) to pursue his passion for film and TV. Today, he dedicates his time entirely to screenwr...
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Top 1%
Feature  · Action  · 103 Pages
A father will stop at nothing to save his dying daughter after a drug cartel hijacks her transplant heart.
Growing up under the wing of a CIA chemist, Will inherited a knack for mixing explosive ideas with unexpected twists — perfect fuel for his high-octane action screenplays. A detour into the corporate jungle saw him steering 20,000 souls in 95 offices across 27 countries, soaking up cultures and chaos that now bleed into his work.
Top 1%
Short  · Horror  · 15 Pages
A teenage boy is hired to house sit for a wealthy couple whose young daughter has just died. The grieving parents have only one request for the night: Stay out of Maya's room.
Denver, Colorado
Andrew is a screenwriter who specializes in offbeat horror, dark comedy, and genre scripts with a strong emotional core. Most recently, he was a 2024 WeScreenplay Short Script Lab Fellow and a winner of the 2024 Vail Film Festival Screenplay Competition. Andrew has a degree in Creative Writing from Middlebury College and worked for many years as a j...
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Announcements

Jul 23rd
Semifinalists
Jul 31st
Winners
Jul 31st
Finalists

Rules

The Vail Film Festival Screenplay Competition welcomes unproduced Feature screenplays between 60 and 140 pages in length, unproduced Short screenplays between 3 and 59 pages in length, and unproduced Television screenplays between 20 and 70 pages in length.

MISSION & OBJECTIVE
The Vail Film Festival is produced by the Colorado Film Institute, a non-profit arts organization dedicated to fostering independent cinema. The Vail Film Festival strives to encourage artistic innovation, promote new and creative filmmaking, and foster discourse about independent film and other forms of media which challenge and entertain.

ABOUT THE VAIL FILM FESTIVAL SCREENPLAY COMPETITION
The Colorado Film Institute launched the Vail Film Festival Screenplay Competition in order to find and foster the next generation of the film world’s most innovative and creative screenwriters. With the realization that every great film needs a great story, the festival is dedicated to supporting talented screenwriters by utilizing the resources of the Vail Film Festival to foster the winning screenwriters through networking opportunities, and film industry access.

GENERAL RULES
1. You may enter as many scripts as you like, but each must be accompanied by a separate entry and the required entry fee.
2. Entries must be written in English. The screenplay(s) must be original and unproduced at the time of submission. Optioned scripts are acceptable for entry.
3. All scripts must conform to standard screenplay format.
4. Feature Scripts must be between 60-140 pages in length. Short scripts must be between 3-59 pages in length. Television scripts must be between 20-70 pages in length. All pages other than the first page should be numbered.
5. Judging is solely on the screenplay. Do not include the following information or materials as they will be disregarded: logline, synopsis, treatment, or any additional materials not specifically requested.
6. Script collaborations are allowed and the work must be the sole and exclusive property of the collaborators.
7. Once a screenplay has been submitted, substitutions of new drafts will not be accepted under any circumstances.
8. Writer(s) retain ALL rights for their entry(ies) when entering our competition.
9. Adaptations are acceptable for entry in our competition only if you have all the appropriate and/or required approvals/waivers/permissions from any and all right holders. If you are unsure, please consult an entertainment attorney for your own protection.

JUDGING & NOTIFICATION
1. Judging will be anonymous. Upon receipt, your screenplay(s) will be assigned corresponding numbers, and your screenplay(s) will be identifiable to the judges by number only.
2. Judges' decisions are final. Prizes are non-transferable.
3. Individuals active in the film and screenwriting community will conduct preliminary judging. A panel of industry experts and screenwriting professionals will conduct the final round of judging. Semifinalists and Finalists will be announced. Three Winners will be selected to receive prizes.
4. Quarterfinalists will be posted on the Vail Film Festival website on June 4th, 2021. Semifinalists will be posted on the Vail Film Festival website on June 18th , 2021. Winners will be posted on June 25, 2021. An announcement will also be sent out in the Vail Film Festival newsletter. Winners will be included in a national press release.