SLAMDANCE 2009 FEATURE SCREENPLAY COMPETITION!

SUBMISSIONS ARE NOW CLOSED

Tentative 2009 Screenplay Competition Results Announcement Schedule: Semifinalists announced at the beginning of August, Quarterfinalists announced at the end of August, Finalists announced mid-September.  All finalists will be posted on www.slamdance.com.

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SLAMDANCE FEATURE SCREENPLAY WINNER: GRAND PRIZE $5000!

UPLOAD FILMS BEST LOW BUDGET FEATURE AWARD: WINNER RECEIVES  POTENTIAL OPTION DEAL WITH UPLOAD FILMS!

 SCRIPT ACCESSIBLE AWARD - FOR BEST SCREENPLAY INVOLVING CHARACTERS WITH DISABILITIES AND/OR WRITTEN BY A PERSON WITH DISABILITIES: WINNER RECEIVES $1,000!

CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR COMPETITION SPONSORS

MISSION:

The Slamdance Screenplay Competition is dedicated to discovering and supporting emerging writing talent. We welcome screenplays in every genre, any budget, on any topic, from anywhere in the world.  Our mission is to nurture and bring attention to talented screenwriters and introduce them to the entertainment industry. A unique feature of the competition is providing constructive feedback for every entrant. We’ve established a strong track record through our competition successes and continue to discover outstanding new work.

We look forward to your screenplay!

INDUSTRY & FINALIST FEEDBACK:

“Only two months ago, I was writing blindly, so to speak. I was doing what I loved to do, but doing it primarily for myself with no real hope that anything I happened to be working on would ever really be enjoyed by anyone but myself, and with no actual idea if what I was writing was any good at all.  Then I won Slamdance, and in an instant, I attained not only a belief in myself, but also a sudden legitimacy in the profession I want to pursue.  In no time, I was making a deal with Upload Films for an option agreement and possible production, and it seems reasonable that literary representation is in the cards.  Winning this contest is, in so many words, the beginning of my career."
Neil McGowan - Writer of Slamdance Screenplay Competition winner NUMBERED

“Without the help of Slamdance and Upload Films I would not have been able to see my hopes come to fruition,"
Nancy Kissam - Writer and director of 2006 Screenplay Competition Winner and 2009 Slamdance Film Festival Special Screening DROOL

"Some of the best material comes from Slamdance — I should know!"
Lee Daniels - Producer of Slamdance Screenplay winner and Sundance hit, THE WOODSMAN

"Winning Slamdance was an incredible moral booster and the seal of approval that made the industry stop and take notice."
Nicole Kassell - Slamdance Screenplay winner and director of THE WOODSMAN

"The Slamdance Screenplay Award received by Joshua Marston for MARIA FULL OF GRACE was the first public validation of the project...the publicity surrounding this award helped put the project in the public eye."
Paul Mezey, - Producer, MARIA FULL OF GRACE

DEADLINES:

Final Deadline: June 15, 2009

Last Chance Deadline: June 26, 2009

ENTRY FEES:

Final submission fee: $50.00 (by Final Deadline, June 15, 2009)

Last Chance submission fee: $60.00 (by Final Deadline, June 26, 2009)

COVERAGE FEES:

+$75.00: Online Coverage Service - available within 2 months*
+$115.00: Fast Track Coverage - available within 14 days*

* Please note Coverage Fees are in addition to Entry Fees

ENTRY PROCEDURE:

1. Please read the entry procedure, rules, guidelines and selection process.  Then register a slamdance.com Account, or log in as an existing slamdance.com Account member.

2. Click on “SUBMIT SCREENPLAY", read through and agree to the Slamdance Screenplay Competition Terms and Conditions, and then fill out the online screenplay application form

3. Click on one of the following entry fee payment options:

• OPTION 1: Credit Card Online Payment (Mastercard and Visa)
• OPTION 2: Check or money order payable to “Slamdance”.

4. Click on one of two ways to send your screenplay submission:

• OPTION 1: Upload a pdf file to submit your screenplay electronically
• OPTION 2: Choose to mail in hard copy of screenplay to Slamdance offices
  
  To complete the submission process for a hard copy screenplay, you will print your completed screenplay application form and send form with check or money order and screenplay in one package to:
  
  Slamdance 2009 Screenplay Competition
  5634 Melrose Avenue
  Los Angeles, CA 90038
  
  If you choose Option 1 please upload your screenplay in pdf format no larger that 2MB.
  
  If you choose Option 2 please bound your screenplay with brads on three-holed punched paper. It’s okay to send multiple screenplay submissions in one package, but each screenplay must have its own printed application included in the package.

5. For screenplays longer than 120 pages please call our offices – 323-466-1786 before submitting your entry.

RULES:

1. Screenplays must not have been previously optioned, purchased or produced.

2. Screenplays must not have received awards from other competitions over $500.00 at the time of entry.

3. Screenwriters who have had previous feature screenplays produced and distributed by non-independent means are ineligible.

4. Screenplays must be in English, formatted in 12-point courier font.

5. All check payments must be payable in U.S. dollars to “Slamdance” and drawn from U.S. banks.  U.S. Money Orders and Traveler's Checks are also accepted.

6. Any check returned to us for non-payment will be subject to a $15 service fee.

7. To enter the Slamdance Screenplay Competition you must agree to its Terms and Conditions.

8. The Slamdance Screenplay Compeititon Readers' decisions are final.

GUIDELINES:

1. Please provide only one primary contact on your screenplay application form

2. In the event of multiple writers, list all additional co-writers. Please note Slamdance divides awards equally among co-writers.

3. If you are sending your screenplay entry by mail and would like delivery confirmation, please include a self-addressed stamped postcard with your submission package.

4. Slamdance is not responsible for screenplays or coverage stolen or lost in transit

5. For screenplays longer than 120 pages, please call our office before submitting your entry.

EXPLANATION OF SERVICES:

Online Feedback:
Everyone who submits a screenplay to Slamdance will receive online feedback from our Readers. The object of our Online Feedback Service is to provide you with constructive criticism about your work. The feedback includes a logline, a pitch line, genre suggestion and shows strong and weak parts of your screenplay. Online Feedback is quite basic compared to the extensive notes provided with our Online Coverage Service.

Online Coverage Service:
The object of Slamdance’s Online Coverage Service is to provide you with extensive constructive criticism about your work. The Online Coverage Service includes a complete story breakdown and then addresses "what works", "what doesn't work" and "how it can be improved". These three categories are the main part of the Coverage Service and are intended to help you with revisions of your screenplay.  The Coverage Service also offers the screenwriter an idea of what "the next step" could be with their screenplay and writing. This may address media, films and screenplays, production companies and agencies the writer should be aware of, as well as any words of wisdom from one of our Readers. Slamdance’s Online Coverage provides you with an insight into the mind of a Reader who reads hundreds of independent screenplays each year. Our Readers' goal is to assist you in crafting your submission into something that can advance in competition and impress agents, managers and producers.

Online Coverage will be available within two months from the time you submit your work. A notice will be sent to the e-mail address you provided in your screenplay application form when your Coverage is available.

Please note our Online Coverage Service is available year-round. We also offer year-round, one on one screenplay consultation services. For further details please call the Slamdance office: 323-466-1786.

Fast Track Online Coverage Service:
Slamdance’s Fast Track Online Coverage is an added benefit for those that would like to receive coverage within 14 days of your screenplay submission arriving at the Slamdance office. The additional cost of this benefit is $35 on top of the $50 base coverage charge.
     
SCRIPT REGISTRY:

To protect your intellectual property we suggest you register your work with the Writers Guild of America, west (www.wga.org or call 323 782 4500) and the US Copyright Office (http://www.copyright.gov/).

COMPETITION SELECTION PROCESS:

Two Readers will determine whether a screenplay proceeds into the Second Round of the Competition. Over half of the screenplays submitted make it to Round Two. From here, a Top 200 will be selected as Quarterfinalists. Fifty scripts will make it to the semifinals, and ten finalists will be announced at the Writers Guild of America in September. One writer will be awarded the Grand Prize, and all finalists will receive product prize packages from our sponsors.  An additional finalist will also be selected for the Upload Films Best Low Budget Feature Special Award.

Scoring Details:
Screenplays submitted to the Slamdance Screenplay Competition are scored in five categories: Character, Dialogue, Story, Structure, and Originality. We also use a "Sparky" score which gauges the Reader's emotional response to a screenplay.  Sometimes, the Sparky score helps screenplays move onto the next round of Competition. Scores, as well as Reader meetings, determine what scripts go onto the Quarter and Semifinals, and then the Finalists. Please note no screenplay scoring is shared with anyone outside of the Readers of the Competition.

Slamdance Readers:
Slamdance Readers are industry professionals and all have a combination of the following qualifications: professional coverage background, production and development background, and/or are professional writers, Slamdance alumni, playwrights and journalists. Readers’ Competition decisions are final.

PRIZES:

• Slamdance Grand Prize: $5,000

• Upload Films Best Low Budget Feature Award – Winner will receive potential option deal with Upload Films

• Script Accessible Award for best screenplay involving characters with disabilities and/or written by a person with disabilities – Winner will receive $1,000

• The top ten screenwriters will receive Final Draft screenwriting software

• The top ten screenwriters will receive a year subscription to Script Magazine

• The top ten screenwriters will have the option of using InkTip to network their project to the industry

• Selected material will be read On Stage in Los Angeles, New York and Park City

• The top ten screenwriters will receive prize packages that include Festival Passes good for all screenings and parties at the Slamdance Film Festival in Park City, Utah (January 2010)

• The top ten screenwriters are eligible for membership in the Writers Guild of America's Independent Writers Caucus

• The top ten screenwriters will receive merchandise from the Slamdance Shop

• Production companies, studios, agencies and managers request to read our top scripts

PLEASE CALL US IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS:

If you have any problems while submitting, or any questions about the submission process just e-mail us or call our offices: 323-466-1786