More Than Just a Screenplay Contest
A Table Read can help change your script, one of ours can jump-start your career!
TRMS SUCCESS:
2017 OSCAR nominee and TRMS Grand Prize Winner Timo von Gunten to direct Eiffel, an action/heist film that chronicles the exploits of international con man Victor Lustig. Von Gunten’s La Femme et le TGV, TRMS Grand Prize winning romantic drama, is nominated for an Academy Award in the live action shorts category. Read the story or listen to the podcast.
Denise Meyers’s 2015 Table Read My Screenplay - Austin Grand Prize Winning short, The Dark of Night, directed by Robin Wright and starring Sam Rockwell and Leslie Bibb, had its red carpet premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in May. Meyers also recently optioned three projects with actor and producer Jay Ellis, who stars as Lawrence on HBO'S Insecure, and his producing partner, Aaron Bergman.
GRAND PRIZE WINNER goes to an International Film Festival!
• 1 FEATURE/PILOT GRAND PRIZE WINNERTRMS would like to award a special honor in celebration of the local talent. This accolade will be offered to a writer whose hometown and residence is in the city we visit, on this occasion – Chicago.
American Beauty: Seven Act Structure ($150 value)
w/ Award Winning Screenwriter Jacob Krueger
This seminar not only breaks down the seven acts of this classic but delves into the motivations of writer Alan Ball; both when he set out to pen this film and upon revising it. Award-Winning Screenwriter Jacob Krueger discusses the various motivations of the characters in order to show how their organic growth changed the structure of the story we as an audience are told.
Getting Past the Gatekeepers:
How To Get Producers, Managers, and Agents on the Phone with Award Winning Screenwriter Jacob Krueger
Q: What forms of payment do you accept?
A: Paypal and all major credit cards.
Q: Can I mail a copy of my Screenplay, Submission Form and Payment?
A: No, we’re sorry. We only accept online submissions and payments at this time.
Q: Should I include my contact information on my title page?
A: Yes, but it does not affect judging either way if you forget to include it.
Q: Who will be reading my screenplay/judging the contest?
A: The feature/pilot GRAND PRIZE winner will receive coach airfare and hotel accommodations resulting in a four-night stay.
Q: Will you fly me to Chciago if I win?
A: The respective GRAND PRIZE winner(s) will receive coach airfare and hotel accommodations resulting in a four-night stay.
Q: Does the short GP or local winner get a hotel stay too?
A: No, the Short Grand Prize winner nor the local winner receives airfare or hotel since the local winner will live in/around Chicago. Parking for events will be compensated with a $50 stipend for the week.
Q: When will my Table Read be scheduled?
A: It will be in Chicago in October 2017. If the final date as selected by TRMS does not work for the winner, TRMS will not provide any cash value matching for the non-accepted airfare and hotel expenses turned down by the winner. We will be as flexible as possible, but the ultimate decision resides solely with TRMS.
Q: Is this contest affiliated with ISA.
A: Yes, TRMS is affiliated with ISA.
Q: How will I participate in the Table Read?
A: You sit back, relax, and observe as a director works scenes from your winning screenplay with the actors in preparation for the showcase of your first 20 pages.
Q: Do I maintain the rights to my screenplay?
A: Absolutely YES, you retain all the rights to your screenplay!
Q: Do I need to submit a Synopsis?
A: No.
Q: Can I submit a screenplay under a pen name?
A: Yes.
Q: Does my screenplay have to be registered?
A: No, but we do recommend registering your work with the WGA West , the Library of Congress Copyright office or other similar organization in your country. It’s really easy and a VERY smart thing to do.
Q: Do you accept TV Pilots, Web Series and Short screenplays?
A: Yes.
Q: If I select that I am a Chciago local will I only be considered for the ISA Chicago Writer Award?
A. No, all local writers are eligible for the ISA Chicago Writer Award as well as all other awards listed on the prizes page.
Q: I will be moving before October 2017. Am able to change the location category I submitted for during the contest?
A. You are only eligible for the location prize from where you held residence when you submitted. For example, those who submit locally will not be offered airfare if they are suddenly living in another country in October. Please be prepared for this and take your October location into account when submitting. There won’t be any exceptions.
Q: What’s the minimum/maximum required page length?
A: Feature – (70 – 120 pages), Shorts – (1 – 40 pages) , TV Pilots – (10 – 60 pages)
Q: Does genre matter in my submission?
A: Yes, but only to determine what your goal is for your work. All categories and genres of scripts are in competition with one another.
Q: What genres do you accept?
A: All genres are welcome. When submitting, please choose the genre category that BEST suits your screenplay!
Q: Can I submit my screenplay in multiple categories?
A: Yes, you can. Each time you submit in each category, you will have to pay the entry fee.
Q: If I make the TOP 100 what elements of the screenplay are taken into consideration during the judging?
A: We are looking for excellent Originality, Story, Dialogue, Description and strength of Characters, scripts with their own true Voice, and Marketability.
Q: I don’t live in the United States; am I still eligible?
A: Yes, but all submissions MUST BE IN ENGLISH!
Q: Are flights paid for by TRMS?
A: Yes, we will purchase an international flight not to exceed $1,500, Domestic flight not to exceed $800. Parking will be compensated for the showcase and panel series events with a flat $50 stipend for the week.
Q: If I choose not to fly or stay in your hotel, is there a cash equivalent?
A: No. If you decide not to utilize the flight or hotel, they are simply forfeited.
Q: Is an adaptation of a published novel (by somebody else) eligible?
A: You must have the legal rights to adapt the book to enter your screenplay.
Q: Can I make a change to a submission?
A: You may make a change to submission within 24 hours of the original submission ONLY.
Q: What stops you from taking my idea and developing it yourself?
A: Our panel of judges is comprised of respected industry professionals, and they have no intention of stealing your material. They’re actually hoping to find new talent to work with. If you make it to the TOP 100, your work will be seen by these professionals, which in turn, gets you one step closer to getting your screenplay produced. You can sit at home and protect your ideas all day long hoping for that one right person to come along, or you can get your work out there and show us what you’ve got!
Q: What forms of payment do you accept?
A: Paypal and all major credit cards.
Q: Can I mail a copy of my Screenplay, Submission Form and Payment?
A: No, we’re sorry. We only accept online submissions and payments at this time.
Q: Should I include my contact information on my title page?
A: Yes, but it does not affect judging either way if you forget to include it.
Q: Who will be reading my screenplay/judging the contest?
A: The feature/pilot GRAND PRIZE winner will receive coach airfare and hotel accommodations resulting in a four-night stay.
Q: Will you fly me to Chciago if I win?
A: The respective GRAND PRIZE winner(s) will receive coach airfare and hotel accommodations resulting in a four-night stay.
Q: Does the short GP or local winner get a hotel stay too?
A: No, the Short Grand Prize winner nor the local winner receives airfare or hotel since the local winner will live in/around Chicago. Parking for events will be compensated with a $50 stipend for the week.
Q: When will my Table Read be scheduled?
A: It will be in Chicago in October 2017. If the final date as selected by TRMS does not work for the winner, TRMS will not provide any cash value matching for the non-accepted airfare and hotel expenses turned down by the winner. We will be as flexible as possible, but the ultimate decision resides solely with TRMS.
Q: Is this contest affiliated with ISA.
A: Yes, TRMS is affiliated with ISA.
Q: How will I participate in the Table Read?
A: You sit back, relax, and observe as a director works scenes from your winning screenplay with the actors in preparation for the showcase of your first 20 pages.
Q: Do I maintain the rights to my screenplay?
A: Absolutely YES, you retain all the rights to your screenplay!
Q: Do I need to submit a Synopsis?
A: No.
Q: Can I submit a screenplay under a pen name?
A: Yes.
Q: Does my screenplay have to be registered?
A: No, but we do recommend registering your work with the WGA West , the Library of Congress Copyright office or other similar organization in your country. It’s really easy and a VERY smart thing to do.
Q: Do you accept TV Pilots, Web Series and Short screenplays?
A: Yes.
Q: If I select that I am a Chciago local will I only be considered for the ISA Chicago Writer Award?
A. No, all local writers are eligible for the ISA Chicago Writer Award as well as all other awards listed on the prizes page.
Q: I will be moving before October 2017. Am able to change the location category I submitted for during the contest?
A. You are only eligible for the location prize from where you held residence when you submitted. For example, those who submit locally will not be offered airfare if they are suddenly living in another country in October. Please be prepared for this and take your October location into account when submitting. There won’t be any exceptions.
Q: What’s the minimum/maximum required page length?
A: Feature – (70 – 120 pages), Shorts – (1 – 40 pages) , TV Pilots – (10 – 60 pages)
Q: Does genre matter in my submission?
A: Yes, but only to determine what your goal is for your work. All categories and genres of scripts are in competition with one another.
Q: What genres do you accept?
A: All genres are welcome. When submitting, please choose the genre category that BEST suits your screenplay!
Q: Can I submit my screenplay in multiple categories?
A: Yes, you can. Each time you submit in each category, you will have to pay the entry fee.
Q: If I make the TOP 100 what elements of the screenplay are taken into consideration during the judging?
A: We are looking for excellent Originality, Story, Dialogue, Description and strength of Characters, scripts with their own true Voice, and Marketability.
Q: I don’t live in the United States; am I still eligible?
A: Yes, but all submissions MUST BE IN ENGLISH!
Q: Are flights paid for by TRMS?
A: Yes, we will purchase an international flight not to exceed $1,500, Domestic flight not to exceed $800. Parking will be compensated for the showcase and panel series events with a flat $50 stipend for the week.
Q: If I choose not to fly or stay in your hotel, is there a cash equivalent?
A: No. If you decide not to utilize the flight or hotel, they are simply forfeited.
Q: Is an adaptation of a published novel (by somebody else) eligible?
A: You must have the legal rights to adapt the book to enter your screenplay.
Q: Can I make a change to a submission?
A: You may make a change to submission within 24 hours of the original submission ONLY.
Q: What stops you from taking my idea and developing it yourself?
A: Our panel of judges is comprised of respected industry professionals, and they have no intention of stealing your material. They’re actually hoping to find new talent to work with. If you make it to the TOP 100, your work will be seen by these professionals, which in turn, gets you one step closer to getting your screenplay produced. You can sit at home and protect your ideas all day long hoping for that one right person to come along, or you can get your work out there and show us what you’ve got!
(If you have posted a Writing Gig, please click the red GIG REQUESTS button to view your submissions. If you are a writer and want to be considered for the TOP 25, you must be an ISAConnect Member)