Hey, Aspiring filmmakers! Need cash to make your short film? LAUNCH will give you $1,000,000.
Film school can be a tough and extremely expensive experience, so when it comes to financing the budget for your first project, it can be really difficult. After all, filmmaking is not an easy process, if it were, then everyone would be doing it. Thankfully, there are people out there that are willing to give aspiring filmmakers a chance to make their dreams come true.
LAUNCH is a brand new million dollar screenplay competition for college students created “with the mission to inspire the next generation of great screenwriters.” Founded by producers Jason Shuman and Zachary Green, the screenplay competition aims to ease the financial burden for many aspiring filmmakers to allow them to strengthen their careers in the film industry. That said, you must be you must be enrolled in an accredited two-year, four-year college/university or graduate program anywhere in the world to submit. Open for submissions start Thursday, March 1st.
The first place Grand Prize winner will have their film produced as a feature film with a budget of at least $1,000,000. Production will start by the end of 2018. The top three finalists will receive an offer of literary representation at a Hollywood talent agency and management firm, and the top eight finalists will be awarded a total of $100,000 in education grants among other prizes.
According to the contest’s website, “the 25 scripts with the highest scores after four rounds of evaluation and scoring will be evaluated by The LAUNCH’s judging panel, who will select the top eight potential winners, subject to verification of eligibility and required documentation.”
It only costs $20 to submit your screenplay, and everyone who does will receive professional feedback from experienced industry. It’s a win/win!
Eligibility
- All participants must be at least 18 years of age, as of March 1st, 2018.
- All participants must be a student and actively enrolled and attending an accredited two-year, four-year university/college or graduate school program anywhere in the world as of March 1st, 2018. Proof of enrollment must be provided when submitting script(s) and/or upon request by Sponsor (continuing education classes do not count towards eligibility).
- All participants must not be a member of the Writers Guild of America (WGA) and/or any other writer’s guild/union, must not have been paid professionally for their screenwriting services for feature films and/or television, and must not be currently represented by a talent agent or manager for their feature film writing services.
Screenplay requirements
- There is no limit to the number of screenplays you may submit. Each screenplay will require its own entry fee.
- Entries must be received on or before the deadlines 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 original, and all rights must be owned solely and written only by the individual submitting the screenplay, or only by individuals submitting the screenplay as part of a writing team.
- The material must be submitted by the writer(s) of the screenplay. Material written by writing teams must, at the time of submission, credit all writers on the title page, providing electronic signatures of all of the writers, and providing the team’s election of allocation of the percentage of credit that will be used to distribute any prizes among the team members.
First place winning screenplay receives
- Winning screenplay to be produced as a feature film with a budget of at least $1,000,000 USD
- $50,000 Educational Grant
- Representation from a Hollywood Talent Agent and Literary Manager
- Feedback from the Judging Panel
- One (1) copy of the Final Draft Software
- One (1) year subscription to Variety Premier Digital
- One (1) year subscription to IMDbPro, the essential resource for the entertainment industry professionals
For more information about the competition and how to apply, please click here.
Related:
- Donald Glover Did Whatever It Took to FX to Get Them to Produce ‘Atlanta’
- Brown University Offers a Full Scholarship for Aspiring Actors and Directors
- Brown University Offers a Full Scholarship for Aspiring Actors and Directors
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