All screenplay contests are SCAM?

[Turbopolis]

I did some research about the script competitions, also got my own experience. At this point, I strongly believe that all competitions(including the major ones) are manipulated and/or all script evaluations are extremely subjective predominantly with a bad anti-cinematic taste...

[Hernan Giaggio]

Re: All screenplay contests are SCAM?

Did you want to offer any proof for this assertion? Or just a line of reasoning?

[UnequalProductions]

Re: All screenplay contests are SCAM?

I won at Austin one year, so I'll defend that contest to the bitter end.

But yeah, all the ones I lost are horrible scams.

[Turbopolis]

Re: All screenplay contests are SCAM?

Did you want to offer any proof for this assertion? Or just a line of reasoning?

Hi Hernan, Yes I do have a proof.

The script that was requested by 6 producers (near optioned) including a big name is not even in the top 10% of Bluecat?
Here is Bluecat's analysis:

Archive #5861
Reader #9051
."...................". script was extremely well-written; allowing me to flow through the pages at a nice, quick pace. The writer’s descriptions and actions were relatively short and to-the-point, giving this script’s read an excellent flow. I particularly enjoyed the opening pages. The opening scenes of Chris driving through a cold, snowy Chicago night inter-cut with Warlord back at the ward were a great hook, keeping me interested in reading on.

-----------BTW I'm a working screenwriter ( not full time, and not paid yet)

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I did other contests too.. I did a research on the winners of these contests(social media IMDB) They are all well connected before the contest or if they're first-timers their winning script is not getting produced or optioned..
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I've read also that some fellow-writers did an experiment and tried to submit to contests the scripts that won an Oscar in 50s or 60s (slightly changing the names/places) and got nowhere
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I would like to hear more comments from the other writers who encountered similar issues like me..

BEST WISHES!

[UpandComing]

Re: All screenplay contests are SCAM?

I've only made it as far as the Quarterfinals of the Nicholl. Until I win the fellowship outright, I'm calling this one a total scam, dude...

[Turbopolis]

Re: All screenplay contests are SCAM?

I've only made it as far as the Quarterfinals of the Nicholl. Until I win the fellowship outright, I'm calling this one a total scam, dude...

So, Nicoll, Austin are reputable contests --sounds much better

[docgonzo]

Re: All screenplay contests are SCAM?

I was a finalist in trackingb. Definitely not a scam and highly recommended.

[dave22]

Re: All screenplay contests are SCAM?

I won the Industry Insider Contest. Met Randall Wallace as advertised. He was extremely gracious. Not only did he give two hours of his time for that one lunch, but have met with him for friendly lunches since, he has written recommendations for me and advised me on projects. That contest was not a scam.

I have been to the Big Break Awards the last two years. I've watched the manager feeding frenzies over the winners. I have seen the TV winners picked up for writers rooms on major shows. I have seen the feature winners get writing assignments with studios. That contest is not a scam.

Stop blaming others and fix your scripts.

[omjs]

Re: All screenplay contests are SCAM?

Pretty much anything I don't do well at is a scam, in my experience. That or it was rigged.

[nativeson]

Re: All screenplay contests are SCAM?

Scamsters! The lot of 'em

[slupo]

Re: All screenplay contests are SCAM?

I agree with upandcoming. All contests are scams and have bad taste until you win one.

[UnequalProductions]

Re: All screenplay contests are SCAM?

Hi Hernan, Yes I do have a proof.

The script that was requested by 6 producers (near optioned) including a big name is not even in the top 10% of Bluecat?
Here is Bluecat's analysis:

Archive #5861
Reader #9051
."...................". script was extremely well-written; allowing me to flow through the pages at a nice, quick pace. The writer's descriptions and actions were relatively short and to-the-point, giving this script's read an excellent flow. I particularly enjoyed the opening pages. The opening scenes of Chris driving through a cold, snowy Chicago night inter-cut with Warlord back at the ward were a great hook, keeping me interested in reading on.

-----------BTW I'm a working screenwriter ( not full time, and not paid yet)

----------------------------------------------------------------
I did other contests too.. I did a research on the winners of these contests(social media IMDB) They are all well connected before the contest or if they're first-timers their winning script is not getting produced or optioned..
----------
I've read also that some fellow-writers did an experiment and tried to submit to contests the scripts that won an Oscar in 50s or 60s (slightly changing the names/places) and got nowhere
--------------------------
I would like to hear more comments from the other writers who encountered similar issues like me..

BEST WISHES!

This is your big proof?

Dammit. Shouldn't people know that reading and enjoying scripts are uniform across the board? "Birdman" won best picture because every single person in Hollywood agreed that it was the greatest thing put out in 2014. And of course, an award-winning script from 50-60 years ago is just as relevant and undeniably great now?

This is an industry of opinions, not facts. This isn't math where there's one right answer. 6 producers loved your script that didn't even get in the top 10% of a contest so it's a fraud? So what? Just because a handful of people think your script is great doesn't make that a universal truth.

If there was only one standard of what makes a great script, there would be a lot less screenwriters.

[UnequalProductions]

Re: All screenplay contests are SCAM?

I agree with upandcoming. All contests are scams and have bad taste until you win one.

I made the same joke first and UpandComing gets all the praise. Story of my writing life

[Bono]

Re: All screenplay contests are SCAM?

In fairness, they pretty much tell you they are going to screw you from the jump, so it's not a SCAM, but a huge waste of time for the most part.

They tell you give me $50 and I'll tell you (other writers we pay 8 bucks per script to that is) I hate it or like it. Okay! A scam would be give me $50 and I'll sell this thing to Hollywood for you.

[dave22]

Re: All screenplay contests are SCAM?

Many of the well respected contests receive up to 7,000 entries. Only one can win the overall prize. So many great scripts are not going to make it, but a great script is going to come out on top.

Your "proof" is not sound. It's like arguing against the lottery:

- I've played every week for years and never won.
- Sometimes I get almost all the numbers but have still never won.
- I talked to my friends who play all the time and they've never won.
- We even tried submitting old winning combinations and they didn't win for us either.
- It must be a scam.

Contests are not a scam. They're just really, really, really hard to win. I had a script make it to the top 10 in the horror category in last year's Big Break Contest. It has also been kicked out in the first or second round of two other contests and made it to the top 100 overall in a fourth. That's the way this town goes. It's a love it or hate it script. We knew it was polarizing going in. The people who love it, really love it. The people who don't, well they must have gotten in the first rounds of those other contests. I can sit here and complain how they're wrong, or be happy that I (and my writing partner) can evoke strong emotions in people. Then I move on to my next.

If you have been booted from every contest, you can sit here and call them scams, or think about what you can do to fix your script that isn't resonating. Guesses what the successful writers do? If one person doesn't like it, maybe it's them. If no one likes it, maybe it's your script.

We won the Industry Insider Contest. Hardly anyone had heard of us before then, but we weren't overnight successes. That was also the sixth script we had written and the I don't know what number contest we had entered. It doesn't happen overnight.