Screenwriting Competitions for Scripts and Stage Plays 2022

Screenwriting Competition List updated 3 September 2022. Includes International and UK competitions for screenwriters and playwrights. Details are accurate as far as possible and updated monthly – bookmark this page! I can’t vouch for all these comps personally, but if you have experience of any of them, let us know in the comments. Good luck! Please be sure to check the websites for more information, submission requirements and deadlines. 3 Minute Drama Competition Write a short drama script to be acted out when a train rolls into a railway station in rural England. Any subject matter. Win a performance of your play plus 40% of entry fees or £100. Your script must be in English and 3 minutes long. Opens for entries on 1 January 2022. Entry Fee: £6 Deadline: 30 April 2022 *CLOSED* Submit: full play in pdf format. Check website for full submission details and rules. BAFTA Rocliffe Competitions Various competitions run through the year: TV Drama, Comedy, Writing for Children, and Film. Open to UK residents only. All entries receive feedback. Win in-depth script report, industry introductions, and more. Deadlines vary depending on script type. Competition opening dates: Film opens September 2022; TV Drama opens in 2023; Family & YA Media opens January 2023. NOTE: deadlines dates subject to change… Entry Fee: £46 Deadlines: Film – 20 October 2022 Submit: synopsis, treatment, character breakdown, script extract. Check website for full submission details and rules. BBC Writer’s Room Writing opportunities and events from across the industry. Open to UK residents only. It’s worth checking regularly for the latest competitions in screenwriting and theatre. You can also submit scripts to the BBC from The Script Room which opens for submissions in two windows: either drama or comedy scripts. Next window for submissions opens 9 November 2022 – Open Call. Entry Fee: Free Deadline: 7 December 2022 Submit: varies per opportunity. Check website for full submission details and rules. Blue Cat Screenplay Competition International contest with multiple awards. Win up to $10,000 cash prizes in various categories. Awards for Feature, TV Pilot and Short. Further prize of $1,000 for scripts from outside the US. All entrants receive a script analysis with constructive feedback. Fees vary by deadline and script type. Entry Fee: $50 – $80 Deadlines: Regular 18 September 2022; Final 30 October 2022; Late 11 December 2022 Submit: screenplay in pdf format. Check website for full submission details and rules. Bruntwood Prize for Playwriting Biennial competition for established, emerging and debut writers for an original and unperformed play an hour or more in length. Open to residents of UK and Ireland and British overseas territories only. Details on categories for entries TOC. Entry Fee: Free Deadline: 6 June 2022 *CLOSED* Submit: complete script. Check website for full submission details and rules. Channel 4 Screenwriting Competition Contest run by 4Screenwriting for 12 writers to get an insight into how the TV drama industry works. Win a place at two script workshops and develop your screenplay with a script editor. Channel 4 may option the script for 6 months. Open to residents of UK and Ireland only. You must be available to attend two weekend workshops in January and June 2023. Opens for entries 16 September 2022. Entry Fee: Free Deadline: 3 October 2022 Submit: screenplay in pdf format and CV. Check website for full submission details and rules. Euroscript Screenwriting Competition Win £1,000 worth of script development and work on 3 drafts of your screenplay with an editor. All entrants receive feedback. I won this competition in 2008 and it was definitely worth entering. Read about my experience here. Entry Fee: £40 Deadline: 31 March 2023 Submit: 2 page treatment for feature film and 10 page script sample and entry form. Check website for full submission details and rules. Film Festival Guild Competitions Four festivals with international screenplay contests: British Animation Film Festival (BAFF), British Horror Film Festival (BHFF), British Independent Film Festival (BIFF), and International Film Festival of Wales (IFFW). Awards are mostly for films, but you can submit a script to win Best Unproduced Screenplay. Fees vary by deadline. Entry Fee: $10-$45 Deadlines: BIFF – Early Bird 14 October 2022; Regular 13 January 2023; Late 31 March 2023; Extended 21 April 2023 BAFF – Extended 1 April 2022 *CLOSED* BHFF – Extended 9 September 2022 IFFW – Late 16 September 2022; Extended 7 October 2022 Submit: screenplay in pdf or doc format. Check website for full submission details and rules. Final Draft Big Break Screenwriting Contest International contest with various cash prizes, software, books, listings on InkTip, and meetings in Hollywood. Grand prizes for feature and TV. Feature screenplay categories: Action, Comedy, Drama, Family, Period, Sci-Fi, and Horror. TV scripts for half-hour, hour, specs, and pilots. Fees vary by deadline. Entry Fee: $49 – $79 Deadlines: Last Chance 2 August 2022 *CLOSED* Submit: screenplay in pdf or Final Draft format. Check website for full submission details and rules. Green Stories Radio Series Competition Open to screenplays for a radio play or series that uses ideas about environmental sustainability and building a sustainable society. Your script can be in any genre as long as it has a positive and inspiring vision rather than a dystopian one. Win appraisal by the Literary Consultancy and the script will be sent to production companies. BBC Writer’s Room will read the top 5 scripts. Entry Fee: Free Deadline: 26 August 2021 *CLOSED* Submit: first episode and 3 page outline of series. Check website for full submission details and rules. London Independent Film Festival Screenplay To recognise and support new and unrepresented screenwriters. Winning scripts are read by production companies, studios and agencies. Four entry categories: Best Feature Screenplay, Best UK Screenplay, Best Sci-Fi/Horror Screenplay, and Best Short Screenplay. Fees vary by deadline and script type. Entry Fee: $35-$85 Deadlines: Early Bird 3 November 2022; Regular 1 December 2022; Late 12 January 2023; Final 9 February 2023 Submit: screenplay and 1-3 sentence synopsis plus entry form. Check website for full submission details and rules. Netflix Screenwriters’ Fellowship A *NEW* talent initiative offering 6 writers the opportunity for a programme of professional development, including a bursary of £22,568 to write a spec script for an original idea over a year, plus a paid placement in a writer’s room of a Netflix or Sky series. Open to Black, Asian, and other ethnic backgrounds that are underrepresented in TV and film. You must be a resident of the UK to enter and available to take part from 13 September 2021. Entry Fee: Free Deadline: 18 June 2021 *CLOSED* Submit: a script in pdf format. Check website for full submission details and rules. PAGE International Screenwriting Awards To discover the most exciting new scripts from around the US and elsewhere. Ten award categories: Feature Scripts in Action/Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Family, Historical, Sci-Fi, and Thriller/Horror, plus Short Film, TV Pilot, and TV Comedy Pilot. Win $25,000, an InkTip listing, and more. Fees vary by deadline. Entry Fee: $47-$87 Deadlines: Final 16 May 2022 *CLOSED* Submit: screenplay in pdf format. Check website for full submission details and rules. Papatango New Writing Prize Annual award to guarantee an emerging playwright a full production on the professional stage. Open to residents of UK and Ireland only. Win a four week production at Southwark Playhouse in London and support for your next play. The play must be at least 60 mins long. Papatango accepts unsolicited submissions all year, but the New Writing Prize opens in December. Entry Fee: Free Deadline: 30 January 2023 Submit: stage play in pdf or doc format. Check website for full submission details and rules. Red Planet Prize In partnership with ITV Drama. Competition for a TV pilot in the hope of finding a new hit series. Open to UK residents only. Win a script commission and development opportunities with ITV. Up to 10 shortlisted entrants will attend a pitching masterclass and 4 writers will have a final interview to choose the winner. Opening TBC. Entry Fee: Free Deadline: TBC Submit: original spec script, 1-2 page pitch for series, plus writing CV. Check website for full submission details and rules. Screencraft Contests Multiple contests dedicated to finding talented screenwriters and connecting them with producers and agents. Contests for feature, short, and TV scripts, plus cinematic short stories, film production funds, and more. Deadlines run through the year. Cash prizes vary by contest. Fees vary by deadlines. Entry Fee: $29-$59 Deadlines: check website for latest contests Submit: screenplay in pdf format. Check website for full submission details and rules. Scriptapalooza Scriptapalooza promotes and pitches the semi-finalists and winners for a full year to the industry. Prizes for feature and short scripts. Win $10,000, access to producers and more. Genre winners receive $500. Fees vary by deadline. Entry Fee: $50-$75 for features; $30-$55 for shorts Deadlines: Early Bird 12 December 2022; Regular 2 January 2023; Late 6 February 2023; Final 6 March 2023; Last Minute 3 April 2023 Submit: screenplay in pdf, doc, or txt formats. Check website for full submission details and rules. Scriptation Showcase Script Competition Run by professional scriptwriters to connect screenwriters with the industry and circulate scripts to the directors, showrunners, and producers of your favourite movies and TV shows. Win cash prizes, a Scriptation Showcase, and industry access. For teleplays, screenplays, and shorts written in English. Fees vary by contest and deadline. Entry Fee: $39 – $59 Deadlines: Teleplay – Early 8 January 2023; Regular 5 February 2023; Final 12 March 2023 Submit: script in pdf format. Check website for full submission details and rules. Script Pipeline Three contests: First Look Project, Screenwriting, and TV Writing. First Look scripts must be ‘studio level’ projects. Cash prizes vary by contest. Winners also receive industry circulation for their script. Deadlines and fees vary by contest. Entry Fee: $45-$55 Deadlines: check website for latest contests Submit: screenplay in pdf format. Check website for full submission details and rules. Shore Scripts Discovering new exciting screenwriting talent from around the world. Three contests: Feature, TV Pilot, and Short screenplays. Win cash prizes, software, script feedback, InkTip listing, and more. Cash prizes vary by contest. To enter you must not have earned more than $30,000 in writing fees since 2013. All genres accepted. Fees vary by deadline. Entry Fee: $45 – $60  ($40 – $50 for Short) Deadlines: Short Film – Regular 30 September 2022; Final 31 October 2022 Feature and TV Pilot – Final 31 August 2022 *CLOSED* Submit: screenplay in pdf format. Check website for full submission details and rules. Tracking Board Launch Pad Dedicated to launching writing careers. Three competitions: Pilot, Feature, and Manuscript. Each competition has multiple possible prizes and categories and add-ons, or you can get an All Access Pass. Includes mentorship opportunities to develop your script. Fees vary by deadline and contest. Entry Fee: $50-$80 Deadlines: check website for latest contests Submit: 50 pages and 1 page synopsis in pdf format. Check website for full submission details and rules. UK Film Festival Competitions This festival runs in November every year and has three screenwriting competitions to find new talent: Feature Script, 10 Minute (or less), and 3 Minute Script. Win UK Film Festival laurels and publicity, plus InkTip listing for producers to find your script. Fees vary by deadline and script type. Entry Fee: £40-£60 Deadline: Reminder 12 October 2022; Regular 23 November 2022; Final 31 January 2023 Submit: screenplay in pdf format, plus treatment and synopsis for Feature. Check website for full submission details and rules. More Competition Lists: Novel Writing Competition List Resources and Advice for Writers Competition List from Christopher Fielden Before entering any competition make sure you check the entry requirements and rules. If I’ve missed any good screenwriting competitions, please let me know in the comments below… Note: This is a list of competitions I’ve compiled from information available online. I have no connection to any of the companies. Any problems or queries should be directed to the companies concerned.