Calling all horror writers! The second annual Killer Shorts Horror Short Screenplay Competition is accepting entries.
The Screenwriters Network has partnered with literary managers, producers, and executives in an effort to unearth the next visionary talent in horror. The Top 10 scripts will be read by a star-studded panel of industry judges, with a further combined $5,000 worth of prizes up for grabs including copies of Final Draft screenwriting software, waived entry fees to multiple screenwriting contests, increased rank on Coverfly’s The Red List, free subscriptions to on-demand horror streaming service Shudder, and more.
The industry luminaries who will read the Top 10 finalists and select the winner include Julian Terry (Whisper), Chelsea Lupkin (Lucy’s Tale), Barbara Crampton (Re-Animator), Joe Bob Briggs (“The Last Drive-In with Joe Bob Briggs”), Scott Stoops (Good Fear Film + Management), Glenn Cockburn (Meridian Artists), Lee Stobby (Lee Stobby Entertainment), Scott Carr (Management SGC), Jason Tamasco (Bad Idea Films), John Zaozirny (Bellevue Productions), Krista Sipp (First Friday Entertainment), and Jenn Wexler (The Ranger).
The winner of Killer Shorts could well be the next Hollywood success story. Feature films such as Lights Out, Mama, District 9, and The Babadook all originated as proof-of-concept shorts. Recent shorts Whisper (Julian Terry), Bedtime Story (Lucas Paulino and Ángel Torres), Meet Jimmy (David-Jan Bronsgeest and Tim Koomen), The Blue Door (Megan Pugh and Ben Clark), and Larry (now titled “Come Play”, from Jacob Chase), have since been discovered by major studios and are now in development as features.
“We’re looking for writers ready to take the next step in their career” said Alison Parker, Contest Director and founder of The Screenwriters Network. “Savvy writers will get a head start on a feature version of their short, so that if they end up speaking with a literary manager they’re in the best possible position to sign.”
This year, Killer Shorts is also working with female-led film groups to offer discounted submissions to female-identifying and non-binary writers.
“In Season 2 we are focused on providing even more opportunities for women and POC,” says Parker, “We hope that by being proactive, we will see more female-identifying and non-binary writers, as well as people of color, represented in our list of finalists in 2021.”
Finally, when asked for advice on what kind of scripts Killer Shorts is looking for, Alison responds, “Give us something we haven’t seen before. We received 765 submissions in Season 1. We read a lot of werewolves, vampires, serial killers, and zombies. There must be something unique about your story and how you tell it. Whether that’s how the killer kills, a location we’ve never seen before, a new type of monster, or a strange point of view, push yourself to be different and give us something new.”
Entry fees start at $20 for ‘Early Bird’ entries submitted by September 1 2020, with a final deadline of December 15, 2020. VIP members of The Screenwriters Network can enter for free. Entries can be submitted via Coverfly, FilmFreeway or ISA Network.
For more information, including further information on the judges, full details on qualifying criteria, competition rules and deadlines visit: KillerShortsContest.com.
