Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Jumpstart Your Writing Career: The Path for Screenwriters Is a Winding Road

HOLLYWOOD, Calif., March 14, 2012 -- A man enters a screenplay to a competition, snags an agent, then turns that script into a novel. Another man enters the same competition, submits his screenplay, lands an agent and creates Latino 101, which is the highest-rated show on NuVoTV (an English language network targeted at Latinos).


This is just a couple of the many success stories from the Scriptapalooza Screenwriting Competition. Turning a script into a novel has actually happened before, former 1st place Scriptapalooza winner, Chris Carlyle, whose script, "The Trial of Alex Lord," was turned into a novel last fall.

Mark Andrushko, the founder of the Scriptapalooza, in its 14th year, promotes and pushes as many writers as he can, however he can. It is not uncommon to have production companies to contact Mark and request certain genres. "I get calls throughout the year from companies looking for material, it doesn't matter if the contest is closed, I try to help as many writers as possible!" said Andrushko.

This competition started as a small grassroots effort and has become an industry powerhouse. Mark is also not threatened by the dozens of overnight competitions that pop up all the time. "Scriptapalooza has remained true to its basic core belief of creating opportunities," said Andrushko. This heartfelt commitment to the undiscovered writer is the reason Scriptapalooza is still around, and why the other competitions usually fade into oblivion just as quickly as they sprouted.

The inscription on the novel The Dougherty Report by Frank Tumminia reads, "To Scriptapalooza, I could have not done this without you. Thanks for the support." And the man who created Latino 101 is Jason Nieves, whose show is in its 3rd season.
A winding road indeed, but if your end result is to be a paid writer, then submitting to Scriptapalooza Screenwriting Competition is a great start. Screenwriters who enter the competition may not win the grand prize, but rest assured that they have a man in the corner pushing them through the proverbial Hollywood door.

The final deadline to enter your screenplay is April 19, 2012.


The Scriptapalooza Screenplay Competition was founded in 1998 with the goal of discovering and promoting writers and creating opportunities for them in a fiercely competitive entertainment industry.

SOURCE Scriptapalooza Screenplay Competition

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