2013 ACADEMY NICHOLL SCREENWRITING COMPETITION NOW UNDERWAY

BEVERLY HILLS, CA – The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is now accepting entries for the 2013 Academy Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting competition.  As many as five $35,000 fellowships will be awarded in November.

The Nicholl Fellowships competition is open to any individual who has not earned a total of more than $25,000 from the sale or option of screenplays or teleplays, or received fellowships or prizes of more than $25,000 that include a "first look" clause, an option or any other quid pro quo involving the writer's work. To enter, writers must submit a completed application online, upload one PDF copy of their original screenplay in English and pay the entry fee before 11:59 p.m. PT on May 1, 2013.

Entry fee schedule is as follows:
Early deadline: March 1; entry fee US$35

Regular deadline: April 10; entry fee US$50

Final deadline: May 1; entry fee US$65

Online applications, rules and other details are available at www.oscars.org/nicholl.


Fellowships are awarded with the understanding that the recipients will each complete a new feature-length screenplay during the fellowship year. The Academy acquires no rights to the works of Nicholl fellows and does not involve itself commercially in any way with their completed scripts.


Last year's competition drew a record 7,197 entries. Since the program's inception in 1985, 128 fellowships have been awarded.


Several past Nicholl fellows have recently added to their achievements. Destin Cretton directed "Short Term 12" from his fellowship-winning screenplay; the film will premiere in competition at South by Southwest® next month. Creighton Rothenberger co-wrote "Olympus Has Fallen," slated to open in March with Gerard Butler, Aaron Eckhart, Morgan Freeman and Angela Bassett. Andrew Marlowe is the creator and executive producer of the ABC series "Castle," now in its fifth season. Rebecca Sonnenshine is the executive story editor on the CW series "The Vampire Diaries."


ABOUT THE ACADEMY
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is the world's preeminent movie-related organization, with a membership of more than 6,000 of the most accomplished men and women working in cinema. In addition to the annual Academy Awards–in which the members vote to select the nominees and winners–Academy presents a diverse year-round slate of public programs, exhibitions and events; provides financial support to a wide range of other movie-related organizations and endeavors; acts as a neutral advocate in the advancement of motion picture technology; and, through its Margaret Herrick Library and Academy Film Archive, collects, preserves, restores and provides access to movies and items related to their history. Through these and other activities the Academy serves students, historians, the entertainment industry and people everywhere who love movies.

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Academy's 2012 Nicholl Screenwriting Competition Now Underway

Beverly Hills, CA – The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is now accepting entries for the 2012 Don and Gee Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting competition. As many as five $35,000 fellowships will be awarded through the program in November.

The Nicholl Fellowships competition is open to any individual who has not earned more than $5,000 from the sale or option of a screenplay or teleplay, or received a fellowship or prize of more than $5,000 that includes a "first look" clause, an option or any other quid pro quo involving the writer's work.

To enter, writers must submit a completed application online, upload one PDF copy of their original screenplay in English and pay the entry fee before 11:59 p.m. PT on May 1, 2012. The regular entry fee is US$52; an early-bird entry fee of US$35 is available for those who enter by 11:59 p.m. PT on March 15, 2012.

Online applications, rules and other details are available at www.oscars.org/nicholl.

Fellowships are awarded with the understanding that the recipients will each complete a new feature-length screenplay during the fellowship year. The Academy acquires no rights to the works of Nicholl fellows and does not involve itself commercially in any way with their completed scripts.

Last year's competition drew a record 6,730 entries. Since the program's inception in 1985, 123 fellowships have been awarded.

Among the recent achievements by Nicholl fellows: Destin Daniel Cretton wrote and directed “I Am Not a Hipster,” which premiered at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival; Andrew Marlowe created and executive produces and Terri Miller serves as a writer-producer on the ABC series “Castle”; and Jeffrey Eugenides published his third novel, The Marriage Plot, which is a National Book Critics Circle award nominee.