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THE HOLLYWOOD SYMPOSIUM ANNOUNCES ITS 2000 CONTEST WINNERS The Hollywood Symposium takes great pleasure in announcing the winners of its 2000 screenplay contest. Our heartfelt congratulations to our winning screenwriters, seven honorable mentions, and all finalists. The dominant genre this year turned out to be fantasy, with first and third place winners in that category. Second place went to a script in the horror-comedy genre. Other interesting factors this year: first and second place honors went to writing teams, our first place writers are Canadian, and our third place script is the rewrite of one that was a finalist last year. We went looking for good stories well told. This is where we found them.
FIRST PLACE: Ghost of a Chance, written by Geoff Murrin & Jim Murrin To save the life of his brother, a murdered man must become the Guardian Angel of the mobster who killed him. SECOND PLACE: Zombie President, written by Kristan Ginther & Daniel Cubias A defeated presidential candidate comes back from the dead to seize the White House with an army of zombies, and he wins the courntry's heart in the process. THIRD PLACE: The Timekeeper, written by Randall Alan Wolff A magical clock is about to strike 13 and stop time. Only a suburban boy who's been invested with mystical powers can stop the clock and defeat a 16th century magician who wants to alter time and space reality, and bring on an age of evil.
HONORABLE MENTION (alphabetical by author): Mexico in Alaska, by Deborah Baley Brevoort Vicious Circle, by Elia Harold Gavaris 2051, by Kris Hall In the year 2051, two cops battle eco-terrorists and search for a missing scientist to recover a formula that could triple the human life span. Neighborhood Girl, by Mike Jones A father feels trapped as he tries to raise three daughters in a growingly dangerous inner-city neighborhood. Hooligans, by Carl Long Two brothers attempt to escape a poor neighborhood by using a how-to book to become professional assassins. Highlands County, by Ken NeylandWhen a precocious ten-year-old decides to get rid of her loser stepfather, her plan backfires and she learns a hard lesson about interfering in the lives of other people. Scorpio, by Tucker ParsonsA killer with a forgotten past discovers he's been genetically altered, and that a scientific flaw dooms him to a horrible death. But he also finds he alone hold the key to mankind's future. Our most sincere thanks to everyone who participated. We hope to see you all again next year with new or extensively rewritten screenplays. Keep writing!
THE HOLLYWOOD SYMPOSIUM SECOND ANNUAL SCREENPLAY CONTEST: FINALISTS ANNOUNCED The Hollywood Symposium takes great pleasure in announcing the finalists for its year 2000 screenplay contest.With 393 entries, we found that on different levels, each and every script had something to offer. Choices were not simple. We're delighted to report that we felt the overall quality of work was higher this year, as many new screenwriters continue to grow and learn. But, of course, decisions had to be made. Every entrant will receive a copy of the master judging sheet for their own screenplay as a summary of the Symposium's reaction to the relative strengths and weaknesses our judges felt they found in each one. It's hoped that these numerical indicators will be useful in the ongoing process of rewriting. When winners are announced, THS Executive Director Eric Edson will send a letter to all our screenwriters outlining his general reaction to this impressive body of work. We maintain a commitment to education, and hope that all of our entrants will learn something from their experience with us. The Hollywood Symposium thanks you, and regrets that disappointment must inevitably be a part of any contest. We are honored and pleased to read the work of so many gifted screenwriters. Keep writing and rewriting, and we hope to see you again next year. Our contest chooses not to have a "semi-finalist" category, but rather a single, larger "finalist" group instead. It's felt that this way, more screenwriters can wear the mantle of a Hollywood Symposium finalist when presenting their screenplay to others. We are pleased to report that more and more production companies are expressing interest in our finalist list. If your script did not become a finalist, please understand that this does not necessarily reflect on the value of your story concept, or even on its current state of execution. It simply means that in our estimation, some screenplays are further along toward a presentation draft than others. Writing a screenplay is an ongoing process of growth and refinement. As THS Executive Director Eric Edson tells his university screenwriting students, "There's no such thing as a bad screenplay, only an unfinished one." Keep studying this complex craft, and don't get discouraged. Remember, 100% of professional screenwriters at one point in their lives had never won a contest and never sold a script. Congratulations to our 43 finalists. May inclusion on this list bring you one step closer to your dream.
The Hollywood Symposium Screenplay Contest: Finalists 2000 (alphabetical by author)THE EVENING AND THE NIGHT by Lorelei Armstrong FUSE PARK by Lorelei Armstrong DEVIL'S PLAYMATE by Edward Arnold GLORY DAYS by Donnie Becker FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH by Tom Black CONVERSATION WITH THE DEMON by Paul Boerger INTO THE PAST by Michael J. Bowler MEXICO IN ALASKA by Deborah Baley Brevoort ALBUQUERQUE by Bud Elliott TIANANMEN by Bill M. Flannigan NUTTY CHRISTMAS by Robert J. Fox VICIOUS CIRCLE by Elia Harold Gavaris ZOMBIE PRESIDENT by Kristan Ginther & Daniel Cubias 2051 by Kris Hall THE GREAT BEYOND by Brent Hartinger EVE WAS FRAMED by Brad Hennig STUDY ABROAD by Susan Holgate EFIL by James Holmes NEIGHBORHOOD GIRL by Mike Jones TOMORROW MAN by Robert C. Lapham THE ILLUSION OF ILLUSION by Jennifer LaMoureaux HOOLIGANS by Carl Long RACE CAR DREAMS by Paul Martin THE ROSE GARDEN by Jill C. Miller CRAZY MARY WOODS by W. Lee Miller, Jr. GHOST OF A CHANCE by Geoff Murrin & Jim Murrin HIGHLANDS COUNTY by Ken Neyland PATRICK AND JAMES by Brent Andrew Oakley SCORPIO by Tucker Parsons CASANOVA by Robert D. Perkins KARIN HANSEN'S ODYSSEY by Robert D. Perkins CONSIDER ICARUS by Lori Romero MIXING BUSINESS WITH PLEASURE by Kristen Russell WAR ON ALL FRONTS by Doug Solter DREADFUL SORRY, CLEMENTINE by Karen Spencer PICARDY'S THIRD by James Sperl BLACK BUTTERFLY by Deborah A. Tillie PASSAGE by John J. Uustal CIRCULATION by Zack Van Eyck ESPRIT DE CORPS by Bruce Wilkinson THE TIMEKEEPER by Randall Alan Wolff THAT'S AFTERLIFE! by William D. Wolff DOUBLE DOWN by Taesik Yoon |