Welcome to the Hot Springs Screenplay Competition where we're looking for great screenplays. You can submit in any genre: comedy, drama, horror, sci-fi, LGBTQ, thriller, etc. We're looking for every type of story and stories that are quirky, offbeat and entertaining. The only sin in writing, and in this competition, is to be boring.

Now partnering with Virtual Pitch Fest, www.VirtualPitchFest.com. All our Finalists, Semifinalists and Quarterfinalists win free pitches at VPF!

A portion of the proceeds from this Competition will go to fund the Arkansas Young Playwrights Competition, a competition founded in 2003 to promote writing among our high school students in the State of Arkansas.

For more information, visit our website at http://www.hsscreencomp.com and follow us on Twitter at @hsscreencomp.

TESTIMONIALS
Great competition! Finalists are given feedback notes which are constructive, helpful and show your script has actually been read by a person. Friendly, inviting and welcoming to all writers no matter what level in their career. Highly recommended.

In all the ways that matter this an exemplary script contest: it met (or beat) deadlines for announcements, had a meaningful number of finalists, and provided personalized feedback to them that clearly came from a human being and not an algorithm. I don't do a lot of contests not attached to festivals these days but this is a keeper.

I rarely write back to contests, but I wanted to thank you and your staff personally: these notes were lovely, and as I posted on Facebook, "writerly" in the best sense of the word.
-Submitter

Thank you for your notes and kind words, I greatly appreciate them both. I can only agree with what you wrote and your thoughts. (Title of script) is a special story, a personal one, one I intend to revisit in January and your notes will greatly help. Will use your notes and resubmit with another script.
-Submitter

Wow! Thank you so much! And thank you for the wonderful notes. They were very useful and appreciated!
-Submitter

-$500.00 cash prize for the Winner OR a videotaped reading of his/her screenplay.
-Complimentary feedback notes for Finalists, if requested.
-All Finalists, Semifinalists and Quarterfinalists win free pitches at Virtual Pitch Fest.
-Winner wins 10 Pitches at VPF, 2nd-6th Placers win 3 Pitches, All Other Finalists win 2 Pitches and all Quarterfinalists and Semifinalists win 1 Pitch!

Please read the competition rules carefully. Submissions that do not comply with our competition rules may be disqualified.

1. The writer must be 18 years of age or older to enter.
2. International entries are allowed but the script must be written in English.
3. The submitted script must be in a PDF format and must be submitted electronically.
4. A title page with contact information, (phone and email), must be included with every submitted script.
5. The script must be 80 to 120 pages in 12 pt. Courier (or Courier Final Draft) with standard screenplay margins and spacing and pages must be numbered.
6. The script must be unproduced at the time of submission and must be an original screenplay intended for the medium of feature film and the submitter must own 100% of the rights to the script when submitting. Adaptations are eligible as long as the writer can prove full ownership of the original property or life rights (or if the source material is public domain according to US Copyright law.)
7. If the script is written by a writing team, it must be submitted by one of the writers with the consent of the other (any and all prizes will be sent to the writer who submitted the winning script, it is the responsibility of the writing team to share or divide the prizes.)
8. All entries must be received on or before midnight (Central Time) on the date of the deadline and must be paid in full to be considered.
9. There is no limit to the number of different scripts you may submit. Duplicate entries of the same project, however, will be automatically disqualified.
10. Once a script has been submitted, no substitutions will be accepted. No corrected pages or revised drafts allowed.
11. The decisions of the judges are final and shall not be disputed. The contest and its coordinators may not be held responsible for any errors or omissions by the judges.
12. By entering the contest, the writer(s) understand that there is no guarantee of representation (by an agent or manager) and/or production in the event that a script is chosen as a winner. Consideration of the script is given for the sole purpose of choosing a winner for the contest.
13. The writer understands that the Hot Springs Screenplay Competition, LLC will be free to use their name and likeness for advertising or promotional purposes without additional consideration, should the writer make it past the first round.
14. All scripts submitted should be registered with the WGAw and/or the US Copyright Office before the time of submission.
15. The entry fee must be paid in US dollars and are nonrefundable. Winner who may be awarded a cash prize shall be responsible for his or her own income tax. If a winner is awarded a cash prize, the entrant is responsible for providing an accurate PayPal address or bank account to receive the cash prize.
16. Previous winning scripts are NOT eligible.
17. Judges, sponsors and independent contractors are not eligible to enter the competition, nor are their spouses or other immediate family members.
18. The writer retains all rights to his/her screenplay.19. Additional rules may be amended at the sole discretion of HSSC.

By entering the contest, the submitter acknowledges the he/she has read, understood and accepted all of the above rules and conditions.

Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • Mary Kuryla

    Great festival that gives scripts serious attention. The entry free is reasonable, the festival administrators are responsive and hospitable and down-to-earth, and the prizes are excellent. One of the best competitions around. Highly recommend.

    October 2022
  • Randy Gross

    What a professionally-executed, responsive competition! Stacey couldn't have been friendlier or more punctual with her notifications. And rewarding even the quarter finalists with a free pitch from Virtual Pitch Fest was such a welcome bonus!

    October 2022
  • A great competition with a reward of free prices on VPF. A great experience.

    October 2022
  • David Congalton

    I am so glad I found the fine folks from Hot Springs. The registration price is more than fair, the results will announced in a timely fashion, and the staff fielded all questions promptly and patiently. I especially enjoyed the prize that I received as a Finalist--three free pitches to Hollywood producers via Virtual Pitch Fest. All three producers requested my script and that would not have happened without the Hot Springs contest. So the lesson here is that sometimes the Road to Hollywood goes through Arkansas. Who knew?

    July 2022
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    Response from festival:

    Thank you, David, and so excited to hear about your success with VPF. Keep us posted!

  • How exciting! My feature-length screenplay «Bilious» was a Finalist in the Competition. There was good communication along the way, so this was really encouraging to follow as they updated the judging.

    July 2022