Scriptable

APPLICANT CRITERIA
Scriptable is for emerging screenwriters. For the purpose of Scriptable, ‘emerging screenwriters’ are defined as writers who are unproduced, or who have had no more than 50 minutes of a feature screenplay produced, or no more than 45 minutes of a TV/web series produced.

Contact Queensland Writers Centre for any concerns regarding eligibility or in other circumstances.

Writers who have entered work into previous years’ competitions remain eligible to enter this competition. A new application will need to be made.

Shortlisted writers from previous Scriptable competitions are ineligible to enter.

Applicants must be Australian citizens or permanent residents in Australia and must currently reside in Australia.

Applicants aged under 16 years should contact the Centre prior to making their application.

A minimum of 2 places in the mentorship program will be reserved for Queensland-based writers. A Queensland-based writer is defined as a writer currently residing in Queensland.

A minimum of 1 place in the mentorship program may be reserved for applicants to the Youth Category for writers aged 16-25.

The final numbers selected for the mentorship program are to be at Queensland Writers Centre’s discretion.

MANUSCRIPT CRITERIA
Applicants must submit their own original, unproduced work.

Scriptable accepts all forms of manuscripts, including short films, feature film, TV series and web series.

Manuscripts may be of any genre.

Please read the Entry & assessment process for the correct submission and formatting of your manuscript. Queensland Writers Centre reserves the right to ask applicants to submit full (completed) works (within 72 hours of being notified) prior to announcing the writers selected for the mentorship program.

KEY DATES
Applications open: Monday 4 July – Tuesday 16 August 2022

Shortlist notified: Late September 2022

Successful applicants will be publicly announced on Queensland Writers Centre’s website, social media channels and Pen & Pixel email newsletter. Successful applicants will be personally notified prior to public announcements. Unsuccessful applicants will be personally notified of the outcome of their application.

ENTRY & ASSESSMENT PROCESS
Applicants must submit their original work through the Application Form to the following guidelines:

For feature screenplays, the writer must submit the first 50 pages of their correctly formatted screenplay.

For TV/web series, the writer must submit up to the first 50 pages of their correctly formatted screenplay. This can include multiple episodes.

For short films, the writer is allowed to submit multiple correctly formatted short film screenplays as a collection, up to 50 pages.

Contact the Centre for submission guidelines for any other forms of scripts.

Manuscripts must be formatted as per industry standards (see How to apply).

Applications incur an administration fee which contributes to the expenses of Queensland Writers Centre in administering Scriptable. (See Fees & charges below for more information.)

Applicants can take advantage of a discounted One Year Membership with Queensland Writers Centre when joining as part of the application.

One-on-one Feedback Sessions (up to 30 minutes) with Queensland Writers Centre staff are available as a paid add-on, for applicants to receive reader feedback on their manuscript and discuss next steps.

Applicants may enter more than one manuscript to Scriptable. However, each manuscript submission will require a new application and incur a separate administration fee. If your first entry includes membership, then your next entries may be paid at the member price. The Feedback Session must be paid for each entry you wish to receive feedback on.

Queensland Writers Centre staff, tutors and trained readers will assess all submissions and will select writers for the mentorship program. Please note, there is no guarantee readers will go through the entire manuscript. Any advice given will be based off the first 50 pages and is provided to allow you to work through the rest of your manuscript.

Unsuccessful applicants can receive reader feedback on their work by selecting a Feedback Session in the application form. After applications close, Feedback Sessions will be available to book separately at full price ($99) for a limited time through Queensland Writers Centre’s Writer’s Consults program.

All feedback is constructive and the opinion of the reader/s.

Queensland Writers Centre staff will select up to 5 writers (the shortlist) from the competition to receive a 5-hour mentorship with an industry mentor.

Shortlisted writers must submit a full-length draft of their manuscripts within 72 hours of being accepted to the mentorship program. Staff or tutors from Queensland Writers Centre will not be required to read the entire manuscript. This process will provide proof that the manuscript has been completed.

Correspondence with Queensland Writers Centre will include a mixture of remote and in-person communication depending on availability. All workshops and required elements of the competition will be made available in an online format.

Once matched with a mentor, the format of the meetings will be agreed upon by the writer and mentor. Queensland Writers Centre will continue to monitor progress.

FEES & CHARGES
Standard application fees

Member application fee ($50)

Non-member (standard) application fee ($55)

Fees include GST.

Member application fees are available to current members of state writers’ centres in the National Writers’ Centre Network. If you’re not a member of Queensland Writers Centre, you may be asked to verify your membership of another centre.

Application fees with add-ons

Application fee + One Year Membership ($95)

Application fee + Feedback Session ($99)

Application fee + One Year Membership + Feedback Session ($144)

Applicants can take advantage of a discounted One Year Membership ($40 usually valued at $79) with Queensland Writers Centre as part of their application for a total of $95. If the applicant is already a member of Queensland Writers Centre, their current membership will be extended by one year.

Applicants can take advantage of a half-price Feedback Session ($49 usually valued at $99) when submitting your application, for a total application fee of $99. After applications close, Feedback Sessions will be available to book separately at full price ($99) for a limited time through Queensland Writers Centre’s regular Writer’s Consults program.

Applicants can add both a discounted One Year Membership and half-price Feedback Session to their application for a total of $144.

Participants will need to arrange and pay for their own travel and travel-related expenses throughout the Program, if applicable.

ADDITIONAL TERMS
Queensland Writers Centre does not guarantee the future production of manuscripts developed during the competition. Queensland Writers Centre reserves no rights over manuscripts developed during the competition. Queensland Writers Centre does not prohibit writers from submitting their manuscript to competitions, courses or producers prior to, during or following their participation in the competition.

Any credit offered towards Queensland Writers Centre and the Scriptable competition - on social media sites or media releases - must comply with any direction given by our staff, the proper logo and/or approved graphics used, and Queensland Writers Centre given notification of your intention to credit Queensland Writers Centre.

Queensland Writers Centre may offer unsuccessful applicants the opportunity to participate in a tailored Program at a cost additional to the initial application fee.