IMPORTANT COVID-19 ANNOUNCEMENT:
In comedy, timing is everything. And as much as laughing together can lift the spirits, we have to accept that the time is just not right to hold the 11th Annual Women in Comedy Festival this May. We’ve made the difficult decision to postpone this year’s screening and pitching events due to COVID-19.

We will announce the 2020 official selections on May 22, 2020. We are working with industry creatives to award Best of Fest and Industry Choice cash prizes and mentoring opportunities for 2020. A date will be announced soon. For screenplay submissions, we will be awarding the top 5 scripts pitching opportunities for 2020. We are working with our industry creatives to come up with the best possible experience for our official selections to screen films and pitch screenplays in light of the current situation. We will keep you posted.

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Women in Comedy Festival is thrilled to partner with HBO, Amy Aniobi (Insecure), NBC, FEIGCO Entertainment and Powderkeg , Jill and Faith Soloway (Transparent) and M. Dickson (Disenchantment) to work towards closing the gender gap in the film and television industry by featuring original comedic content created from all over the world.

The 2020 CATEGORIES FOR YOUR SUBMISSION (Enter one or all four!):

1. THE HBO PITCH YOUR FIRST 5 PAGES COMPETITION with Amy Aniobi

2 .WICF COMEDY SHORT CONTEST with Feigco Entertainment Co-President Laura Fischer (2 TO 10 minute short film)

3. WICF TV COMEDY/DRAMEDY PILOT CONTEST with Jill and Faith Soloway (under 30 minute television pilot)

4. WICF ANIMATED COMEDY SHORT CONTEST with M. Dickson (5 minutes or less animated short)

Feel free to enter all four categories. But remember, each submission requires an individual application and entry fee. You may submit no more than 5 entries in each category.

WHAT YOU MUST KNOW:
ALL GENDERS are welcome to submit.
For the TV/FILM CATEGORIES: your submission must have a female-identifying protagonist, and a woman must hold AT LEAST ONE of the following roles: Producer, Director, or Writer.
For the SCREENPLAY CATEGORY: your script must have a female-identifying protagonist.
For the ANIMATION CATEGORY: your animation must be written, directed and/or produced by a woman.

HERE ARE THE DETAILS - PLEASE READ CAREFULLY

1. THE HBO PITCH YOUR FIRST 5 PAGES COMPETITION
Submit the first 5 Pages of your original 30-minute Comedy or Dramedy television pilot.

The TOP 5 scripts will have the chance to Virtual Pitch and receive live feedback from an Industry Pitch Panel moderated by Kelly Edwards, Senior Vice President of Talent Development, HBO. The prize-winning script selected by the Industry Pitch Panel will have a mentoring call with Amy Aniobi, Executive Producer of Insecure, along with a $500 cash prize.

Please only submit the opening 5 pages of your completed original script. The title page will not be considered as one of your 5 pages and should ONLY include your TITLE and LOGLINE. No identifying information should be on the title page. This is a comedy festival, so scripts should be in the genre of comedy or dramedy. We’re looking for material that will grab our attention fast, hook us in and build up the anticipation of what’s to come.

All genders are encouraged and welcome to submit. Your script must have a female-identifying protagonist.

2. WICF COMEDY SHORT CONTEST with Feigco Entertainment Co-President Laura Fischer
Women in Comedy Festival is accepting comedic short films or single episodes of web series that are between 2 to 10 minutes. This contest is a great opportunity for filmmakers to submit comedic content that they have already created with a chance to win $1000 and a one-on-one mentoring call with Feigco Entertainment Co-President Laura Fischer.
Official selections will be screened at the 11th Annual Women in Comedy Festival on May 9, 2020.

3. WICF TV COMEDY/DRAMEDY PILOT CONTEST with Jill and Faith Soloway
Submit your produced, original, television comedy or dramedy pilot that is 30 minutes or less for for a chance to win $1000 and a mentoring call with Jill and Faith Soloway. We’re looking for unique television storytelling that will entertain us through a good laugh. One “Best of Fest” winner will be selected to be screened at the at the 11th Annual Women in Comedy Festival on May 9, 2020.

4. WICF ANIMATED COMEDY SHORT CONTEST with M. Dickson
Submit your animated short comedy film that is 5 minutes or less in length for a chance to win $1000 and a mentoring call with M. Dickson. We’re looking for fresh and funny animation. Official selections will be screened at the 11th Annual Women in Comedy Festival on May 9, 2020.

IMPORTANT DATES
Early Deadline: January 24, 2020
Regular Deadline: February 21, 2020
Late Deadline: 11:59 PM (PST) March 15, 2020
Notification Date: April 6th, 2020
Event Date: May 9th, 2020

Best of luck!
The WICF Film Team

If your TV pilot, short film or animation has been selected to be screened at the Festival, you will be contacted by email by May 22, 2020. The number of TV pilots, films and animations chosen to be screened at Women in Comedy Festival: Film & Screenplay Competition in all categories will be based on the number and quality of entries received.

AWARDS

THE HBO PITCH YOUR FIRST 5 PAGES COMPETITION
Top 5 scripts will be selected to virtual pitch. More details to come. Winning script will receive $500 along with a mentoring call with an Amy Aniobi (Insecure)

WICF COMEDY SHORT CONTEST with Feigco Entertainment Co-President Laura Fischer:
$1000 plus a one-on-one mentoring phone/skype call with Feigco Entertainment Co-President Laura Fischer will be awarded to the “Best of Fest”
$250 will be awarded to the "Audience Choice Award" winner

WICF TV COMEDY/DRAMEDY PILOT with Jill and Faith Soloway
$1000 plus a one-on-one mentoring phone/skype call with Jill and Faith Soloway will be awarded to “Best in Fest”

WICF ANIMATED COMEDY SHORT CONTEST
$1000 will be awarded for “Best of Fest” plus a one-on-one mentoring call with M. Dickson. $250 will be awarded to the "Audience Choice Award" winner

ALL ENTRANTS AGREE TO ADHERE TO THE FOLLOWING RULES, TERMS, and CONDITIONS BEFORE SUBMITTING YOUR FILM OR SCREENPLAY.

NO REFUND of your entry fee will be permitted.

All entry and payment will be submitted through FilmFreeway.

All decisions by judges, programmers and organizers shall be made in their sole discretion and will be FINAL.

TV, SHORT FILM AND ANIMATION SUBMISSION ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS:

To qualify, the protagonist of the film must be female-identifying, and a woman must hold AT LEAST ONE of the following roles: Producer, Director, or Writer.
This is a comedy film festival only. All submissions must fall under the comedy genre.
The contest is open worldwide except where prohibited by law. All entries must be either in English or contain English subtitles.
Films must be submitted as an online streaming video via the participating submission platform FilmFreeway.
You must provide your film on a digital download for submissions. Digital exhibition format will be used at the Festival theatrical location. If your film is selected, you must supply the highest possible quality digital version.
We strongly encourage filmmakers to submit ONLY their fully-finished film. We will judge each submission as a completed work, whether it is or not. Once a film is submitted, we will not update the submission with a more recent cut. Should the film be accepted for screening during the Festival, the filmmaker may have the opportunity to supply the festival with their most recent version, given extreme extenuating circumstances such as a corrupted file.
Women in Comedy Festival and their affiliates have no responsibility for loss, theft, or damage to the materials you submit.
Women in Comedy Festival screens films as digital files during the Festival and does NOT screen films on Blu-Ray, HDCAM, or DCP. If accepted, you must provide us your film as a digital file for exhibition.
Submission for the WICF COMEDY SHORT CONTEST with Feigco Entertainment category must be between 2 to 10 minutes in length, including credits.
Submission for the WICF TV COMEDY/DRAMEDY PILOT CONTEST category must be 30 minutes or less in length, including credits.
Submission for the WICF ANIMATED COMEDY SHORT CONTEST category must be 5 minutes of less in length, including credits.
Employees, officers, subsidiaries, affiliated companies, advertising and promotion agencies, and immediate family members of WICF are ineligible to participate. An “immediate family member” includes spouses, parents, grandparents, siblings, children, and grandchildren.
You must be 18 years or older to submit.
We will NOT look at works in progress, so please do not submit them.
All films must be submitted as they will appear at the Festival. No editing is permitted after entry.
Please do NOT send stills or press kits. If your film is selected we will request additional information at that time.
You may enter any category multiple times. But remember: each entry requires an individual submission, application and entry fee. You may submit no more than 5 entries in each category through filmfreeway.com.
Only completed entries through filmfreeway.com will be processed and considered for screening. Submissions made in any other manner will not be accepted.
By submitting your entry, you confirm and warrant you have the required legal authority to submit the entry into the Festival and to use all music, images and content in the entry and to authorize use and exhibition of the film.
You must have exclusive rights to your film as well as any pertinent releases including but not limited to actors image, location image, trademarked or copyrighted image and music. Women in Comedy Festival Producers reserve the right to request proof of such releases at any time before films are screened.

IF YOUR FILM IS SELECTED:

Participants whose films are selected to be screened at WICF will be contacted by email on or around April 6th, 2020. The winners of “Best of Fest” and “Audience Choice Award” in each category will be announced at the event on May 9, 2020 at The Brattle Theater in Cambridge, MA.
You are responsible for your own travel and accommodations.
The winners will be ANNOUNCED the screening and must show picture identification to claim their prize. Women in Comedy Festival reserves the right to examine additional identification and may choose to accept or deny awarding the prize based on the identification presented.
You agree to allow Women in Comedy Festival to exhibit your film in venues during its 2020 festival, regardless of subsequent distribution deals secured after the submission process. You further agree to allow Women in Comedy Festival usage of clips from the film and all related publicity material submitted for promotional use on television, radio, in print, web and at live Festival events.
Films accepted for exhibition may be screened on the Women in Comedy Festival website and sister websites after the Festival with permission from the film’s owner. Films may be maintained on these website for up to one year.
You are responsible for all shipping costs and risk of loss of your submitted materials to the Festival. The Festival has no responsibility for loss, theft, or damage to the materials you submit.

SCREENPLAY SUBMISSION ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS:
All genders are encouraged and welcome to submit. Your script must have a female-identifying protagonist.
All scripts must be submitted in English and entered electronically in .PDF format. Hard copies of scripts will not be accepted.
All submissions must be the first 5 pages of a completed, orignal, television script. Please only submit up to the first 5 pages.
Your script must be your original work.
Scripts that have been sold, produced for a profit, or are currently under option are not eligible.
Prior contest-winning scripts from other contests are acceptable.
The 1st 5 pages of your 30-minute Comedy or Dramedy only are accepted. Anything else, including but not limited to short scripts or web series, novels, short stories, stage plays, musicals, treatments, synopses, reality show concepts, documentaries, and/or spec scripts for existing TV series are not eligible.
Script must be industry standard format. Formatting is taken into consideration in judging.
Include a TITLE PAGE with your TITLE and LOGLINE only. Under no circumstances should the writer include name or contact information within the title page or body of the script.
The title page WILL NOT be considered as one of your 5 pages.
It is the writer’s sole responsibility to register material to be submitted with the U.S. Copyright Office and/or with the Writers Guild of America or the appropriate agency in the writer’s country.
Writers retain the rights to their screenplay.
Applications are non-exclusive and applicants may submit their screenplay to any other person, competition, producer, agent, publisher, and/or organization.
Applicant accepts without reservation that the submitted screenplay will be reviewed by WICF staff and/or panel of Industry Judges for evaluation and that any one of these staff members or judges may have been or may be exploring ideas similar to the submitted material, and the applicant hereby waives any claim that the staff or judges may have misappropriated any ideas or portions of the submission, logline or screenplay.
Collaborations are accepted, but please note that ALL PRIZES ARE AWARDED TO A SINGLE WRITER ONLY. WICF will provide a single check made out to one writer.
You must be 18 years or older to submit.
The contest is open worldwide except where prohibited by law.
Once you complete your application, we will not accept a revised draft. If you have a revised draft you want to submit, you will need to complete a new application.
Entrants may submit up to 5 scripts, but each script will require a separate application and payment.

IF YOUR SCREENPLAY IS SELECTED:

The top 5 scripts selected will be invited to pitch at the WICF Pitch Workshop on May 9, 2020 in Boston, MA.
You are responsible for your own travel and accommodations.

I ACKNOWLEDGE AND AGREE AS FOLLOWS:

1.I have read, understood and complied with all eligibility requirements of the categories for which I would like this film or screenplay to be considered.

2.Women in Comedy Festival has no obligation (other than as stated in these rules or on our website) to disclose any of the following information: i) identities of screeners or judges; ii) notes, feedback, or information relating to the submitted project; and/or iii) details regarding the submission review or selection process.

3.The Women in Comedy Festival explicitly disclaims any liability or responsibility for any comments, notes, or opinions expressed about a submission, whether by the WICF judges or by its volunteers.

4. This film/screenplay is not subject to litigation nor is threatened by any litigation.

5. I am duly authorized to submit this film/screenplay to the Festival and its Competition.

6. By submitting an entry, I agree to the Rules, Terms, and Conditions as set forth above, and further agree to indemnify and hold the Women in Comedy Festival and their respective affiliates, officers, directors, agents, co-branders, sponsors, or other partners, and any of their employees (collectively, the "Festival Indemnites"), harmless from any and all claims, damages, expenses, costs (including \ attorneys’ reasonable fees) and liabilities (including settlements), brought or asserted by any third party against any of the Festival Indemnites due to or arising out of your film\screenplay and any other materials you submit in this Festival, or your conduct during and in connection with this Festival, including but not limited to claims of violation of copyright, trademark, or other intellectual property rights, right of publicity, right of privacy or defamation.

7. By claiming a prize, you authorize the use, without additional compensation, of your name, likeness, and/or voice and photograph for promotion and/or advertising purposes in any manner and in any medium now known or developed in the future throughout the world that Women in Comedy Festival deems appropriate.

8. This contest shall be governed by the laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • Ursula Taherian

    Hands down one of the best festivals I have ever attended. My immediate thought when I left was, "I'm making another film JUST so I can come back!" The organizers genuinely care about the artists which was evident by their accessibility and communication leading up to and during the festival, by the quality of the events and by the panels and workshop made available to us. The panels were especially valuable and lead by industry executives that were truly there to help us. There is something so magical about being in a group of talented women all lifting each other up! Thank you for having me!!

    February 2020
  • Elaine Loh

    One of the best festivals I've ever been to. Never seen such a supportive group - both the festival organizers and the fellow attendees. Great industry panels. Great comedy!

    May 2019
  • This is a must for any woman (or ally!) in comedy. Great panels on the industry and performers.

    May 2019
  • Kim Tran

    GO if you can. Such an amazing festival. The organizers care so hard. I met amazing friends there. The talent is top-notch. Everyone they brought in for the panels and workshops were so approachable. I learned, laughed and connected so much during my time in Boston.

    May 2019
  • Nals and Tess Comedy

    Fabulous festival! Great quality of performers and one on one contact with industry professionals!

    May 2019