Do you have a captivating/engaging/thought-provoking scripted TV series idea? Tell us your story – we will listen carefully and will help you make your dream come true!

Hypewriter, the leading fiction concept pitch forum for CEE is back - with a vengeance!

We seek the next great idea for a scripted television series! The winner will receive a prize of 10,000 EUR and this concept will be turned into a professionally produced pilot episode or will get a “proof concept” short film produced that may evolve into a complete TV series.

Eight finalists will be invited to pitch their stories to an international jury of prominent film and media industry representatives. The forum takes place in Budapest, Hungary. We will cover travel and hotel expenses for all finalists.

So, show us some real, bold ideas and blow our socks off!

Application deadline: 30 July, 2024.
Notification of the 15 pre-selected projects: 21 August, 2024.
Notification of the Pitch Forum finalists: 10 September, 2024.
Pitch Forum in Budapest: 8 October, 2024.

HOW TO ENTER
We are looking for scripted TV series projects with a potential of multiple seasons.

Format: 4 to 8 episodes/season, 40-60 minutes/ episode.

The submitted scripted TV series project’s concept shall be based on an original idea, shall be generally in line with the commercial television trends of Central and Eastern Europe, shall be suitable for production budgets usually applied in the CEE region and shall preferably be in a contemporary setting and in a scripted genre attracting popular viewership interest (crime, drama, comedy, or dramedy etc.).

Please submit all of the following materials in ONE PDF file via FilmFreeway (there is no submission fee):

1. Synopsis
A concept and synopsis for the TV series in two pages. General and short description of the story of the TV series. (Max. 4000 characters.)

2. Season Arc
Describing the narrative construction of the series. (Max. 6000 characters.)

3. Character descriptions
Describing the main characters of the TV series. (Max. 500 characters per series character.)

4. One completed scene
From the pilot episode, in standard screenplay format. With optional dialogues.

5. CV of the applicant(s)

6. Declaration of non-infringement
The project will not infringe on any third party's intellectual property rights, copyrights, moral rights, patents, trademark or other rights.

You can submit your PDF in one of two languages: English (preferred) or Hungarian. However, the pitching forum is in English so the Finalists have to pitch in English (without translation).

WHAT HAPPENS THEN?
The Paprika pre-selection team of industry professionals will select 15 projects from the duly submitted applications. Paprika will organize a two-round online workshop with them with the aim to raise awareness of the significance and conditions of participation in Hypewriter, and to provide general advice. This will include face-to-face consultations and short interviews to get to know the participants and to assess their presentational and script development skills.

As a result of the online workshops, we will select those projects who will be invited to the Hypewriter Pitching Forum (8-10 projects). In this consultation and final selection phase RTL's designated experts will also be involved as advisors and selection jury.

Creators of the best 8 to 10 stories will be invited to Budapest (travel and accommodation to be covered by Paprika, please see Terms and Conditions for details), where they will present their ideas to the jury and a live audience.

Each finalist will have a maximum of 8 minutes to introduce their project in English, accompanied by a visual presentation. A 7-minute QA will follow each pitch presentation.

The outcome of the pitching forum may be one of following two alternative selection methods:

- In the event the jury finds a clear winner, a finalist that the judges select as the best project will be awarded and receive a prize of 10,000 EUR, this amount also covering the remuneration for the project copyrights and the services to be provided by the winner(s) in developing the concept to a pilot script and episode outlines. If this development process is successfully completed, a professional pilot episode will be produced by Paprika Studios.

- In the event the jury decides that there is no clear winner, the jury will be entitled to select a maximum of 3 excellent projects from the Pitchforum. In this case the selected projects shall split the above prize equally and will be entitled to participate in the development of a “proof of concept” in the length of 15-20 minutes (plus the episode outlines) in line with the legal and financial terms as detailed under item 1 above. If this development process is successfully completed, each “proof of concept” script will be produced by Paprika Studios.

The Hypewriter Forum is scheduled as a live event on 8 October, 2024. There will be two online preparatory workshops to develop the concept with the help of accomplished script doctors and screenwriters. The day before the pitching event, the Hypewriter team organizes a professional coaching workshop to help Finalists prepare for their presentations at a Hypewriter workshop in Budapest. All finalists are invited and expected to attend.

OUR STORY
Established in 2018 by Paprika Studios in collaboration with RTL Hungary, Hypewriter was the first international TV Series Pitch Forum held in Budapest and has since become the leading pitch forum of CEE.

Paprika Studios, as one of the largest production houses in Central Eastern Europe and the Baltics, has been producing and developing international titles since 2007 for more than 30 broadcasters in 10 countries.

Paprika Studios is passionate about creating great TV shows that inspire and give compelling entertainment and offer unique opportunities for scriptwriters to pitch in a great TV show idea – and help them break into the entertainment industry's front line.

RTL Hungary is a commercial television broadcaster in Hungary and a major player on the Hungarian television market and film production scene. RTL Hungary is part of RTL Group, Europe's leading entertainment network, that is present in several countries worldwide and is engaged in producing well-known television programmes such as huge talent shows, contests, films, and series.

Paprika Studios and RTL Hungary aim to evolve in high-quality television series content production – to achieve that, Hypewriter seeks to discover aspiring talents and offer them a chance to realize their unique ideas, thus bringing more original projects and fresh content into production.

In 2024 the sixth edition of Hypewriter will be realized. More than 70 finalists have participated in the past events with several hundreds of industry professional guests. The winner of the first season of Hypewriter, 'The Butcher,' has had its pilot episode produced and is currently available on RTL+, the streaming platform of RTL Hungary. Our winner in 2019, Golden Age has received a straight-to-series commission and currently the full season is already in post production and will air on RTL soon.The pilot episode of the winner of 2021, 'Angel's Trumpet' was produced by Paprika and was directed by Oscar nominated Ildikó Enyedi and it was successfully released on RTL's streaming platform in 2023'. The pilot episode of the winning project of 2022, "The Rise And Fall of Zolika Pásztor', is in development and scheduled for filming soon. In 2023 three different projects were chosen as joint-winners of the Hypewriter Pitch Forum. Many other titles and series ideas that have received special mentions by the jury in the various forums are in the development pipeline of Paprika Studios, and other Finalist concepts have become produced shows in various countries of CEE.

What is Your Story?

Awards & Prizes

The main prizes in the competition will be

• 10.000 € award (this amount includes the remuneration for the project concept copyrights and for the services to be provided by the authors in the development process)

• The pilot episode of the winning project (or the “proof of concepts”, depending on the outcome as detailed above) will be developed, produced and filmed by Paprika Studios, provided that the script development process is successfully completed. RTL Hungary will then premiere the pilot episode/proof of concepts on one of its platforms. Paprika Studios will be involved in showcasing the pilot episode to broadcasters worldwide.

Rules & Terms

1. Hypewriter, organized by Paprika Studios in co-operation with RTL Hungary is open to applicants from the Central and Eastern European region as well as from all over the world. The competition is open to everybody, for professionals and amateurs also.

2. Full right and authority to enter into this Agreement. In order for Paprika Studios and RTL Hungary to accept your submission you must assure that you have the right to enter this contest and would be in a position to grant Paprika Studios and RTL Hungary the following rights and shall warrants for the followings:
• The applicant shall not disclose to third parties or submit the submitted materials of her/his project and all elements thereof to any other screenwriting contest until the selection notification.
• The selected finalists who will be invited to the pitch forum to present their project shall grant exclusive option for Paprika Studios for the period of 8 months starting from the submission of the materials by the applicant all rights in any and all media, now known and hereafter devised (including without limitation all copyrights therein) in and to the submitted materials and all elements thereof.
• The winner shall grant Paprika Studios any and all rights to the submitted materials, which are (i) exclusive, and (ii) transferable to third parties, and (iii) not restricted in territorial, temporal, methodical or other terms, and includes the rights to develop, produce the series based on the project and also grant exclusive rights to broadcast the series in all media for an undefined period.

• The winner shall cooperate in the development of the pilot episode and series outlines and provide writing services to Paprika.
• The remuneration of the transfer of the above exclusive rights and for the writing services provided by the winner in the development process is included in the prize amount.

• The applicants shall represent and warrant that he is at least 18 years old (or the age of majority where you reside, whichever is older), can form a legally binding contract by accepting an agreement online (without exchange of paper), and have the full right, power and authority to enter into and comply with agreement.
• The project entered has not been sold and is not under option at the time of entry.
• In case of submission the applicant represents and warrants that he is legally entitled to do so because he is the sole author or creator of the submission (he is contributing documents that he has written completely on his own).
• The applicant shall represent and warrant for the chain of title for all rights in and to the submitted materials and all elements thereof.
• The applicant shall accept that no projects may be withdrawn from the Pitch Forum after its selection.
• The winner may not publish any news about his/her project without the prior written consent of Paprika Studios.
Every effort will be made to adhere to the published schedule, nevertheless Paprika Studios/RTL Hungary fully reserve their right to make changes and modifications at any time for any reason in the terms and conditions herein or to withdraw the tender entirely. Paprika Studios and/or RTL Hungary will not be liable for any costs claimed as a result of a change or withdrawal.

Guidelines, Submission Format

The following materials must be submitted via FilmFreeway in ONE SINGLE PDF FILE by creating the document and uploading it directly to the 'Files & Attachments' section of your project page. The PDF file should include:

Synopsis - A concept and synopsis for the TV series in two pages. General and short description of the story of the TV series. (max 4000 characters.)
Season Arc - Describing the narrative construction of the series.
Character descriptions - Describing the main characters of the TV series.
One completed scene - From the pilot episode, in standard screenplay format. With optional dialogues.
- CV of the applicant(s)
- Declaration of non-infringement (the project will not infringe the intellectual property rights, copyrights, moral rights, patent, trademark or other rights of any third party).

Country of origin: primarily CEE countries, but submissions from all over the world are welcome.

Submission documents are required in PDF format, combined to one PDF document. Electronic submissions only via FilmFreeway.

Submission shall be in English or Hungarian

Concepts have not been exhibited on the Internet/VOD.

Hypewriter may contact participants for an interview before a decision is made.

Personal participation and travel arrangements

The 15 projects selected in the pre-selection process and the finalists will be required to take part in all the workshops and events of Hypewriter 2024.
There will be two online preparatory workshop(s) held by accomplished script doctors and story editors of Paprika Studios and RTL, in order to develop the concept and the story of the submitted projects. The first workshop will be in the first week of September, the second one a week before the main Hypewriter event.

Adequate English language skills are required for the finalists to participate on the Workshops and on the Pitch Forum, because finalists need to present their projects. In the absence of adequate English language skills, Paprika Studios may nominate other finalists.
Finalists will be required to be present personally at the Pitch Forum on 8 October 2024 and at the preparation workshop from the morning of 7 October 2024 in Budapest.

Each project can be represented by a maximum of 2 persons. Travel to and from the Pitch Forum, plus accommodation including breakfast will be provided free of charge by Hypewriter to Finalists, for a maximum of two persons per project, at the most optimal arrangement chosen by Hypewriter at the organizer’s sole discretion.

We expect the Finalists to cooperate in terms of travel, as an environmentally conscious company, we intend to achieve the most environmentally friendly way possible.
Hypewriter reserves the right to select more than 8 Finalists, so that in the unfortunate event a Finalist can’t attend the Pitch Forum for any reason, including those beyond the control of Finalist, their workshop and presentation slot will be awarded to a Reserve Finalist. Reserve Finalists will be notified of their status and may or may not be awarded the chance to participate and present their projects at the Pitch Forum. In case a Reserve Finalist is chosen to become a Finalist, they will have the same rights and duties as those chosen to be Finalists in the first round.

Data Privacy

The Applicants are hereby informed that Paprika Studios, for the performance of the contract, will be processing personal data relating to Applicants, such as name, address, e-mail address, telephone number and the details in the CV.

The purpose of the data processing of the personal data of the Applicants is to organize the pitch, evaluate the submitted materials, decide on the winner, enter into contract, acquire rights, granting licenses, administration of the contract and reporting towards authorities. The legal basis of the data processing is the performance of the contract between the Applicant and Paprika Studios as well as fulfillment of the legal obligations of Paprika Studios.

Recipients of the personal data (to which the personal data are disclosed): employees of Paprika Studios, M-RTL, third party sub-contractors. The personal data are processed until the duration of the right to use, until the expiration of the period of limitation in respect of the contract or up to the mandatory deadline prescribed by law.

The Applicant has the right of access to and rectification and erasure of their respective personal data, she/he is entitled to demand that processing be restricted and to object to certain kinds of processing of their respective personal data. The Applicant may exercise their rights to data portability as set out in the relevant laws.

The Applicant may lodge a complaint to the Hungarian National Authority for Data Protection and Freedom of Information (postal address: 1363 Budapest, Pf. 9.; e-mail: ugyfelszolgalat@naih.hu). The demands in connection with the data processing of Paprika Studios can also be brought before the competent county court.

Paprika Studios uses FilmFreeway’s submission platform for the pitch (https://filmfreeway.com/hypewriter), its privacy policy is available at https://filmfreeway.com/page/privacy-policy. Paprika Studios therefore collects the personal data of the Applicants through FilmFreeway’s system.

By entering into contract with Paprika Studios, Applicant acknowledges and accepts that Paprika Studios processes her/his personal data in accordance with the above.

7 Reviews
Overall Rating
Quality
Value
Communication
Hospitality
Networking
  • Lina None

    A great and well put-together festival that allows you to connect with fellow screenwriters, as well as learn and exchange experiences. Very grateful to have been a part of it!

    January 2025
    Helpful
  • Nikolasz Vass

    Extremely well-organized event and process, incredible experience, and fantastic people!:)

    October 2024
    Helpful
  • Tarek Mallo

    So lucky to have been a finalist in such a prestigious competition!

    October 2022
    Helpful
  • Suzana Kokalj

    I loved the whole experience. It was an extremely nice event!

    October 2022
    Helpful
  • Krisztian Streit

    Had a really great time at this Festival, as it had amazing hospitality, with really kind and friendly people all around. It was fully professional, but it was warm, and intimate at the same time. Everything was just so smooth and enjoyable, so you are able to really focus on your task, and you can always expect professional help if you need it, as they held an amazing workshop at the previous day of the pitch!
    Overall, this has been such a great experience, I collected memories here, which i will not forget anytime soon!

    October 2021
    Helpful