Submission Guidelines

Any K-12 student in an East Central Illinois school district, private school, or home school is invited to submit one or more screenplays of his or her own making. Students may also elect to write a screenplay together as a group. This page explains how to correctly format and submit your screenplay for this contest. Submissions not adhering to these guidelines may be disqualified.

Quick Overview

Screenplays should be 1-5 numbered pages in length and be presented in standard scriptwriting format.
Entry deadline: All entries must be submitted electronically before 11:59 PM on February 28, 2019.
Submit online with this form.

How To Format Your Entry

The screenplay should be 1-5 number pages (not including the title page) in standard scriptwriting format. More information about standard scriptwriting format can be found in the Resources section.

Rules For Submitting Your Screenplay

All entries must be original and the sole work of the author(s). Submissions that re-use characters or stories that the student has seen before will not be considered. Screenplays that are produced into films will understand the practical limitations of filmmaking. Stories should adhere to the entrant’s school’s code of conduct. Students give filmmakers chosen by the Champaign-Urbana Film Society permission to produce their script. Filmmakers will not own student scripts, nor will they make money from the project. Assistance from teachers and parents is expected, but the student is responsible for the ideas in the story and the way those ideas are expressed. We encourage proofreading of the stories prior to submission.

Awards Criteria

Community filmmakers and artists choose screenplays from all ages that they would like to take through the filmmaking process. Other screenplays will be realized as movie poster designs. Some exceptional scripts that are not chosen to be produced as movies will win writing awards in these age categories: grades K-5, 6-8, and 9-12.
Winners will be notified that their script is being produced, designed, or recognized one month before the gala.