2027 Rules & Guidelines

Awards

• Every script submission will receive a complimentary written analysis.
• The Feature Screenplay Winner will receive $3,000.
• The Short Script Winner will receive $3,000.
• The Fellini Award will be awarded to the Best Screenplay from any category (Feature or Short) written by a writer residing outside the USA and will receive $2,000.
• All cash prizes will be disbursed 30 days after the winners are announced.

Eligibility

• All submissions must be original and the sole property of the applicant(s).
• All ages are eligible.
• Must be in English.
• Feature screenplays must be between 65–125 pages in length.
• Short screenplays must be between 1–29 pages in length.
• There is no limit to the number of entries you may submit.
• You may submit a script once. You may not submit the same script more than once.
• All script entries must be uploaded in PDF format.
• Under absolutely no circumstances will substitutions of either corrected pages or new drafts of the entry script(s) be made. Scripts will not be returned.
• If a submitted script becomes optioned, produced, or purchased between the time of submission and the end of the judging period, that script will no longer be eligible.
• Competition judges, readers, and employees of the BlueCat Screenplay Competition, past and present, and their immediate friends and families are not eligible to enter.
• Previous winners of the BlueCat Screenplay Competition are not eligible.
• Scripts—including outlines, treatments, pitches, log lines, or any developmental material related to the script—that have previously won any contest, competition, grant, lab, fellowship, mentorship, reading, or award of any kind are not eligible.
• Screenplays that have been submitted to any competition or contest prior to December 13th, 2023 are not eligible.
• Past and present scripts consulted on through Gordy Hoffman’s screenplay consultation service or the BlueCat workshops are not eligible.
• Past USC and UCLA students of Gordy Hoffman are not eligible.

Resubmissions

Your script is eligible for resubmission. Resubmission allows you to revise your script and resubmit it to BlueCat.

• Each entry is considered a stand-alone submission. Your resubmitted script will not replace your original entry.
• Resubmissions will receive script analysis.
• Entrants can select a previous reader, a new reader, or no preference. If your previous reader is no longer available, you can request a new reader or a refund.
• Each script may be resubmitted twice.
• Script titles cannot be changed upon resubmission. The author(s) must meet all eligibility requirements.
• Resubmissions will open after the first analyses are sent — all entrants will be notified.

Submission Deadlines & Fees

Screenplay Analysis Schedule

All analysis provided to entrants is complimentary.

Competition Results Schedule