WriteMovies welcomes the resolution of the WGA strike for writers and producers.
We welcome the resolution of the WGA strike, and we’re looking forward to exploring all the new terms of trade and sharing insights and news with you as we pitch our winners to industry again!
WriteMovies has successfully delivered contests, mentoring and pitching services for aspiring writers and producers since 1999. The global disruptions of recent years have created constant unanticipated challenges, especially the pandemic and the strike, but we’re still here and happy to be able to share exciting updates with you again. We’re continuing to enjoy our many discussions with industry insiders, and all the entries to our latest contests! We’re now into the Standard Entry phase of our contests, with screenplays now $59 and books and video games $69 to enter. Don’t forget you can enter any script, book or video game script, and receive:
1. An analysis of your crucial first ten pages from an industry perspective, telling you how well your writing stands out in the market and any areas in need of improvement
2. A free resubmission of your next draft to the same contest until it closes, for us to consider for representation and pitching to industry at our own expense
3. Entry to our Grand Prize contest, worth $3500, whichever contest you enter!
4. Guaranteed pitching to industry for every winner, and many other prizes…
We welcome your entries anytime and look forward to helping you fulfil your potential in the industry! Use the payment buttons now to enter – payment is available in multiple currencies and can accept credit and debit cards. Don’t forget that any of our Mentoring, Consulting and Script Consulting services also automatically provide free resubmission and automatic future contest entry too! We have services for every price point and welcome the chance to work with you on fulfilling your potential – enter now! Don’t forget that any of our Mentoring, Consulting and Script Consulting services also provide all the prizes and opportunities of our contests too!
Dr. Alex Ross featured in Newsweek!
BLOCKBUSTED author speaks out on modernizing Disney’s problematic older content
As controversies rage about the problematic features of traditional Disney films and content, Newsweek has published an article about how “Disney Is Offending Its Audience”, and our founder is prominently featured. Here’s what Dr. Alex Ross had to say when featured in Newsweek:
“Disney would face an “impossible” task to ensure its vintage titles met today’s standards, according to Alexander Ross, author of The Evolution of Hollywood’s Calculated Blockbuster Films: Blockbusted.
“What would be even worse would be to ban the inappropriate; elements. We need to see these within a historical context [as a] reflection on the times. They shed light on our past, however unpleasant,” Ross told Newsweek. “With the now usual advisories, they should remain accessible to those who are interested. We need to continue engaging with these, the worst thing that could happen would be to shut down the debates.”
Ross was referring to Disney’s decision to put advisories ahead of older shows and films on its streaming service, Disney+, warning of potentially offensive content and even putting age restrictions on beloved titles such as Dumbo, Peter Pan and The Aristocats.
“Whether Disney can sanitize some of the problematic IP [intellectual property] in order to commercialize it is an entirely different matter. Some of their older IP, going back to their earlier, classic animation films is very valuable and adds hundreds of millions to the value of the studio’s library,” Ross added. “Does re-tooling it to make it acceptable and relevant to new generations make sense? Absolutely.”
CLICK HERE to read the full article at Newsweek.com!
CLICK HERE to hire Dr. Alex Ross as consultant for your own project.
Sci-Fi and Fantasy Award 2023!
Thanks for all your entries to our 2023 contests.
The WriteMovies Sci-Fi and Fantasy Award is a thrilling journey into other realms, exploring the vast possibilities of the human imagination through your scripts. Amidst the captivating landscapes and intricate narratives, we have, after careful consideration, selected a deserving winner!
Sci-fi and fantasy genres often birth franchises, offering storytellers rich lore and expansive story worlds to delve into. This amplifies the excitement as we eagerly anticipate presenting all our winners to the industry.
Remember, even if you didn’t clinch the victory this time, your writing journey continues. Persevere and re-enter future contests, for persistence is a writer’s essential trait!
Seeking assistance? Explore our sci-fi and fantasy-themed writing insights articles, covering aspects like worldbuilding and dialogue. For personalized guidance, consider our Elite Mentoring service, connecting you with industry veterans.
Thanks for all your entries to our 2023 contests, which closed on November 26th. We’re enjoying judging your works, now with our next winner to announce: our 2023 Sci-Fi and Fantasy Award Winner revealed: THE REVOLT OF THE WHALES by Michael Rhodes!
Congratulations to Michael for an inventive and visionary screenplay. We’re really looking forward to helping develop this further and pitching it to industry.
Congratulations once again to our
2023 Sci-Fi and Fantasy Award Winner!!
Michael Rhodes
Romance and Comedy Award 2023!
Thanks for all your entries to our 2023 contests.
Thanks for all your entries to our 2023 contests, which closed on November 26th. We’re enjoying judging your works and we’re already set with our next winner to announce, postponed a few days due to the contest extension: our 2023 Romance and Comedy Award winner, WHISKEY MOUNTAIN DAYS by Bill Walker!
Congratulations to Bill for an imaginative and unique screenplay. We’re really looking forward to helping develop this further and pitching it to industry.
Congratulations once again to our
2023 Romance and Comedy Award Winner!!
Bill Walker
WriteMovies’ response to the 2023 WGA strike
Why we’re pausing all pitching until 2023 WGA strike disputes are resolved.
WriteMovies would like to welcome our new Analyst Matt Rose, who shares our response to the 2023 WGA strike below:
Our team here at WriteMovies stands behind the Writers Guild of America during their current strike as they put the scripted film and television industries on hold in advocating for fair wages, protections from being overworked and understaffed, and safeguards against AI screenwriting.
As script consultants and contest runners, we’ve worked with countless writers, both aspiring and experienced, and we understand the painstaking labor that goes into perfecting a screenplay for production. From blockbusters to indie hits, we know that every great film or series begins with an excellent script. In all respects, we pride ourselves on doing everything we can to hone and bolster the voices of screenwriters. In solidarity with the writers who keep the entertainment industry afloat as proven by the numerous production delays and shutdowns effected by their strike WriteMovies will not be pitching to any studios that are WGA signatories until the strike comes to an end.
The demands of the WGA, outlined by AP News, include calls for much-needed updates to outdated wage and labor standards, which have effectively been used to underpay and overwork screenwriters in recent years. As audiences continue to move away en masse from live television towards streaming platforms, writers’ residuals from syndication have all but vanished while long-term streaming deals leave writers’ compensation disproportionate to their value. The WGA calls for increased upfront pay to correct for residuals lost to the streaming era.
Also based on norms of the past, overly-long exclusivity deals leftover from the age of 22-episode TV seasons block writers from accepting available work despite 8-10 episode seasons now being commonplace. The WGA demands shorter exclusivity terms to mirror the shrinking of TV seasons. The guild also wants to end the exploitation of “mini rooms” which overwork a handful of writers during development, and they demand contractual safeguards against studios’ and producers’ use of artificial intelligence to write scripts.
Any pitching to studios and producers is considered a crossing of the picket line even for aspiring guild writers, who may be permanently barred from WGA membership for scab behavior though writers may continue seeking agents or managers, according to screenwriter and WGA secretary-treasurer Christopher Kyle. WriteMovies will continue to offer our screenplay contests and development services, and our studio pitching for winning scripts will resume as soon as the WGA strike comes to a close. In the meantime, we are working as hard as ever to aid our winning writers in polishing their scripts and prepping our pitch materials!
Find out more about WriteMovies’ contests and submission opportunities HERE.
Gearing up for an exciting second half of the year…
WriteMovies is back and ready to launch our long-proven contests again in the weeks ahead.
It’s an exciting year for us and it’s hard to believe it’s already halfway done. We’ve been working hard behind the scenes on preparing our winners for pitching, as well as Dr. Alex Ross’s books and launches, and we’re getting ready for a dynamic few months ahead. Now we’re ready to relaunch our contests and services with an expanded and refreshed team – and we’re looking forward to finding out what you’ve been working on too!
We’re looking forward to having a big pitching presence in the months ahead – writers’ strike permitting! We’re also publishing our response to the WGA strike today here – we want writers to thrive in the new era, we’ve got some great winning scripts to promote, and we’ll share those adventures with you once the situation is right again.
Meanwhile, don’t forget that our founder Dr Alex Ross’s new book BLOCKBUSTED is now available in hardback and eBook and ALL of our newsletter subscribers can get a full 30% off! Click here to find out more – we look forward to sharing lots more about it in the months ahead. The film is full of exclusive insights into the evolution of Hollywood’s calculated blockbuster, including lots of your favorite movies from the 1970s to today. We’re also itching to tell you about his next book, which goes even deeper into one of the most iconic and talked-about films of the last half-century!
We’ve also got lots of strong new media and online course content shaping up to share with you as well – so there’s lots to look forward to!