Every year, the quality of submissions seems to get better and better, and this year’s competition is no exception. We are honored to have been able to read such an imaginative, innovative and skillful collection of scripts from writers across the globe, and we look forward to sharing that work with the industry. We want to thank our judges for taking the time to read our finalists and make the difficult decisions that give us this fantastic group of winners.
With all of that said, we’re incredibly proud to announce our Overall Winner, Top Comedy Winner, Top Drama Winner, Vertigo Entertainment Guaranteed Option Winner, and the three Launch Pad Mentorship Winners.
Note that the Lit Entertainment Guaranteed Signing Winner will be announced on April 23rd.
Congratulations to our winners and to all of our finalists. We cannot wait to see what comes next! If you’re looking to view every finalist from this year’s competition, you can find the complete list on Coverfly here. Want to receive a notification when the next season opens? Sign up for reminders via Coverfly here.
Overall Winner
DEEPFAKE by Alex Payne
ENEMY OF THE STATE meets MR. ROBOT
A film school graduate trying to make ends meet takes a job from a mysterious internet user to make a deepfake video, and finds himself being pulled into a dark, global conspiracy.
Drama Thriller
Overall Winner
Top Comedy
SLATER BERRICKS IS A DEAD MAN by Paul Ashton
THE TRUMAN SHOW meets THE LOBSTER
Desperate to pay his mother’s nursing home bills, a man sets up a crowdfunding campaign where people can give money to choose how he will kill himself. When the site goes viral, he is faced with the prospect that he will have to actually go through with his plan.
Comedy Dark Comedy Drama
Top Comedy
Top Drama
WHERE HE BURIED ME by Joe Bousquin
THE SIXTH SENSE meets SILENCE OF THE LAMBS
When her troubled son claims he’s a reincarnated murder victim, a mom with her own traumatic past rushes to solve the mystery of who he was, before his never-apprehended killer returns to finish the job.
Drama Thriller
Top Drama
Vertigo Entertainment Guaranteed Option Winner
LEVIATHAN by Gabriel Feinberg
EX MACHINA meets MIDSOMMAR
A woman grieving the loss of her sister travels to Alaska to visit her eccentric brother only to find that he is building a machine to communicate with the dead.
Drama Sci-Fi
Top 75 Vertigo Entertainment Guaranteed Option Winner
Mentorship Program Winners
Mentorship Selection – David Rabinowitz
AMERICA’S NEXT ASTRONAUT by Vittoria Cacciatore
THE MARTIAN meets UnREAL
In order to save her home, a financially struggling Walmart employee from Florida joins a reality TV competition show for a chance to go to space and win a million dollars, but despite her popularity among the fans, her own lack of self-confidence threatens to send her home.
Adventure Comedy Drama Thriller
Top 50 Mentorship Selection (David Rabinowitz)
Mentorship Selection – Surjyakiran Das
LITTLE BOB by Robert Troccolo
THE DESCENDANTS meets LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE
A family’s attempts to deal with a difficult divorce are complicated when the youngest daughter begins dressing as Bob Dylan and speaking only in mumbles.
Comedy Drama
Top 50 Mentorship Selection (Surj Das)
Mentorship Selection – Chad and Carey W. Hayes
MAELSTROM by Chris Dennis
THE PERFECT STORM meets ALIEN
While fishing a patch of sea with a sinister reputation, the crew of an Alaskan fishing trawler must fight an intense winter storm and a malevolent force of nature that puts them all in mortal danger.
Action Horror Thriller
Top 10 Mentorship Selection (Chad and Carey W. Hayes)
