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Palm Springs International Screenplay & Pitchdeck-Sizzle Reel - Trailer Contest

2025 Fall competition now open where EVERY entry receives professional feedback.

Opens: October 4, 2025
Closes: January 4, 2026
About This Contest
2025 FALL COMPETITION NOW OPEN...where EVERY entry receives PROFESSIONAL FEEDBACK! Now providing winners and selected finalists DIRECT EXPOSURE TO PROFESSIONAL MANAGERS! (See our website at https://www.wherehollywoodhides.com/ for details.) Home of the famed Palm Springs International Film Festival* and playground for generations of entertainment industry moguls and international celebrities. Every word of your script...or every frame of your trailer/video will be studied and analyzed by established Hollywood film and television WGA, SAG, DGA Award-winners with hundreds of credits at every major Hollywood studio, network, and streamer. There are no unpaid interns or amateur readers involved in our process at any time. Winners and selected Finalists get far more than "attaboys" and laurels: • Your script goes to our roster of Hollywood Lit Managers • Screenplay Contest Winners earn LIVE STORY CONFERENCES with award-winning WGA writer-producers, professionally written script analysis, professional memberships, and promotional placement in the online "Writers Walk of Fame" Best Sizzle Reel, Movie Trailer, or Pitch Deck • Your project goes to our roster of trusted Hollywood Managers for representation consideration • Live Screening & Marketing Analysis with WGA-DGA-SAG Judges • Free Admission to Money for Your Movie: Guaranteed Video Course • Marquee placement in the Palm Springs Online Screening Room ​Total Value: $2500! *not affiliated
Awards & Prizes
Grand Prize for Best Script (Screenplay, TV script, or Short Script) or Best Media (Pitch Deck, Sizzle Reel, Trailer): • Winning (and selected Finalist) entries go directly to our roster of trusted Hollywood literary managers for consideration of representation. This is the INSIDE TRACK to a professional screen or television writing career. Best Sizzle Reel, Movie Trailer, or Pitch Deck • Marquee Placement at The Screening Room to drive online exposure to the industry. • Free Admission to "Money for Your Movie: Guaranteed", the proven system for raising film financing • Live Screening & Marketing Analysis with WGA-DGA-SAG Judges Best Screenplay, TV Pilot, or Short Script • Live Story Conference with award-wining Senior Level WGA Judge • Promotional Placement at The Screening Room to drive online exposure to the industry. • Written Studio-grade analysis • 4-month InkTip Pro Membership ​•Free listing at MovieBytes.com
Contest Rules
• Screenplay contest material submitted to The Palm Springs International Screenplay Awards & Pitchdeck - Sizzle Reel - Trailer Festival is accepted via electronic submission only. ​ • Script submissions must be in PDF file format, the title ONLY indicated in the PDF file name. Submissions as Final Draft or Movie Magic Screenwriter files will not be read, scored, or judged. • Media submissions (Pitchdeck-Sizzle Reel - Trailer) must be in PDF, MP4 or YouTube link format and in conformance with FilmFreeway guidelines. • There is no limit to the number of screenplay, teleplay, or short film scripts you may submit. There is no limit the the number of media submissions. • Submitted material must be received by midnight of each monthly deadline date and submission fee payment must accompany your material. • All entry fees are non-refundable; submissions in any file format other than those acceptable to FilmFreeway will be disqualified. • Page count limitations: Short Film Scripts = 30pp Television Scripts = 70pp Feature Screenplays = 130pp Entries exceeding those page limits will incur a 20% reading fee surcharge. • Pitchdecks are limited to 20 slides. Sizzle Reels are limited to three minutes in length. Trailers are limited to seven minutes in length. • All material submitted to these contests must be original, and all rights must be wholly owned by the writer(s). • Screenplays and scripts must be submitted by the credited writer. Screenplays and scripts written by writing teams must be submitted by one of the writers, with consent of the other(s). Media entries must include the names of writer-director. • All writers must be credited on title pages. • If a screenwriting/filmmaking team is chosen as a winner, prizes will be given to the screenwriter submitting the project. Each team is responsible for dividing or sharing the prize money, with no direction from The Santa Barbara International Screenplay Awards Contest administrators, staff, or judges. • Once submitted, material is promptly assigned to analysts and judges and reading/scoring begins. Revisions, rewrites, addenda, or substitutions of either corrected pages or new drafts of the entered screenplay or script material require a separate entry. • Multiple entries are accepted. Submitting the same script pages for different levels of analysis is fine. In all cases, each entry or request for varying levels of analysis must be entered individually. When multiple levels of analysis are NOT entered individually, only the highest level of analysis will be provided with no refunds for other analysis services. • By using our service, you authorize us to use any trusted third-party online and cloud-based services and databases for hosting, managing and/or transmitting your submission file(s), including FilmFreeway. • All copyright, ownership and derivative rights to the material submitted to The Palm Springs International Screenplay Awards & Pitchdeck-Sizzle Reel-Trailer Festival contest(s) remains with the original rights holders and/or author. • By submitting material to the contest, writer/filmmaker gives contest administrators permission to promote the work and the writer/filmmaker to third parties, including professional literary managers and agents at their sole discretion. By submitting material to the contest, you agree to hold Butterfly Beach Media Inc., its officers, managers, employees, contractors, and representatives of all kinds harmless against any and all claims. No assurances, warranties, or guarantees are either implicitly or explicitly made as to the efforts or lack of response by any and all third parties to whom The Palm Springs International Screenplay Awards & Pitch deck-Sizzle Reel-Trailer Festival may send or transmit material. • Plagiarized or non-original written materials will be disqualified. • Once announced and delivered, all prize package items and taxes appurtenant thereto are the responsibility of the recipient. • All scores are final and purely at the discretion of the Senior Judging Panel. • Writer/filmmaker acknowledges that any and all written feedback and analysis commentary is objectively presented and intended to be illustrative, instructive, and helpful in guiding the writer along a professional path. Scores and comments are in accordance with current professional film and television industry standards, but writer/filmmaker accepts them as purely subjective pursuant to the judgment and opinion of the individual reader-analyst and agrees not to request, demand, or suggest alternate, different, or revised written feedback; no guarantees of satisfaction on the part of the writer are expressed or implied. LIMITED ROLE: The role of The Palm Springs International Screenplay Awards and Butterfly Beach Media, Inc. is limited to forwarding winning material to select managers who have expressed interest in reviewing winning material. We make no guarantees regarding their response or engagement, and we do not participate in or assume responsibility for any future communication or relationship between writers and managers.

Entry Options

Pitch Deck Entry
Make us want to invest in your film project with images and content that powerfully convey your vision. Present your project's target audience, concept, synopsis, character bios, key scenes, ​budget breakdown, key team members, and marketing strategy.
$44
  • Today's investors, development execs, and production companies demand some "sense"
  • of what your project will be beyond the pages of a script.
  • That requires a visual representation of your concept, characters, and storyline.

Ends January 5, 2026

Most Popular
Sizzle Reel Entry
Combine video, photos, music, and dynamic messaging that showcases the vision of your feature film, television series, documentary, or short film project. Tease us with the power of your concept...​and leave the audience wanting more. Includes 6-10 pages of detailed analysis
$44
  • 6-10 page studio-level feedback with actionable notes on marketability.
  • Coverage on concept, structure, and market positioning
  • Review by award-winning WGA judges and DGA filmmakers.

Ends January 5, 2026

Movie Trailer Entry
Movie Trailer Entry
$44
  • Open with your film's best moments and include multiple sequences that intro the main characters and establish their primary conflicts. Excite us, don't let us down, and end on a major cliffhanger that compels us to see your whole movie. Includes 6-10 pp of detailed analysis from every production and marketing aspect (cinematography, sound, music, editing, concept, graphics, casting)

Ends January 5, 2026

Screenplay or TV Pilot Entry: 90-minute Line Notes & Live Consultation
Online live consultation with detailed annotated notes. Submit your Screenplay, TV script, Pitch Deck, Sizzle Reel, or Movie Trailer for an online meeting with a WGA, SAG, DGA judges.
$399
  • This is a 60-90 minute personal and private consultation to evaluate your project in detail
  • with an emphasis on its craft, financing, production, and marketing potential.
  • Includes meeting notes and a complete video recording of your meeting.

Ends January 5, 2026

Feature Screenplay or TV Script: Entry with 5-8pp WGA Professional Analysis
Screenplay submission with 6-10 pp of focused WGA studio-level feedback.
$59
  • When you submit your finished screenplay to us, you have our guarantee that your material will be read page-by-page, word-for-word by seasoned professionals knowledgeable in both Hollywood's major studio and independent script development standards and practices. Your screenplay will never be assigned to an unpaid, inexperienced amateur or to unpaid interns.
  • When you enter your script, you have a 100% guarantee that the analysis we deliver to you will be completely original and will be based upon an objective consideration of the ten primary elements of a professional screenplay. We may make suggestions for the improvement of your work. Any suggestions offered have only one purpose: to support your success as a screenwriter.

Ends January 5, 2026

Screenplay or TV Pilot Diversity Entry with 6-10pp WGA Professional Analysis
Diversity-focused entry with 6-10 pp of full professional notes. Now, more than ever before, the world needs to hear from diverse writers who have important personal perspectives and stories to share with us. ​ We take great pride in and strive to celebrate writers with diverse and under-represented minority perspectives, including those who may be disadvantaged as members of ethnic, religious, racial, LGBTQIA+, disability, or 50+ age groups.
$59
  • Subject and theme "agnostic," we are focused on the diversity of writers and the personal generational, racial, ethnic, and sexual orientations they bring to the art and craft of screenwriting
  • Our Senior Judging Panel is dedicated to finding the best diverse writing talent and to light the path forward to lasting industry success.

Ends January 3, 2026

Short Film Script Entry
Short Script: Entry with 5-8pp WGA Professional Analysis
$39
  • Your entire script is read, and analyzed by professional studio analysts and forwarded to the Senior Judging Team for reading and scoring. You receive your score sheet with 5-10 pages of extensive Academy Level Studio Notes covering all 10 primary screenplay elements with specific comments direct from the Judges. (Most popular option)

Ends January 5, 2026