Challenge is closed
Winner

Write This Down

BAJ

Bethany Armstrong Johnson

A young woman interviews for a job she desperately needs, but there's only one person standing in the way of her getting it: herself.

RUNNERS-UP


Interview by Jorge Pacheco

Why Me? by Matthew Yongue 


It's the opportunity of a lifetime. The stakes are high as your main character is mere moments away from interviewing for their dream job. Your character is nervous, but excited. Landing this job will change their lives for the better and they've spent hours preparing for this big moment. After all, first impressions are everything. Your character is seated in an office when there's a knock on the door and the hiring manager enters. Your character's stomach drops, recognizing the person. Write the scene that picks up from this moment. Who is this person and what is their relationship to the main character? More importantly, what is their conflict? And how does the interview go? Your final written submission can be in any genre and should be no more than 10 pages.


SUBMISSION LIMITS


Your written work cannot exceed 10 pages.

Deadline to submit: April 30 , 2021 at 2PM PT.



CHALLENGE RULES


Our monthly challenges are open to everyone in the Sundance Collab community. One entry per person, per challenge. All submissions will be viewable to the community. All submissions will be given equal consideration and the final winner will be determined by the consensus of the designated Sundance judges.  


Only those submissions that meet the criteria outlined in the submission guidelines can be selected as the winner.


The challenge closes on April 30, 2021 at 2PM PT.


If you have questions regarding the challenge, please email collab@sundance.org. Please do not contact members of the jury directly.




PRIZES

Winner will receive: 

  • The winner will have their work featured on Sundance Collab
  • One-on-one mentorship session with a Sundance Advisor
  • Sundance Collab Annual Creator Membership (12 months) which includes:
    • Invitation to monthly Member-only Advisor Q&A Live webinar
    • Opportunity to receive feedback from a Sundance Advisor on work-in-progress you post to Share Your Work
    • Eligible to participate in online Writing Groups (coming soon)
  • Final Draft screenwriting software (12-month license)

Runners-up (two will be selected) - Sundance Collab Annual Creator Membership (12 months) 

Submission Guidelines

One entry per person, per monthly challenge. The limits for monthly challenge submissions are the following: scripts – 10 page limit.

Technical Details

Scripts: PDF format only, please



Other: If your file format fits outside these formats, please contact us and we will see if we can accommodate it.



(Please do not use copyrighted material without permission as part of this monthly challenge.)

Laurel Parmet
Juror
Los Angeles, California, United States
Laurel Parmet is a screenwriter and director whose feature directorial debut, THE STARLING GIRL, is premiering in the U.S. Dramatic Competition at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Parmet received her MFA in directing from NYU's Tisch School of the Arts and has written and directed several award-winning short films; the latest, KIRA BURNING, having premiered at SXSW and screened at MoMA in the Future of Film is Female series. Her previous short film, SPRING, screened at SXSW, Outfest, Palm Springs and many more. Parmet developed THE STARLING GIRL as a fellow of the Sundance Institute's Feature Film Program and was recently named one of Variety's 10 Directors to Watch for 2023.
Imran Siddiquee
Juror
Imran Siddiquee is a writer, filmmaker, and speaker challenging systems of domination. Their writing on white supremacy, patriarchy, and popular media has been published by The Atlantic, Bitch Magazine, Buzzfeed, Literary Hub, Longreads, and others. They are the Communications Director for BlackStar Projects, home of the BlackStar Film Festival. more...
Meedo Taha
Juror
Los Angeles, California, United States
Meedo Taha is a filmmaker based in Los Angeles and Beirut. His stories explore identity by subverting genre expectations, such as in an a short courtroom drama entitled The Incident, an existential murder mystery based on his novel A Road to Damascus, and a horror musical inspired by binge-watching Egyptian melodrama. His work has received support from the Doha Film Institute, Sundance, the Directors Guild of America, and Francis Coppola’s American Zoetrope. more...
Ioana Uricaru
Juror
middlebury, Vermont, United States
Ioana was born and raised in Romania, where she lived through a communist dictatorship and a traumatic socio-economic transition before becoming an immigrant to the US. She is an alumna of the Cannes Cinefondation Residency, the Sundance Screenwriting and Directing labs, and the Torino Film Lab. Her work as a director has been part of the official selections at the Cannes, Berlin, Sundance, Tribeca, and AFI international film festivals.

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