CSW Script Search: Pittsburgh to Hollywood

02/06/2014

Congratulations to Carrie Collins Zenkevich. Filming took place this past weekend for her short "The Unbearable Being of Lightness" which she wrote, produced and is playing the lead. Carrie formed her own production company, 13 Films. Jim Helfrich is the Producer, Kevin Hejna and Ian Alenbaugh are on crew. Stevo Parys directing.

02/02/2014

Annual festival of the best independent films created by Irish filmmakers working around the world.

02/02/2014

Congratulations to Eoin Carney, James Helfrich, Bob Skwaryk and Carnegie Screenwriters. Eoin's film, A NEW WORLD, will screen at the Chicago Irish Film Festival in March.

Two Irish immigrants wait in a quarantine facility to pass through Ellis Island to a new life in America. When one falls ill, the other must make a choice.

12/04/2012

http://studios.amazon.com/getting-started/?ref=mail_sw_december&et_mid=592896&rid=233262809

We think this will be an effective way to develop commercially viable feature films and episodic series. There are three distinctive characteristics of the Amazon Studios process:

09/03/2012

More good news for CSW member Russ Babines! His script "The Great One" has advanced to the Finals of the Creative World Awards Screenwriting competiton.

http://www.creativeworldawards.com/awards2010.php

CONGRATS TO THE 2012 QUARTER FINALISTS! Click on the PDF links below to view the results. The Semi Finalists will be announced next Monday, August 20th.

08/17/2012

Another shout-out to CSW member Beth Rohach, who had a script make it to the semi-finals of the 72 Script Fest (72 Script Fest recognizes and awards the best short screenplay created in 72 hours).

http://www.72fest.com/72-script-fest-semi-finalists/

72 Script Fest is the first screenplay competition produced by 72 Film Fest. 72 Script Fest recognizes and awards the best short screenplay created in 72 hours.

08/17/2012

CSW member & Script Search participant Michael Buzzelli is now a published author, too. His book, BELOW AVERAGE GENIUS, is available on Amazon.com

Order a copy and he'll be glad to sign it for you!

http://www.amazon.com/Below-Average-Genius-Michael-Buzzelli/dp/1605949310/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1342325383&sr=8-1&keywords=below+average+genius

Mike's description:
I’m not smart enough to hang with the intellectuals, but stupid people annoy me mightily. I’d be a genius on Wheel of Fortune but a dummy on Jeopardy. Take this example from a Final Jeopardy question: “This cheese was created in 1892 by Emil Frey and named for a singing society whose members loved the cheese.” None of the contestants answered correctly, “What is Liederkranz?” That’s a pretty tough question. I don’t think I’ve ever spread a Liederkranz on a cracker. I can only name a few cheeses anyway and as far as I know Cheddar, Havarti, Swiss and Goat were never singing groups. Cheese maker Frey is also credited with creating Velveeta. Apparently, he was a real cheese whiz. Below Average Genius is a collection of narrative essays culled from Michael Buzzelli’s weekly humor column the Observer-Reporter newspaper, Patch.com and a variety of other sources. Each essay is a brisk, humorous tale about ordinary, daily situations blown up ridiculously big. “It’s a Blurry, Blurry World” chronicles Buzzelli’s inability to snap a decent photograph at Disneyland. “Come On, Come on to My House” explores the dynamic of watching a movie or television show in someone else’s home. The titular essay explains why Buzzelli is considered by himself, and occasionally by others, a Below Average Genius.

I’m not smart enough to hang with the intellectuals, but stupid people annoy me mightily. I’d be a genius on Wheel of Fortune but a dummy on Jeopardy. Take this example from a Final Jeopardy question: “This cheese was created in 1892 by Emil Frey and named for a singing socie...

08/17/2012

Congratulations to Beth Rohach who had two scripts reach the Quarter-Finals of the PAGE International Screenwriting Awards: Screenplay Contests

The Shoe Race (short)
P.I. Pup (feature)

Acclaimed by screenwriters and industry execs: Hollywood's top screenwriting contest! Presenting over $50,000 in Cash & Prizes. Enter your screenplay today!!

05/15/2012

Folks,

Our next Carnegie Screenwriters meeting will be this Saturday, May 19 from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm. We'll meet at the Squirrel Hill Library, Meeting Room C.

All are welcome!

5801 Forbes Ave.
Pittsburgh, PA 15217
412.422.9650

http://www.carnegielibrary.org/locations/squirrelhill/

03/29/2012

For Immediate Release: Pittsburgh, PA
Date - 3/26/12

Carnegie Screenwriters Congratulates Film Factory Finalists

The Carnegie Screenwriters group would like to congratulate the twelve finalists in 2012’s Steeltown Film Factory short screenplay competition. This year’s contest resulted in a record number of entries and the finalists represent the top 7% of all submissions. Pittsburgh native and top Hollywood Manager-Producer, Eric Gold, indicated that the quality of the scripts equaled those that he sees in Los Angeles.

Eric’s words were a confirmation of what the members of the Carnegie Screenwriters have suspected. Last year, the group came up with a simple idea in order to determine the quality of feature length scripts that have been written by Pittsburgh area screenwriters, and to connect “Pittsburgh to Hollywood.” Writers have to be persistent, constantly sending out queries to agents and production companies, entering screenwriting competitions and talking to whomever will listen about their project.

The criteria were simple; if a script has reached the quarter-final round or better of a nationally recognized competition, or has been optioned by a production company, it would qualify for the group’s list. It was initially thought that a handful of scripts would qualify. The results, however, were quite surprising - twenty-six screenplays met the requirement.

It’s important to note just how impressive these results are. For example, a quarter-final result in Francis Ford Coppola’s Zoetrope competition falls somewhere in the top 1.4% to 7.9% of all entries on a national level. A semi-finalist in Scriptapalooza, another top national contest, equates to 0.8% to 3.2% of all entries. In respect to scripts that have been optioned by production companies, time and resources are being committed to these projects, and is not done so without serious consideration.

The next step for the group is to assist the screenwriters in getting the scripts, or at least the titles and brief descriptions, to industry professionals. The head of a Los Angeles based professional reading service catering to screenwriters recently offered some encouragement and confirmed Carnegie Screenwriters initial theory; that production companies and agents would welcome the opportunity to view a Zoetrope quarter-finalist, for example.

The talent that has been identified in the Pittsburgh region continues to impress. The Carnegie Screenwriters group is proud of all area writers and is very pleased to be a part of the Steeltown Entertainment Project and the Film Factory Competition. Again, congratulations to the twelve finalists in the 2012 contest, and congratulations to all the writers that have completed feature length scripts, qualified for the Carnegie Screenwriters “Pittsburgh to Hollywood” initiative and are being recognized on a national level.

Bob Scott is the President of Carnegie Screenwriters and can be reached at [email protected] or 412-583-2154.

02/23/2012

http://www.pittsburghcitypaper.ws/blogs/ProgramNotes/

Call for Film Scripts Generates Surprises
Posted by Mariluz Orbay on Mon, Feb 20, 2012 at 12:09 PM
A local screenwriting group headed by theatrical director, writer and actor Bob Scott was curious to find out just how many talented writers we have in the Burgh. "Hollywood's best-kept secret" has been out for a while: Our city's varied topography, talent pool and appealing tax credits continue to attract filmmakers. In the past two years we've hosted features like Unstoppable, Won't Back Down and The Dark Night.

Filmmakers may come and go. But Pittsburgh stays. So what about our own? Is the film boom influencing us?

Curious and eager to bring attention to our talent, Scott and the Carnegie Screenwriters (CSW) asked the public to submit screenplays, with one condition: The work must have either advanced to the final rounds of a nationally recognized screenwriting competition or been optioned by a production company.

Once again, Pittsburgh surprised us — and not with Terrible Towel lingerie.

The group received 26 feature-length scripts.

"We weren't sure what to expect," says Scott. "Some members of our group have scripts that have been optioned or have won or placed well in contests. We didn't know how many other area writers might be out there who qualified. I was hoping for a dozen. We received more than twice that."

And what's inspiring all this work?

"We received a lot of romantic comedies ... surprisingly, more from male writers than female," Bob says. InThirty, for example, Ben Castiac is dangerously close to his next birthday. After reuniting with his old girlfriend Kate, he tries to win her back before turning 30.

"Other than that we had a nice mix of sci-fi, thrillers, dramas and historical fiction," Scott adds.

In what CSW calls "a different kind of environmental disaster movie," The Whiskey Mower tells the story of a man trying to develop the first hydrogen-powered lawnmower who instead creates one that manufactures whiskey, becoming wildly successful for all the wrong reasons.

CSW is now working to get these scripts in front of industry players. Scott says that several film and TV producers have already expressed an interest in reviewing the list.

However, Scott, the CSW and the screenwriters know that matching each screenplay with the right agent or producer won't be easy.

As for the 26 writers who submitted work, Scott says: "Now it's just a matter of waiting to hear from someone. After that, it's between the writer and the interested party. You have to be persistent and have a very thick skin. All artists face rejection. It can never be taken personally and we learn what we can from rejection notices, critiques and script coverage."

Scott's advice for other aspiring screenwriter: "Learn about script structure, formatting, plot, creating characters, dialogue," he says. "Take classes. Read the books. Start with Syd Field's book Screenplay. It covers all of the basics. Buy a copy of The Screenwriter's Bible, by David Trottier. Read magazines such asScript and Creative Screenwriting. Read anything by William Goldman. Look for the stories inside you that are clamoring to be told. Write, then rewrite. Just don't stop writing."

Bob Scott can be reached at [email protected].

Pittsburgh's alternative newspaper features news, opinions, and arts and entertainment reviews.

01/26/2012

For Immediate Release: Pittsburgh, PA

Date: 1/25/12

Carnegie Screenwriters Announce Results of Script Search – “Pittsburgh to Hollywood”

A Pittsburgh area writing group, headed by writer, theatrical director and actor Bob Scott, posed a question - Just how many talented writers are there in the “Burgh.” After all, filmmakers are flocking to the area, including the most recent installment of “Batman” as well as Tom Cruise’s “One Shot,” to name only a few. And of course a number of expats enjoy tremendous success in the film industry; there are far too many to name.

So how about the folks who have remained in Pittsburgh and want to try their hand at creating the foundation of any good film, the screenplay? Does the “Burgh” have any good writers? Well, what Bob and the Carnegie Screenwriters (CSW) discovered was surprising and very positive. The question was posed - Has anyone written a screenplay that has advanced to the final rounds of a nationally recognized screenwriting competition, or who has a script that has been optioned by a production company?

The group expected a handful of responses - well, not even close. Via a word of mouth effort and some modest Facebook messaging, the results came in; twenty-six scripts were submitted. That’s twenty-six feature-length projects written by Pittsburgh area writers that have reached a level of proficiency, as identified by Hollywood professionals, which may someday be made into a motion picture – WOW!

The next step for the CSW is to get these screenplays in front of the “players,” as they say. There are already several film and TV producers who have expressed an interest in reviewing the list. Of course, Bob, the CSW and the screenwriters know that the task will not be easy. There are virtually thousands of projects registered with the Writers Guild of America every year. And as in any business venture, these writers know that persistence is the key, and matching the right screenplay with an agent, manager or producer, is simply a matter of time and making the connections.

Perhaps the most pleasing and proudest takeaway from the efforts of the CSW is to discover that Western Pennsylvania, “the cradle of quarterbacks,” would also produce so many talented amateur screenwriters; folks toiling at their kitchen table, or cramped dusty desk in the basement, turning out material that may very well make it from Pittsburgh to Hollywood.

Bob Scott can be reached at [email protected] or 412-583-2154.