Screenwriting Competition
The results are in for the 2001 Best in the West Screenwriting Competition! We are pleased to announce the winners in both the Old West and New West categories for the 2001 contest.
OLD WEST
First Place goes to Dave Pearce of Rancho Palos Verdes, CA for his script, Shooting Starr. "Headstrong U.S. Marshal Dunn abducts feisty Maybelle, whom he mistakes for the infamous frontier outlaw, Belle Starr. He’s hell bent in escorting her to stand trial as satire, escape, rescue and brutal marauders mix with an unexpected danger – love."
Second Place honors go to Peter Vanderwall of Salem, OR for his screenplay, Rogue River, adapted from Zane Grey’s novel, Rogue River Feud. "An amnesiac soldier returns from World War I to charges of cowardice and finds redemption in fighting against a fish cannery syndicate which is killing off the salmon runs at the mouth of Rogue River."
Capturing Third Place is Wendy Wolverton’s and Margery Wolverton’s script, Double Deal. "Double Deal is the story of an 1880’s happy-go-lucky cowboy whose meandering carefree ways get him double crossed and framed for a series of crimes by a look-alike outlaw. His efforts to prove himself innocent ultimately lead him to wild western adventures from Arizona to Mexico that include being pursued and finally pursuing the fate of his responsibility as well as the commitment of his once lost but true love." The Wolvertons hail from Marina Del Ray, CA.
Fourth Place in the Old West category goes to Jesse Vint from N. Hollywood, CA. and his screenplay, The Reno Brothers. "The heroic villains, known as the Reno Brothers of Indiana, started it all. Their story."
And Fifth Place honors are awarded to Thadd M. Turner of Hereford, AZ and his script, Miracle at Sage Creek. "A bitter and prejudiced old west rancher learns compassion and love again when a special miracle occurs on Christmas Day that saves the life of his grandson in 1888 Wyoming."
NEW WEST
In the New West category our First Place honors go to Tom Lavagnino of Los Angeles, CA. and his screenplay, Wyld Widows. "A woman, wishing to become pregnant by her incarcerated husband – and steadfastly denied a "conjugal visit" – teams with two friends to "break into" the prison in order to facilitate her desperation-fueled (and biological-clock-driven) agenda."
Winning Second Place is the script, The Crocketville Kid, written by Phil Yuhas of Seal Beach, CA. "A legendary outlaw from over a hundred years ago suddenly appears in an Old West-style tourist town."
Third Place finished in a tie, with honors going to: Carter Hydrick of Spring, TX and his script, The Death Dream of Beard, and Bob Joseph of Ventura, CA. and his screenplay, On Your Toes! Logline for The Death Dream of Beard is: "An 1850’s Cheyenne warrior is transferred through time to the present." For On Your Toes!: "A scruffy high school basketball team in a tiny Nevada desert mining town resorts to drastic measures (ballet!!??) in their quest to become league champions."
And capturing Fifth Place in the New West category is Rick Wolf of Vienna, VA. and his screenplay, Dirtywork. "A decidedly politically-incorrect action/drama about the making – and fixing – of the biggest political/financial debacle in U.S. history: the 1980’s Savings & Loan scandal."
Congratulations to all of our winners! We had an excellent mix of stories with some real creativity evident in each screenplay. Our industry panel of reviewers consisted of: FourSight Entertainment (Down In It), O/Z Films (The Section, Lowroaders, Obsessed) and Maureen Donley Pictures (Little Mermaid, Anastasia). A big thanks to all of them for putting in the time to judge these scripts.
In addition to a small western motif prize awarded to our first and second place winners in each category, our first and second place winners will have their scripts posted on the Writers Script Network web site. This prize includes:
Writers of first and second place scripts may place their winning script and a second script on their password-protected web site for free. This includes their resume, logline/pitch, synopsis, treatment and/or script.
Their winning script logline will be placed in the Writers Script Network magazine under a heading for the Best in the West Screenwriting Competition. The magazine is snail-mailed to nearly 5,000 industry professionals.
Writers Script Network will send out an email to their industry pro list (about 6,000) announcing the top winners with their loglines and contact information.
CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE 2001 HONORABLE MENTION SCRIPTS AND THEIR WRITERS.
STAY TUNED FOR A NEW, REVISED, MORE ENHANCED BEST IN THE WEST SCREENWRITING COMPETITION
We are in the process of reorganizing the Best in the West Screenwriting Competition. New categories will be added and a new deadline announced as soon as possible. We also hope to obtain some additional sponsors and prizes. Please WATCH THIS SPACE for updated information as it is available.
The Best...in the West,
Angela Soper,
The Range Writer Company, Inc.
Director
E-mail: bestinwestscript@bigplanet.com or ferret@bigplanet.com
Telephone: 801-487-1842
www.bestinthewestscript.com
