Message Board

Oops, didn't realize my buddy's email was still logged into my computer, above message was from me...

I placed 2nd in their 3rd annual international contest (last year). Yes, I did get queries as a direct result of it, before I even used any of the query services I won (which also did indeed lead to queries).

In fact, I got an option offer before they even sent out their email blast, from one of their "favored" producers. I agonized over the decision, but ultimately turned it down, because he wanted an answer before word got out about the win and I wanted to see what other offers might come up.

I'm glad I did, because since then I believe I have improved the script greatly and it's currently being read by someone who found it on Inktip (which I now pay for), so we will see...

Bottom line, definitely worth entering Storypros, IMHO.

I entered, been wondering myself what's going on.

I tried to "friend" the contest on facebook (it has ONE friend at the moment), never did get a response.

Someone else on here pointed out that the language on their website is a little awkward, and I have to agree, it's pretty stilted in places.

Also - they emphasize how important "professionalism" is in getting your script produced. Well okay - but how professional is it to not check your website for clumsy language AND to let a deadline pass without saying a word?

And how would they determine how "professional" we are (or would behave once exposed to Hollywood), based solely on our screenplays???

I'm beginning to feel a tinge of regret about entering this one too - I hope I'm wrong, and it turns out to just be an unfortunate delay in an otherwise professionally-run contest...

Same thing with me, Nathan - I'm a finalist too, and at some point I just gave up and stopped checking the website.

Maybe one of these days they'll surprise us by declaring a winner. Good luck to you!

I'm seriously considering consulting with a lawyer to look into whether it's legal for them to take money and make certain promises, then not fulfill them - and not even make an attempt to keep contestants informed.

I get what you're saying Bobbette. I just wonder if they're allowed to postpone it indefinitely, or if there's a point at which it can be said that they've effectively violated the "contract" we all agreed upon when we entered.

As you say, I wish they would at the very least throw us a bone and let us know the reason for the extreme delay and when we can expect results, if ever.

You guys have some good points of course, but unfortunately, I found a lot of that out AFTER I entered this contest - over a YEAR ago!

But still, even an unpopular, ineffectual contest has a legal obligation to fulfill the basics of what they said they would do, doesn't it?

So anyone not in the top spot already knows they lost, right off the bat? (Not appearing is almost better, since you can hang your hat on them not having gotten to yours yet.)

I guess it's better than the contests that miss their announcement deadlines by months, but it seems a little... I dunno... anticlimactic. Maybe better to have a random top ten?

Eh, never mind, do it your way, it's a window that we don't often get to see into.

Well Tim, yours was the best all along and barring a last-minute upset - congrats!

I'm considering it. I was consistently #2 in last month's contest, which is nice but not a little frustrating...

Now their website is down. Why do I get the sneaking suspicion it's NOT because they're updating it to announce the winners...?

I won "distinction". Not entirely sure what that means yet, but I'll take it!

http://www.writemovies.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=606%3Acntests26resulttext&catid=59&Itemid=147&lang=en

Wow. Thanks for the info, Annette. Sorry they involved your name.

Do you happen to have contact info for Bertha? If you're not comfortable posting it here, could you please email it to me (you should be able to get my email on my MovieBytes profile)?

Thanks again.

I really hope they nail these guys...

I believe the Paypal account they used was called "Filmmakers", and the email was yellowmeansgold@msn.com.

Does that ring a bell for anyone else?

I am disputing the charge on Paypal, not sure how effective it will be but it's something.

Damn, I feel so stupid now for entering... but I definitely learned something. If I enter any more contests, it'll only be established ones.

Well, "Scripted for Professionals" was revealed as a scam.

Time to figure out if it's the same for Exposurama...

Marjory - I'm a little embarrassed, but not enough to keep quiet, hell no!

The odds of getting those bastards are slim, but I'll do my part for sure.

You never know, Irin. I have no illusions about getting my fee back.

But maybe they slipped up and left enough of a trail (maybe through the webmaster or PayPal) that they can be found and punished.

Burial at sea, I say.

Yup, they did, Marjory. Although if I remember correctly it wasn't working.

https://www.withoutabox.com/03film/03t_fin/03t_fin_fest_01over.php?festival_id=9704

Phil - but if the payment was made through Paypal, won't it just show Paypal as the payee? I had the money come out of my bank account - I don't know if there's much my bank can do about it since Paypal was the middleman.

I'm hoping Paypal requires more info from its payees than just an email address (so maybe they can help track them down), but I'm not holding my breath.

I'm not sure Paypal is going to be able to help - according to their dispute rules:

"Transactions older than 45 days cannot be disputed but should still be reported. PayPal tracks seller performance trends in the event we need to take action to protect other buyers."

I disputed anyway, so far no response, and it's not even in my list of "Open Cases" in my "Resolution Center".

Anyone else have any success disputing the payment in Paypal?

Matt, thanks for this opportunity to directly ask you questions (and I must say it was wise as well - I hadn't planned on entering your contest, but just did, based on how well-respected it seems to be.)

Trying to get back on track - d. santiago already asked if the announcements for quarter/semi/and finalists were "set in stone"; my question is more basic - when are they/have they been announced yet?

d. santiago - thanks, but I was asking about the dates when they plan to announce the quarter/semifinalists & finalists. Some of you seem to know roughtly when they are, but I didn't see them posted anywhere.

Thanks Julia, I missed that.

Still nothing. Wow.

Cheryl, unfortunately the way the leaderboard works, if you're not #1, you've already lost.

I was #2 in the March contest from the moment they posted the leaderboard - and from what I could tell, the rankings barely budged for the rest of the month.

Once it was over, being #2 all along meant as much as if I'd never cracked the top ten at all.

I didn't request coverage, so I can't speak to that.

I'm not putting the contest down, it seems pretty well-run and timely, and at the moment your sheer odds of winning are pretty good I suppose.

It's funny - posting the leaderboard by ranking is kind of disappointing, because if you're there but not #1, you know you already lost. (If you're not there, you can pin your hopes on them not having read your script yet.) On the other hand, it's a window we rarely get a glimpse into, and it sure beats the contests that miss their deadlines by months.

Do you mean Contest #26? They did announce:

http://www.writemovies.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=606%3Acntests26resulttext&catid=59&Itemid=147&lang=en

Ah. Well, there was a considerable wait the results of #26, so I'd would expect similar results...

I don't remember when they were originally supposed to announce results of #26 - I'm pretty sure semifinalists were in November or December, finalists were in March, then winners only a couple of weeks ago!

It's always been my impression that a spec script probably shouldn't dictate where the opening (or closing) credits go.

I had a few short scenes in one script that I wanted to use as "credit cookies" (to run during/after the end credits), but I was advised not to specify that in a spec script. So they are simply the last few scenes, and I have to hope that a reader will understand how I meant them.

You're really supposed to leave it up to the filmmakers - but if it's clear that your first few pages are meant as a pre-credit scene (and in your case it sounds like it is), they may end up doing what you had in mind.

I'd probably skip it, there's not much info there.

Then again, I just got burned by "Scripted for Pros", so I'm a little gunshy now.

Well what do you know, they finally announced winners!!

I feel kind of weird about all my complaining now, since I won the comedy category...

And Nathan won his category, congrats!

http://exposurama.com/#/announcements/4535721792

Well it's a about time!! Only 10 months late!!

And after all this time, I didn't even... hey, wait a minute...

Thanks guys.

I managed to get ahold of the contest director's private email, so I contacted him and asked what was going on. I told him that some people speculated that the whole thing was a scam, and I was hoping they were wrong. Then a day or two later, boom! Announcements.

I'm not 100% sure my email had anything to do with it, but I'd like to think it was more than just coincidence.

Ken, see Lana's message above yours. I thought the same thing for a moment, but then I read closer and realized it was a general message for everyone, aimed at whoever will not make it through (which is yet to be revealed).

So there's still hope, Ken.

I didn't get such an email - but the day ain't over yet.

They did the same thing last year, just to update us on the announcement schedule, I guess.

Congrats you guys - I got my email, my comedy advanced too!

I just got the same email - looks to me like it doesn't mean anything, they're just letting us know when they're announcing Q-finalists.

They also said something else, which I may have missed before - those of us who were notified that we had made it past the first round are not necessarily quarterfinalists.

Second round = top 25%, QFs = top 10%

So we still have to wait for QF announcement (coming within a half hour - 3:30 pm ET right now).

Am I the only that didn't catch that distinction?

Good luck to all!

QF's are up!!

And I didn't make it. Oh well.

Congrats to all of you who did!!

I'm through too! I missed Page also - yeah, it does help!

I'm out. Congrats to all who got through! And good luck going against each other!

I was disappointed to see I wasn't a second-rounder - but I AM a semifinalist! They tried to call me yesterday (I called back today). Haven't seen a letter yet, I'll have to check my mail. (Or will I not get a letter???)

Wish I could - I'm a semi-finalist, and hope to find out soon whether I'm a finalist.

But with my financially and family situation, it's simply possible. Good luck to everyone, and all who go - have a a good time!

I was sick with food poisoning yesterday, and it shows. WOW, what an awful sentence I wrote!!

I meant to say "with my FINANCIAL and family situation, it's simply IMpossible."

Yeah, I just can't do it at time. Too much going on at home. I wish I could.

Winning (or placing) in a respected contest can definitely get you noticed, which is difficult to do on your own. This potentially could get you an agent/manager, or could even attract producers.

But no matter how much attention you get, it still comes down to the quality of the work, and whether someone in the business thinks it can sell.

If you won a contest that not many people entered, yours may have been the "best", but that still doesn't mean Hollywood will hand you a screenwriting career.

There are a few threads on here trading opinions on which contests are worthwhile and which aren't - Page and Nicholl come up a lot. Look for ones that have been around awhile and that have a "pedigree".

Good luck, and don't get discouraged. We have all failed to make even the lowest tier with a script we thought had a chance of winning it all. It's a crapshoot, it's exciting, and heartbreaking at all the same time.

Any semifinalists hear from them yet? I was under the impression we'd be contacted early in the week to find out our status. I guess that got moved to "later in the week"...?

I heard from them. Not a finalist. Good luck to any MB people who do make it!

Jim, when will Champion post its announcement schedule??

The site says to check the Blog for updates, but the Blog hasn't been updated since May 19th!

That last blog update was in response to a post I made on here!

Doesn't sound like 11/11/11 is going to be the annoncement date for Quarterfinalists - I emailed the contest awhile back , and they finally emailed me back a couple of weeks ago, saying:

"QFs will be announced in late November on the site"

It's officially late November. December is a scant few days away. Let's make with the update already...

Alex:

It's a separate contest from the screenplay contest: http://www.championscreenwriting.com/sceneandpitch.html

It does leave one wondering whether or not Screenplay QF's are imminently forthcoming...

I'm not in the feature list that's up now. I guess I wait a few days to see if I turn up, or I'm out.

Good luck to the rest of you!