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Contest News

Fresh Voices Announces Grand Prize Winner

Stephen M. Hunt has taken home the Grand Prize of the 2012 Fresh Voices Screenplay Competition for his compelling World War II drama, Precious Vengeance.

Hunt, an accomplished British playwright now living in France, was chosen as the grand prize winner from over 1,000 screenplay entries by competition chairman Joel Mendoza.

"Precious Vengeance is one of those rare scripts that conjure up such deep emotion, it is impossible not to be moved" said Mendoza. "It's a story that lives with you and haunts you long after the end."

Based upon the true story of the 1944 Nazi massacre in the French village of Oradour-Sur-Glane, Precious Vengeance is the story of a Jewish father who takes his family and flees to France upon the impending Nazi invasion. When his children are brutally murdered at the hands of SS soldiers, he joins the French Resistance and tries to repair his disintegrating marriage.

"This is a very personal script for me", said Mr. Hunt. "I live not far from the village in France where the climactic scenes take place. The town has been preserved as a historic site since 1946, nothing has changed. This was the inspiration for the film. The response to my script has been mind-blowing!"

"This is such a powerful and universal story. At its core, it really is a study of the human condition," said Joel Mendoza. "Stephen's crafted rich characters that explore what it takes to retain ones humanity in the face of overwhelming atrocities. It is this positive theme that emerges amid such depravity that immediately attracted me to this script. What makes Precious Vengeance so timely is that the German government has just reopened an investigation into the 1946 massacre. New evidence has recently been discovered implicating 6 SS officers who are still alive. Next year marks the 70th anniversary."

Founded in 2009, Fresh Voices has risen to become an internationally recognized screenplay consultancy and annual screenplay competition. Highly regarded by screenwriters seeking development notes and career advice, the annual list of screenplay competition winners has become hotly anticipated by industry executives seeking new writers and material. Previous winners have been signed, optioned, staffed and produced. "We are thrilled to be working with Stephen," said Mr. Mendoza. "He has a very disciplined and engrossing writing style that is captivating. I have no doubt that Stephen and his script will have plenty of fans."

Updated: 03/28/2013

Interviews

MovieBytes Interview:Screenwriter Stephen M. Hunt

An interview with screenwriter Stephen M. Hunt regarding the Fresh Voices Feature Writing Competition.

Updated: 03/14/2013

MovieBytes Interview:Screenwriter Jim Schweitzer

An interview with screenwriter Jim Schweitzer regarding the Fresh Voices Feature Writing Competition.

Updated: 04/13/2012