Secrets of the Screenplay Contest Reader – What They’re Looking For – How to Stand Out

We had a chat with two veteran contest readers/judges/coordinators to get their perspective on how to ace the major screenwriting competitions

We’ve all been there. You spend real money submitting your script to screenwriting contests, only to wind up with nothing for your efforts except the thrill of being eliminated in round one.

If you’re lucky, you make the quarterfinals – but that’s as far as it goes. How do the major contests decide who advances? How can you stand out in a sea of thousands?

Well, one way is by not making the same, basic mistakes we see over and over again.

Journey with us now as we enjoy a rollicking chat with two industry veterans who have read for, judged, coordinated (and both won) contests for a combined 50+ years: Anna Siri and Beverly Neufeld. Moderated by Coverage Ink’s Jim Cirile and Tanya Klein, both of whom have also coordinated, read for, judged, and won several screenplay writing contests.

What are contest readers looking for?

We hope you’ll take away some insight into the often opaque process of judging screenplay competitions. And we’ll share best practices for advancement and what the contest readers look for in a script – and the easily avoidable mistakes we see over and over again.

If you’ve written a TV pilot of a feature screenplay and are considering entering it into a screenplay contest, fellowship, or festival, watch this first!

Here is the content of the video together with time markers!

0:02:10 How many scripts do the big contests receive?

0:04:45 How are readers assigned? Is it different readers per round?

0:06:08 Do contest readers always read the whole script?

0:09:00 What is the criteria to advance a script?

0:09:40 What are the stoppers that may kill a submission?

0:12:05 How much power does a reader have? Can they fight for something they are passionate about?

0:16:40 How do you deal with writer skepticism over lack of contest transparency?

0:18:40 What’s a great hook?

0:20:00 The importance of the first 5 pages

0:22:40 Having to read vs. wanting to read

0:24:20 How are finalists selected?

0:30:17 What’s different in 2026? Are screenplay contests still viable? Should people be entering them?

0:34:30 Wisdom/general advice

0:36:15 The importance of a strong first impression and nailing the basics of screenwriting craft

0:38:27 How to anticipate jaded pro reader reactions