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MONTEREY,
CA – The winners in the 8th annual Monterey County Film
Commission’s “Hollywood Connection 2003 Screenwriting Contest”
were announced at the “Hollywood Connections Day” in Monterey on May
31, which was held at the Monterey Conference Center. The 2003 contest attracted
231 screenplay entries.
The
top winner was Todd Stein of Watsonville, CA, for his screenplay, “Unbound.”
He received a $2,003 prize sponsored by Dean and Joanne Storkan.
First
Place:
Todd
Stein – “Unbound”
Contact:
2013 Eureka Canyon Rd., Watsonville, CA 95076
twstein@yahoo.com
Logline:
A successful businessman’s life is turned inside out after meeting a
mysterious stranger who predicts that he will kill someone…by the end of the
week.
Bio:
Todd
was born and raised in Pittsburgh, PA. After
attending Boston University, he spent
three years in the television industry, first as the assistant to television
producer Norman Lear, and then as writer’s assistant during the inaugural
season of “The Simpsons.”
Dissatisfied with the direction his life was taking, Todd left the
“industry” to pursue an M.A. in Contemplative Psychotherapy from the Naropa
Institute in Boulder, CO, which he received in 1996.
For the past six years, Todd and his wife Lisa have been living and
working at Pema Osel Ling, a Tibetan Buddhist Retreat Center in the Santa Cruz
mountains, devoting their time and energy in helping to preserve the spiritual
and cultural heritage of Tibetan Buddhism.
But the writing bug never fully left…in 2001 he wrote his first
screenplay since film school, entitled, “Bloom.”
This was followed by “Unbound” in the fall of 2002.
Second
Place:
Justin
Swingle --“White Shadows, Black Dreams”
Contact:
P.O. Box 10663, Beverly Hills, CA 90213
justinswingle.com
Logline:
This
is the epic story of Madam C.J. Walker, the daughter of slaves who reinvents
herself and ultimately becomes America’s first female self-made millionaire.
“White Shadows” is the classic story of triumphing over
insurmountable odds to wealth, prosperity, leadership and independence.”
Bio: Justin’s
first screenplay, “White Shadows, Black Dreams,” was recognized in first
rough draft in the Nicholl Competition at the semifinalist level.
“White Shadows” was also winner of the American Cinema Foundation
screenplay competition 2002, the judges of which are Academy members.
The screenplay has been recognized in more than 30 screenplay
competitions around the country. Justin’s
work is broad in scope and genre and covers period drama, drama, comedy and
supernatural thriller. Justin
divides his time between the Bay Area and Los Angeles.
His website: justinswingle.com
Third
Place:
Rich Figel –
“Inugami”
Contact::
801 Kainui Drive, Kailua, HI 96734-2025
Figeli001@hawaii.rr.com
Logline:
A dead fortune teller. A skeptical
private eye. An ancient Japanese
curse. The fear is real but the
terror is all in your mind. Think
“Chinatown” with Shinto witchcraft and an “Angel Heart” type twist.
Bio:
Born in Japan, Rich grew up in New Jersey and lived in New York City
before moving to Hawaii. He’s
been a newspaper reporter, advertising copywriter, marketing exec, commodities
broker and real estate agent. Drawing
on his real life experiences and wide range of interests, Rich has written
comedies, thrillers and horror scripts that have earned recognition in
highly-regarded competitions such as the Nicholl Fellowships and Austin Film
Festival. He also won the Richard
Levinson Scholarship given by the American Film Institute, to attend the AFI
Television Writers Workshop program. He
is currently seeking an agent to help market his work.
MONTEREY
COUNTY ON-LOCATION AWARD
($1,000
bonus prize to a top screenplay with 50% or more Monterey County locations
sponsored by J.R. Rouse, realtor with Alain Pinel Realty)
Christine
DeMaio -- “Blue Valley” (also
Honorable Mention winner)
Contact:
5222
Lexington Ave. #8, Los Angeles, CA 90029
Superpea@earthlink.net
Logline:
In
1943 the War Commission and the USDA sends Will, an agricultural scientist, to
Salinas to investigate a plant disease that could be Japanese eco-terrorism.
What he finds is Sara, a woman who can speak to the earth.
When the soil starts turning blue and killing crops, Will has to decide
between science and his soul.
HONORABLE
MENTIONS:
Terri
Bradway
– “Shoes” – Salinas, CA
Royce
Buckingham
– “Goblins” – Bellingham, WA
Kevin
Delin
– “Double Vision”—Arcadia, CA
Christine
DeMaio
– “Blue Valley” – Los Angeles, CA
Cecilia
Gautschi
– “Child, The Goat Lady” -- Placerville, CA
Adam
Gittlin
– “Storyteller” – New York, NY
Ryan
Harris
– “The Plantation”—Studio City, CA
Michael
Kemp
– “The Fire”—Santa Barbara, CA
Lawrence
Vincent
– “Bar Mitzvah Blues”—Issaquah, WA
All
top three screenplay writers received judges’ critiques, Final Draft
screenwriting software, and free tuition to the Monterey County Film Commission
Hollywood Connections Day in Monterey, where they were able to make contact with
several Hollywood film industry professionals.
Key
award sponsors of Screenwriting Day were Dean and Joanne Storkan; J.R. Rouse,
realtor with Alain Pinel Realtors; “Final Draft” screenwriting software.
Other sponsors included the Monterey County Herald, Embassy Suites, The
Inns of Monterey, the Monterey Conference Center, the City of Monterey,
Rosine’s Restaurant, and the Monterey County Herald.
Judges
for the Monterey County Film Commission’s screenwriting contest were Ron
Mardigian (agent), Pamela Wallace (producer and Oscar-winning screenwriter of
“Witness”), Madeline DiMaggio (screenwriting consultant), and Cari Esta
Albert (producer, “The Truth About Cats and Dogs”).
For
further information, contact the Monterey County Film Commission, 831-646-0910 (www.filmmonterey.org).
This
organization and event is supported in part by a grant from the Cultural Council
for Monterey County through funding from the Monterey County Board of
Supervisors.
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