Scriptwriting Contest
Finalists
Congratulations! We are happy to announce that your script is one the finalists in our screenwriting competition.
It was not an easy process, as the readers had much deliberation between a good number of scripts which were excellent and socially relevant.
These six made it to the finalist position (here in alphabetical order) As finalists, they are offered a 10-minute live reading of an excerpt from each script, read by actors, thus offering the writer the possibility to hear his script out loud. The reading is free of charge and open to the public. RSVP required.
March 20, 1:15 PM
Cinema Village
FINALIST SCREENPLAYS (in order in which they will be read)
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Terrordise by Victoria Alexander
Stage directions read by Audrey Rapoport
Newscaster - Audrey Rapoport
Agent Rico - Alberto Bonilla
Glorilee - Felicia Greenfield
Hunter: - Mitch Lerner
Janet: - Francine Pinheiro
Mohamed- Atticus Cain
Ester - Jillie Simon
Sarah - Janel Tanna
Agent Lowe - Alex Emanuel
Agent Ross - Asa James
Esmeralda - Marcia Hopson
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What We Know - by Juliana Roth
Stage directions read by Felicia Greenfield
Abbey- Emory Parker
Abby’s friend -Sherin Shetty
Officer Miles- Jillie Simon
Officer Quinn- Alex Emanuel
Detectie Davis - Audrey Rapoport
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Halfway to Mars by Fabian Martin
Stage directions read by Atticus Cain
Lucy- Jordan Carey
Dr. Katherine Branson - Jillie Simon
Soup - Asa James
Theo - Alex Emanuel
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Dukkha by Rachana Suri
Stage directions read by - Jillie Simon
Sapni - Sherin Shetty
Rani - Francine Pinheira
Kumar - Asa James
Tej - Sanjay Maholtra
Kash - Alberto Bonilla
Pudmani - Janel Tanna
Riya - Marcia Hopson
Kareena - Felicia Greenfield
Vikram - Mitch Lerner
Paavan - Atticus Cain
The Finalist Screenplays
(listed in alphabetic order)
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Dukkha
by Rachana Suri
Inspired by true events, the collapse of the Rana Plaza manufacturing plant where over 1,000 lives were taken. It follows the story of one woman’s fight for survival after a duplicitous arranged marriage confines her to a labor camp where she discovers the courage to lead her fellow abductees to freedom, changing their lives forever.
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Halfway to Mars
by Victor Martin
Lucy is a transgender in the process of transitioning, determined to see it through at any and all costs. So when an opportunity arises to accelerate this process, she seizes it unabashedly. This decision though casts her unwillingly into the dark, violent world of prostitution and the ruthless, cold-blooded drug-dealing pimp behind it who goes by the name “Soup.” Here is where Lucy’s real transformation begins as she fights to escape Soup’s relentless grip and free herself from the dangerous vestiges of a debt she cannot pay. Gritty, raw and barbed with bitter humor, HALFWAY TO MARS is the story of Lucy’s dark and unexpected trip through hell on the road to finding her true self and living to tell about it.
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Liberation
by Stephen Colley
When Mrs. Wiggins the cow escapes a slaughterhouse, John Brown, her rescuer, decides to put glass walls around factory farms. He enlists animal activist help from all over the country. And when the slaughterhouse tries to cownap Mrs. Wiggins, John saves her -- at the cost of her running away. Undaunted, John leads a nationwide, one-night series of nonviolent raids to free exploited animals. But Homeland Security, who’s been hoping that John would lead them to animal eco-terrorists, now comes after John. When a well-meaning farmer returns Mrs. Wiggins, the stage is set for a final confrontation.
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Terrordise
by VN Alexander
In this slightly surreal comedy, the Schwartz-Johnson family can't wait to get to their new home in Paradise, a high-security gated community in Dallas, believing it will be worth sacrificing their privacy for the ultimate in safety against any kind of terror threat—-until Mr. & Mrs. Schwartz-Johnson are accused of terrorism themselves.
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The Late Great Race
by Ben Lokey
One brave man and his friend risk all to expose the heinous link between the Nazi’s and the American Eugenics movement in their plan to create a super race.
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What We Know
by Juliana Roth
WHAT WE KNOW is a film asking what justice looks like for students facing a university’s Title IX tribunal after an assault on campus.
Script reading - excerpts from the six finalist scripts
Where: March 20, 1:15 PM
When: Cinema Village
Directed by: Jillie Simon
Read by: Actors: Alberto Bonilla, Atticus Cain, Jordan Carey, Alex Emanuel, Felicia Greenfield, Marcia Hopson, Asa James, Mitch Lerner, Sanjay Maholtra, Emory Parker, Francine Pinhiero, Audrey Rapoport, Sherin Shetty, Jillie Simon, Janel Tanna

agePlays Theater Company), appearing in "Tony & Tina’s Wedding”, at the Public Theater, NYC, etc. Film & tv work includes “Confess” w/ Melissa Leo, “You Have The Right to Remain Violent”, “A Beautiful Mind”, “Full Frontal w/ Samantha Bee", "As The World Turns”, and, currently in the festival circuit, "The Incoherents” w/ Amy Carlson, “Prince Harming" & “Hungry”, a short film she also wrote, co-directed, co-produced (w/ 9 awards, including 4 Best Actress/Best Performance she was honored with in 27 festivals). Jillie has also performed at Upright Citizen’s Brigade and her production company, Endorphin Records, just finished new short film “A Chance”. www.jilliesimon.com
Jillie Simon is an actor/singer/writer/producer/director who began her acting career in theater, working with luminaries such as Marlo Thomas (Cleveland Playhouse) & Marian Seldes (StagePlays Theater Company), appearing in "Tony & Tina’s Wedding”, at the Public Theater, NYC, etc. Film & TV work includes “Confess” w/ Melissa Leo, “You Have The Right to Remain Violent”, “A Beautiful Mind”, “Full Frontal w/ Samantha Bee", "As The World Turns”, and, currently in the festival circuit, "The Incoherents” w/ Amy Carlson, “Prince Harming" & “Hungry”, a short film she also wrote, co-directed, co-produced (w/ 9 awards, including 4 Best Actress/Best Performance she was honored with in 27 festivals). Jillie has also performed at Upright Citizen’s Brigade and her production company, Endorphin Records, just finished new short film “A Chance”. www.jilliesimon.com