Listed below are the Top 10 Finalists and Honorable Mentions in each category of the 2023 Killer Shorts Horror Short Screenplay Competition. These exceptional screenplays were selected from 1,033 submissions. Congratulations to the writers who have made it this far and thanks to all for submitting!
Stay tuned for our Top 3 winners announcement here on April 25! And if you’d like to receive a notification when this contest re-opens for entries, you can subscribe for updates via our newsletter here.
Here are the Top 10 Finalists in the main category:
| WRITER/S | TITLE |
| SARAH WARD | ’97 |
| MARYELLEN DEVIVO | All the Rage |
| JULIA DIDDY | Cooking Lessons with Baba Yaga |
| VICTOR RIDAURA | Identidad Raza |
| ALEXANDER SELTZER | Merrow |
| ADAM SANTA CRUZ | People Die |
| JED WOODS | Stud Muffin |
| JESS C WHEATLEY | The Call Out |
| PATRICK LOVELAND | Too Many Eyes |
| ZOE BULLOCK | Witch Hunt |
Heads by CHARLENE CLARKE-TODORUK, Incognito Mode by JOSH SCHENKKAN AND MICHAEL MOUNT, Sing the Fucking Song by JOHAN SPIROLAZZI, Stray by JASON RICE and Teller by LIA BERGER also received honorable mentions.
The finalist’s scripts shocked, intrigued, disturbed, horrified and impressed our readers. The screenplays will now be shared with our exciting panel of judges, who are tasked with selecting a Top 3 and overall winner!
All Top 10 finalist screenwriters in the main category will receive a free copy of Final Draft 12, career consultations with Coverfly, script coverage from Stage 32, plus increased rank on Coverfly’s The Red List…but who will win industry circulation, free Shudder, access to Robert McKee’s Horror Webinar Series and the coveted skull typewriter trophy designed by Tyler Green FX Studio? Stay tuned!
And now, here are the Top 10 Finalists in the 1-page category:
| WRITER/S | TITLE |
| JOSHUA HEATON | A Confession |
| ANDREW WILCZAK | Bubbles |
| RENE CLAVEAU | Cluck Cluck |
| JESS BARTLETT | Duck Duck Goose |
| CHRIS VANDERHORST | Followers |
| SANCHEZ TAYLOR | No Life Detected |
| TRACI LOPER | Pastime |
| ALISON PRINGLE | Phantom Crying |
| JOSEPH X CASILLAS | Plateau |
| JACKIE PEREZ | The Ballerina |
After the Storm by CHELSEA SPIRITO, Bookworm by CHRISTIAN CURRY AKUNA, Love is in the Air by YVETTE ROSS, MRI by SANDRA WADE and Storage Room by AR UGAS also received honorable mentions.
The 1st Place winner in the 1-page category will receive a trophy and prizes geared toward helping them produce a micro-short film; including $500 cash, Final Draft 12, a QWERKYWRITER Mechanical Keyboard, and a 1 Year All-Access subscription to Stan Winston School.
