Los Angeles, CA – July 1st, 2021: Calling all horror writers! The third annual Killer Shorts Horror Short Screenplay Competition is accepting entries from July 1st, 2021.
The Killer Shorts Contest celebrates horror short screenwriters from around the world, connecting them with managers, producers, and filmmakers. The Top 10 scripts will be read by a star-studded panel of judges, with over $5,000 worth of prizes up for grabs including Final Draft 12 screenwriting software, Shudder subscriptions, Coverfly career consultations, memberships to Stan Winston’s School of Creative Arts, and a one-of-a-kind skull-shaped typewriter trophy, hand-sculpted and designed by celebrity FX artist Tyler Green (Syfy’s Face Off).
Season 3 Panel of Judges
Xavier Burgin 
Joe Bob Briggs 
Gigi Saul Guerrero 
Barbara Crampton 
Julian Terry 
John Zaozirny
The Killer Shorts Season 3 jury includes Xavier Burgin (Horror Noire: A History of Black Horror), Gigi Saul Guerrero (Culture Shock, El Gigante), Joe Bob Briggs (The Last Drive-In with Joe Bob Briggs), Julian Terry (Don’t Peek, Whisper, They Hear It, The Nurse), Chelsea Lupkin (Short of the Week, Lucy’s Tale), Barbara Crampton (Jakob’s Wife, Re-Animator, From Beyond, You’re Next), Sophie Carroll (Gun Powder & Sky, ALTER), Scott Stoops (Good Fear Film + Management), Glenn Cockburn (Meridian Artists), Daniel Seco (Empirical Evidence), Scott Carr (Management SGC), Jason Tamasco (Traction Pictures), John Zaozirny (Bellevue Productions), Zack Zucker (Bellevue Productions), and Jenn Wexler (The Ranger).
NEW! 1 Page Horror Short Category
New to the competition this year, a budget-friendly ‘1 Page Horror Short’ category, with a locked-in $5 entry fee. Prizes include an all-access 1 year subscription to Stan Winston School, $500 cash, a 1 Year ISAConnect Membership, plus the highly coveted skull typewriter trophy.
“We recognize that shorter scripts have a slight disadvantage when it comes to impressing literary managers,” said Alison Parker, Contest Director, “So we are thrilled to introduce the new ‘1 Page Category’, with prizes geared towards helping the winner produce a horror short film.”
Season 2 Winner Alessandra Jara Del Castillo 
Season 1 Winner Allen Roughton
“Before winning Killer Shorts, I had no idea how much buzz a short script could create. I’ve since met with a couple managers and I’m working with two producers on getting my short made!”.
Alessandra Jara Del Castillo, Season 2 First Place Winner.
Success Stories
Season 1 Third Place Winner Chris Hicks signed with literary manager Peter Katz of Story Driven, after the success of his short script “The Butter Street Hitchhiker” landed him on Coverfly’s The Red List. Season 1 finalist Jeremiah Lewis’ script “The Rickety Man” was discovered by director Cameron Gallagher on the Killer Shorts website and is currently in post-production. Connor Savage was inspired to write a feature version of his Season 1 semifinalist script “Saskia”, which reached the Top 10% in the Academy Nicholls Fellowship and garnered him acceptance to AFI’s Screenwriting Conservatory, the #1 Film School in America.
How to Enter
Entry fees for the main competition category start at $20 for ‘Early Bird’ entries submitted by September 3 2021, with a final deadline of December 17, 2021. Entries can be submitted via Coverfly, Filmfreeway or ISA.
The Killer Shorts Horror Short Screenplay Competition is sponsored by Shudder, Final Draft, Rue Morgue, Stan Winston’s School of Character Arts, Script Butcher, Coverfly, FilmFreeway, Screenwriters Network, ISA, Slasher TV, 1313 Mockingbird Lane Toys & Collectibles, Ghoulish Gary, Horror Pack, Qwerkytoys, Waxwork Records, and Fright Rags.
For more information, visit: KillerShortsContest.com and follow on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Poster designed by SadistArt Designs.
