If your question isn’t answered below please contact us: .

Q: Who is Kaos Films?

A: Kaos Films is a Film Production Company which runs and manages the British Short Screenplay Competition.

Q: What is the top prize?

A: The winning screenwriter of The British Short Screenplay Competition will have their screenplay produced by Kaos Films. It will be premiered at BAFTA (subject to BAFTA availability), entered into film festivals around the world before being screened in selected cinemas in UK.

A: Yes, there are ten runner-up prizes. The first runner-up will receive the full suite of Screenwriter Screenplay Writing software. A further nine runners-up will each receive a copy of Screenwriter 2000 screenplay writing software.

Q: Is there a cash alternative?

A: No. There is no cash alternative to any prize. Our hope is to launch a writer’s career with this competition. The cash alternative will only provide temporary cash flow for the writer. We believe that the best prize would be to set a screenplay writer on a career path. Having your screenplay produced and to be able to show it to an agent / producer on the screen is the best opportunity you can hope for. That is the golden opportunity on offer here one which we have been providing for over eleven years now!

Q: Who will produce the films?

A: Kaos Films will produce all winning screenplays.

Q: Who will direct the films?

A: Kaos Films will select the director and an announcement will be made in our newsletter and on the website after the appointment.

Q: As you have such high profile sponsors why are the impoverished writers expected to pay a £25 (GB Pounds) fee.

A: We are extremely grateful to our sponsors for their kind support but as generous as their sponsorship is, the competition has considerable administration costs which have to be met, separately from any of the film production budgets. Having said that, we are constantly looking for ways to reduce the cost of submission. As soon as we can, we will do so.

Q: What is the budget of the film?

A: How long is a piece of string! This is a difficult question. Why? Because we don’t yet know the screenplay we are to produce. Does it have a cast of one or thirty? Is it all interiors or exteriors with a hundred extras? And do we include or exclude sponsorship in this budget? Well what we can tell you is that the average budget of the last three films we produced inclusive of all the sponsorship package was $340,000. This is the biggest prize fund package offered by any current screenplay competition in the World.

Q: Who are the judges?

A: Past judges have included:

Actors: Kenneth Branagh and Charles Dance.

Directors: Sir Alan Parker and Simon Rumley.

Producers: Michael Kuhn, Piers Jackson, Nik Powell, Leslee Udwin, Natascha Wharton and Stephen Woolley.

Writer: Nicholas McInerney.

Screenwriting scholars: Jeff Perks and Alby James.

Q: Will the winning writer get a copy of the film?

A: Yes. This whole project is being run for the screenplay writer. Their prize is the production of their screenplay. Of course the winner will receive VHS/DVD copies of the film.

Q: How much is the £25 (GB Pounds) submission fee in US$?

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Q: Can I send my submission by mail?

A: No. All submission must be made online via the submission form only.

Q: I am a writer/director can I make a submission AND I would like to direct my winning script?

A: Yes, we do accept submissions from writer/directors and if you wish to direct your winning script we will ask you to display your directing ability. We also ask that you mark your entry on the title page that you would like to be considered as director.

Q: Can I pay the entry fee by Credit or Debit card?

A: Yes. When you make your submission you will be directed to a secure page for you to pay by credit/debit card via a secure connection.

Q: I have a short screenplay which is eighteen pages long will it be disqualified from entry into the competition?

A: The page-a-minute rule is a very good ‘rule-of-thumb’. But in our opinion it is not rigid and not cast-in-stone, simply because what a writer thinks is a finished draft is not always the case once the director or producer gets hold of it.

They might see a scene three pages long which just doesn’t work or an ending that requires further revisions or whatever. Do you get my drift?

That is why we have stated in the rules that the winning writer may be called upon to write further revisions with the producer/ script editer. It does not mean you can send in your thirty page shorts and try to get them passed off as fifteen minutes. We all have to be sensible about it.

So what is the maximum page length that we will accept, I hear you ask? Well, I would say no more than twenty pages. On the other hand please don’t send in a two page screenplay and hope it will be accepted as a five minute script.

Q: Can I read a past winner?

A: Click on the link below to read Tom Beach’s 2002 BSSC winner THE HANDYMAN.

Click here to read THE HANDYMAN screenplay

Q: Where can I see any of the films produced from the winning scripts?

A:You can watch the multi-award winning THE HANDYMAN on Kaos Films youtube channel. PLEASE CLICK ON THE LINK TO GO TO: kaosfilmsuk More films coming soon.

Some helpful suggestions to better your chances of winning screenplay competitions

• Send your submission in early! Waiting until the deadline will only place your submission at the bottom of the pile. Some competition piles can run into thousands of submissions, in which event the readers can be under pressure to read quickly and not give your screenplay the time it may require.
• Please put your name, address, telephone number and Email address, if you have one, so that you can be contacted should you win.
• Make sure that the copy you send is legible without the magnifying glass!
• Use Industry standard screenplay format there are lots of books on the market which will tell you what it is as well as many screenwriting software. You can see a correctly formatted screenplay here: The 2002 BSSC winner Click here to read THE HANDYMAN screenplayTom Beach’s winning screenplay

• Fill in your Entry Forms and Release in BLOCK CAPITALS and clearly. Make sure they are signed!
• Check your submission one last time again for ENTRY FORM, RELEASE FORM, ENTRY FEE, YOUR SCREENPLAY.

Good luck with your submission.