2nd Annual Romantic Comedy Screenwriting Contest

Stage 32 is proud to present the 2nd Annual Romantic Comedy Screenwriting Contest!

You’ll meet industry professionals from companies including Artists First, Lean Machine, Alliance Cinema and more!

Open to features and pilots!

Romantic Comedies are officially back! Rom Coms are quickly becoming the hottest genre on streaming, and bouncing back in the theaters. Netflix and Hulu have been capitalizing on the rom com fever with hit projects like TO ALL THE BOYS I'VE LOVE BEFORE, YOUR PLACE OR MINE and WEDDING SEASON. TICKET TO PARADISE hit theaters earlier this year to resounding success. Television has quickly followed suit with shows like EMILY IN PARIS and SEX EDUCATION blowing up on social media. Stage 32 won't let your Romantic Comedy be left out!

Last year, we set up our winners with 5 one-on-one meetings with industry pros currently working on rom com content - and they signed with Sovereign Talent Group (client credits include THE DARK KNIGHT and THE SIMPSONS) as a result! They are currently working with a producer from that group to develop a script as well. Our 10 finalists get amazing exposure too; last year’s finalists had their work requested by top production and management companies including 3Arts, Buzzfeed Motion Pictures and The Cartel!

If you have a romantic comedy that needs to be made, now is the time to show us what you've got, because our goal is to amplify your voice, give you the access Stage 32 is known for, and take your writing career to the next level!

STAGE 32 CONTEST WINNERS & FINALISTS NOW WORK WITH:

Our Grand Prize winner will:

• Have your winning script and full portfolio reviewed by our Industry Mentor, Matt Ember, writer of FAILURE TO LAUNCH, followed by a meeting to discuss your career!
• Be flown to LA for meetings (travel permitting) to meet with 9 top professionals currently working in the industry, at companies like Artists First, Neon Kite Management and more with credits including MY BIG FAT GREEK WEDDING, CRAZY EX-GIRLFRIEND, 10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU and more!
• Work with Stage 32 to develop your winning script’s pitch deck for the market
• Have your professional biography sent to an exclusive roster of over 30 agents and managers who have a First Look deal with Stage 32 and are actively looking for new clients and material
• Receive a free membership to the Stage 32 Writers’ Room, a private, virtual community of writers from around the world the meet and learn from industry professionals like Meg LeFauve (INSIDE OUT, CAPTAIN MARVEL) and Aimee Riviera, VP of Motion Picture Production at Skydance Media (TOP GUN: MAVERICK), Tripper Clancy (STUBER) and managers & agents from WME, CAA, Gersh, Circle of Confusion, Zero Gravity & more!
• Free access to Stage 32’s educational webinar library, which includes over 2,000 hours of content featuring top industry professionals
• Continued support from the Stage 32 team to help move your career forward and get you in front of decision makers!

ALL 10 Finalists will:

• Have your loglines presented to over 500 industry executives including literary managers, agents and producers in a Stage 32 lookbook. Past lookbook writers have been set up on meetings with and even signed with companies like 3 Arts Entertainment, UTA, APA, Art/Work Entertainment, Zero Gravity and more!
• Get a free three month membership to the Stage 32 Writers’ Room, a private, virtual community of writers from around the world the meet and learn from industry professionals like Meg LeFauve (INSIDE OUT, CAPTAIN MARVEL) and Aimee Riviera, VP of Motion Picture Production at Skydance Media (TOP GUN: MAVERICK), Tripper Clancy (STUBER) and managers & agents from WME, CAA, Gersh, Circle of Confusion, Zero Gravity & more!

Stage 32 will be a champion for your script - once you’re part of our community, we make sure you rise to the top!

Our Rom Com Screenwriting Winners See Results

Stage 32 has launched the careers of hundreds of writers over the last 11 years. Stage 32 has quickly emerged as the leading source for industry executives to uncover new talent! Is this your year to move the needle on your career?

• Last year’s winners, Callie & Richard Zelniker, signed with Lanette Mastandrea at Sovereign Talent Group, whose client credits include FRIENDS and SHE HULK: ATTORNEY AT LAW. They are also currently working with a producer they met through Stage 32 to develop their script! Check out their blog here to read all about what they're doing now.
• Last year’s finalists have had their work requested by managers and producers at The Cartel, 3Arts, ShowKat Productions and more!
• Want to see some of our hundreds of success stories, click here!

Don't believe us? Let 1st Annual Romantic Comedy Contest Winners Callie and Richard Zelniker tell you why you should enter!

About the Exposure For Your Script

The Grand Prize Winner Will be Flown to Los Angeles to meet with:

• Matt Ember, Screenwriter (FAILURE TO LAUNCH)
• Seth Jaret, Manager & Producer, Virtual Matter (Client credits include 10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU, LEGALLY BLONDE)
• Kevin Parker, Literary Manager, Artists First (Client credits include SHALL WE DANCE, DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES)
• Swati Shetty, Founder & Director, Samosa Stories (Netflix Original WEDDING SEASON)
• Hughes Ransom, Office of the President, Lean Machine (CRAZY EX-GIRLFRIEND, YOUR PLACE OR MINE)
• Jim Milio, Executive Producer, Alliance Cinema (MY BIG FAT GREEK WEDDING, MEN SEEKING WOMEN)
• Jeanette B. Milio, Executive Producer, Alliance Cinema (MY BIG FAT GREEK WEDDING)
• Jay Glazer, Manager, Neon Kite (Client credits include SEX EDUCATION, ALL ROADS LEAD TO ROME)
• Maria Odufuye, Script Editor (SEX EDUCATION, THE END OF THE F***ING WORLD)
• Nick Oleksiw, Producer, Mischief Entertainment (WELCOME TO MERCY)

Judge’s Credits and Company Credits Include:

In addition to these meetings, the winner will also receive access to Stage 32’s Educational resources, be promoted on Stage 32’s social media, and have their professional biography sent to an exclusive roster of over 30 agents and managers hand picked by Stage 32 who are actively looking for new clients and material. Stage 32 will facilitate introductory meetings to any of the representatives who respond to your material and bio. This is the type of exposure that will change your career forever!

If you reach the Finals, you still get massive exposure to decision makers!

ALL FINALISTS will receive a FREE THREE MONTHS OF THE MEMBER'S ONLY STAGE 32 WRITERS' ROOM, an exclusive community of writers who gather online for inspiring and educational webcasts from top industry pros, and will be in a Stage 32 Lookbook which includes their script title, logline & bio mailed to over 400 industry executives including, managers, agents, producers, development executives, and financiers! Stage 32 Lookbooks are some of the most sought after talent resources for the industry and have helped secure meetings with places like Verve, Good Fear, 3 Arts, APA, Echo Lake, Amazon, UTA, CAA, WME, First Friday, Pathfinder, The Cartel, Art/Work and many, many more.

Important Dates to Be Aware Of

Super Early Bird Deadline: February 16th, 2023

Early Bird Deadline: March 8th, 2023

Regular Deadline: March 29th, 2023

Final Deadline: April 26th, 2023

Quarterfinalist Announcement: June 30th, 2023

Semifinalist Announcement: July 14th, 2023

Finalist Announcement: July 28th, 2023

Winner Announcement: August 11th, 2023

Submission Options

Feedback & Resubmission Option

Would you like immediate feedback on your submission and the option to make changes and resubmit? Using our NEW Feedback & Resubmission Option you will get 3-5 pages of coverage/notes back in 5-days with a guaranteed option to resubmit one (1) revised draft of your script up to 10 days after the Final Deadline! See what elements of your script are working and what still needs to be developed. You can position yourself for the best chance of success - all for an additional fee of only $99. Please submit revised drafts to contests@stage32.com.

This option is good for a one-time use and is non-refundable/non-transferable if you do not enter an updated draft. See full terms in the Rules Section. The last day to submit new drafts is May 6th, 2023.

Feedback Option

We offer discounted coverage for $49.00. With this option, you will receive 1-2 pages of coverage/notes after the Quarterfinalist Announcement on June 30th, 2023. See full terms in the Rules Section.

Resubmission Option

We offer the option to resubmit a new draft of your script later in the contest for $39.00. You only have until the Final Deadline on April 26th, 2023 to submit a new draft. You cannot submit a new draft after the reading process has commenced or after any announcements have been made.

If you have any questions regarding this contest, check out frequently asked questions here.

Kevin Parker (Judge) - Manager, Artists First

Kevin Parker is a talent manager with Artists First. With over 20 years of experience, Parker represents actors, writers, and directors for both film and television. In his time at Artists First, Parker’s clients have created and/or starred in over 50 televisions shows and movies including the feature films BEATS (Netflix), MORTAL KOMBAT (New Line Cinema), BAD BOYS FOR LIFE (Sony) as well as the Hulu series WOKE, the Peacock series BEL-AIR, the NBC series GRAND CREW, and the CW series TOM SWIFT.

Hughes Ransom (Judge) - Writer, Lean Machine

Hughes is a writer, director, and improviser who most recently worked in the writers' room for the Amazon half hour comedy ALL STARS. He's also assisted A-list showrunner, writer, and director Aline Brosh McKenna at her production pod Lean Machine.

 

His focus is primarily the half-hour comedy space and particularly loves meeting writers with distinctive, funny voices who can effectively pitch why their story needs to be told. Previously, he worked in the office of a Television Literary Agent at William Morris Endeavor as well as on the management side at Management 360.

 

He's performed improv alongside comedians such as Jason Sudeikis, Leslie Jones, Jim O'Heir, and more. His side hustles include Spanish translation and writing scripted podcasts, most recently for the Parcast series "Unexplained Mysteries" and "Crimes of Passion" which are now streaming on Spotify.

Nick Oleksiw (Judge) - Independent Producer,

Nick Oleksiw is an independent producer working on various film and TV projects with production companies such as Asbury Park, Davis Entertainment, Harper Road, among others. He is drawn to high concept genre and comedy for film, and high concept, as well as genre-blending for TV.

Seth Jaret (Judge) - Manager & Producer, Virtual Matter

Seth “TW Hawk” Jaret is a writer, spiritual media maker and Hollywood creative entrepreneur. He executive produced 10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU, authored inspirational book, HOW TO SUCCEED ON PURPOSE, taught at Stanford, and has grown Hollywood A-listers to more than $1.25 billion in global box office.

Swati Shetty (Judge) - Founder & Director, Samosa Stories

Swati Shetty is a producer based in Los Angeles focused on creating films with global representation through her company Samosa Stories. She is currently putting together a slate of American films that have a larger South Asian focus.

She had a recent release in the much loved Wedding Season, a Netflix Original, directed by Tom Dey, and her first film in Hollywood as a lead producer.
Prior to launching her own company, she was Executive Vice President at Imagine Entertainment leading global content. She moved to the US in 2016 as Netflix’s first employee from India to lead Originals and Acquisitions. She saw much success during her time at Netflix, having worked on multiple Originals and a large number of acquisitions.

While in her previous avatar in India, she produced Umrika, a drama feature through her own banner Samosa Stories. The film went on to win India’s first Sundance award (2015) in addition to multiple other honors and awards. She is a Pharmacist, MBA by education who began her entertainment career at Star TV (Fox), followed by Disney, where she started with Disney Channels, went on to lead content distribution for Disney-ABC, and eventually led the studio team towards local productions. She then acquired local Bollywood experience as President of Balaji Motion Pictures where she put together a successful slate of films starting with The Dirty Picture, the first ever female-driven film that had extraordinary success at the box office. Swati has a unique breadth of experience across both business and creative. She is a member of the Producers Guild of America.

Jeanette B. Milio (Judge) - CEO, Alliance Cinema

Jeanette Milio is a veteran producer and financier of motion pictures and television programming. Over twenty-five years and working across three continents, she was involved in producing over 500 hours of content for film and television, with a total production value of over $250 million, including, Academy Award® winning
talent in front of and behind the camera. Jeanette is the CEO of Alliance Cinema, a film and television content, finance, and production company located in Beverly Hills CA, Walea, HI and Cologne, Germany.

Jeanette worked on the development, financing, production, and/or distribution aspects of over 50 film and television projects distributed by studios, networks, and streamers including Paramount, Lionsgate, Sony Pictures, Warner Bros, HBO, Showtime, ABC, USA Network, Discovery, TLC, National Geographic, as well as Apple, Amazon, and Netflix, in addition to networks and distributors in Europe. Born and raised in Germany, Jeanette started her career in the entertainment industry with the German network station RTL, working on German adaptations of FAMILY FUED, JEOPARDY, PRICE IS RIGHT, and other daily shows. She then moved into the production of scripted series and films and produced 5 seasons of the prime-time drama series WILDBACH for the German network ARD and the feature KREIS DER ANGST for PRO SIEBEN/SAT1.

After immigrating to the US in 1999, Jeanette produced theatrical motion pictures and television content for major studios, network stations and streamers, including TIMESHARE a comedy starring Nastassja Kinski and Timothy Dalton (distributor: FOX Family/ABC Disney/Freebee), 13, an action/thriller starring Jason Statham,
Academy Award® winning actor Mickey Rourke, Sam Riley, Michael Shannon, and Curtis Jackson aka 50 Cent (distributor: Paramount Vantage); THE EXPERIMENT a thriller directed by Paul Scheuring, starring Academy Award® winning actors Adrien Brody and Forrest Whitaker (distributor: Sony Pictures, Netflix);
and DARK TIDE, a thriller starring Academy Award® winner Halle Berry, directed by John Stockwell (distributor: Lionsgate), and more.

In entertainment finance, Jeanette worked with media funds during the “Neuer Markt” area, then managed a fund launched by Far East National Bank, which funded 40 film and television projects, and subsequently launched her own equity investment fund, which financed theatrical features and series with a production
volume of $60 million to date.

In television, Jeanette developed, financed, produced, and distributed fiction and non-fiction series including the beauty competition series GLOBAL BEAUTY MASTERS (TLC) and its spin-off series THE LOOK ALL-STARS (CW Network). She further managed the renowned dog series TV series and brand DOG WHISPERER WITH CESAR MILLAN, which aired for 9 seasons on the National Geographic Channel and sold in over 180 countries, and she recently co-created, financed, and produced two seasons for the new series DOG MASTERS, starring Laura Nativo and Alex Rossi. She furthermore co-produced the series OPERATION HIDDEN TREASURES, which recently aired on the Discovery Channel and the American
Heroes Channel. Jeanette is represented by The Gersh Agency as the creator and writer of two television series that are in negotiations to be realized with a leading streamer.

Jim Milio (Judge) - Executive Producer, Alliance Cinema

Jim Milio has been an award-winning writer, producer, and director of television and films for 40 years. Milio has written, produced, or directed more than 500 hours of primetime television, including “Dog Whisperer” for National Geographic, “Founding Fathers” for the History Channel, Discovery Channel “Eco-Challenge Australia,” “Rescue 911” for CBS, the Emmy nominated “Great Moments in Disney Animation” for ABC, and “The Real Las Vegas” for A&E.

 

In film, Milio wrote and directed "Men Seeking Women" starring Will Ferrell and was the co-executive producer of the highest-grossing romantic comedy of all time, “My Big Fat Greek Wedding.” He has won three People’s Choice Awards (“Dog Whisperer,” “My Big Fat Greek Wedding,” and “Rescue 911”) and been nominated for several Emmy Awards and Writer’s Guild Awards. Milio also teaches courses in entertainment at UCLAx.

Jay Glazer (Judge) - Manager, Neon Kite

Jay Glazer is a manager/producer who represents creatives in film, television, & theatre. Jay most recently produced Body Language for MarVista Entertainment, starring Christina Milian and Steven Strait.

In 2021, Jay departed ROAR to join Neon Kite, where he represents creatives in literary and talent - showrunners, directors, staff writers, auteurs, and actors in film, television, and theater. His debut feature, Get Luke Lowe, premiered in 2020. He has active projects with Mandalay Pictures, H2L, Storied Media Group, and Storyboard Entertainment.

 

Jay grew up in NYC and fell in love with quintessential New York filmmakers Martin Scorsese, Sidney Lumet, and Woody Allen, fostering his film knowledge and cultivating his passion for driving creative careers. Jay studied business and film at The University of Southern California. While studying, he worked at Brillstein Entertainment Partners & The Gersh Agency, where he started his professional career in the talent department.

Maria Odufuye (Judge) - Script Editor,

Maria Odufuye has worked across both development and production and is passionate about telling meaningful and inclusive stories.

She worked in production on Tom Rob Smith’s MotherFatherSon starring Richard Gere and Helen McRory. She worked in development at Clerkenwell Films which has produced 2 feature films and nearly two dozen television shows. She worked in development on The End of the F***ing World season 2 by Charlie Covell (C4 & Netflix) and The Duchess by Katherine Ryan (Netflix). She has also worked as a Script Editor for the BBC on EastEnders and Netflix, where she is currently working on Sex Education season 4, starring Emmy-Award winning Gillian Anderson.

Over the course of her career Maria has amassed incredible industry relationships and is always excited to collaborate and work with new voices to help them tell their stories.

Matt Ember (Judge) - Writer/Producer,

Matt Ember is writer/producer who got his start writing for television in the 1990's. He wrote episodes for THE FAMILY MAN, STEP BY STEP, and HARRY AND THE HENDERSONS before turning to producing. He rose up the ranks of television producing on shows like THE WAYANS BROS, LUSH LIFE and THE DREW CAREY SHOW.

Matt returned to writing in the early 2000's, this time in comedy features. His first feature film, FAILURE TO LAUNCH, was a huge hit. The romantic comedy stars Matthew McConoughey and Sarah Jessica Parker, and is still a classic today. He followed it up with another smash, GET SMART, an action-comedy feature based on the classic television show. Stars Steve Carrell and Anne Hathaway made the film an instant success.

Next, he wrote two animated features, EPIC and HOME. Matt returned to producing television in 2019 with THE CONNERS, a spinoff of ROSEANNE. He currently has two more features in production.

ENTRANT TERMS AND CONDITIONS

Void where prohibited by law.

This Stage 32 Contest is an international contest. Must be 18 years or older to submit.

Entrant agrees to Stage32.com terms and conditions.

This Stage 32 Contest is not a game of chance. All material is read and reviewed by industry professionals.

All quarterfinalists, semi-finalists, finalists and winners are subjectively determined by our judges.

There is no limit to the number of screenplays an Entrant can enter. The same screenplay cannot be submitted multiple times under different names. If so, you will be disqualified.

Entrant must not be an immediate family member or friend of any of the judges or their respective companies.

Entrant acknowledges that because of the judges' and mentors' position in the entertainment industry they receive numerous submissions of ideas, formats, stories, suggestions and the like and that many such submissions heretofore or hereafter received by them are similar to or identical to those developed by them or their employees or, if an agent, are otherwise available to them.

Entrant acknowledges that they will not be entitled to any compensation because of the use by judges or mentors of any such similar material.

Entrant acknowledges that no fiduciary or confidential relationship now exists between Entrant and judges or mentors, and Entrant further acknowledges that no such relationships are established between Entrant and judges or mentors by reason of this contest entry.

Entrants must submit screenplays and payment online.

Entrants must upload their submission within 72 hours of entry purchase.

Entry fees will not be returned or adjusted.

No waivers are available for this contest.