Art of Brooklyn Film Festival Screenplay Competition

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“Brooklyn’s Premier Indie Film Fest” - BK READER

2026 Screenplay Competition

The future of narrative storytelling is in the hands of the next generation of writers — and AoBFF believes in celebrating diverse creative voices from all over the world. For 2026 we're continuing our tradition of exciting industry partnerships, valuable prize packages, and great networking opportunities.

Short and Feature Film, 30 min. and 60 min. TV scripts (in English) in any genre are eligible. Entries are scored by a team of professional script readers, managed by our Script Contest Director, Gina Leone. All entrants receive a free webinar from Roadmap Writers.

Our Quarter-Finalists, Semi-Finalists and Finalists will be named as part of the 2026 AoBFF.

As part of our mission to support emerging writers, everyone who enters will receive a FREE webinar from Roadmap Writers.

All Entrants:
- Free Webinar from Roadmap Writers

Quarterfinalists:
- Laurels

Semifinalists:
- Laurels
- 2026 AoBFF Festival Pass
- Pitch Fitness Club (formerly On Ramp Program) from Roadmap Writers

Finalists:
- Laurels
- 2026 AoBFF Festival Pass
- Pitch Fitness Club from Roadmap Writers
- 4 month Inktip Pro listing

Grand Prize Winner:
- Laurels
- 2026 AoBFF Festival Pass
- Pitch Fitness Club (formerly On Ramp Program) from Roadmap Writers
- 4 month Inktip Pro listing
- FADE IN screenwriting software
- 2 free entries to IndieBoom Screenplay Contests
- Consultation with our screenplay contest judge: Award-winning screenwriter, filmmaker, and professor of film and TV writing Dave Chan

SCREENPLAY COMPETITION DIRECTOR: GINA LEONE

Gina Leone has written several screenplays and TV pilots. One of her pilots was under consideration at Intrinsic Value Films. She works for screenwriter-producer-director Chris Soth (Firestorm) as his teaching assistant for his mentorship program. She was also a script reader for the popular and prestigious BlueCat Screenplay Competition and currently reads scripts for the Austin Film Festival Coverage Program as well as a second round reader for their annual competition. She is also the former director of Raindance NYC – one of 11 film hubs around the world of the Raindance Film Festival headquartered in London.

See our growing roster of Readers HERE.

SCREENPLAY JUDGE: DAVE CHAN

Dave Chan is an Asian American screenwriter, filmmaker, and educator who holds an MFA in Television Writing from Stony Brook University–Killer Films. He was a Finalist in the Paramount Writers Mentoring Program, Nickelodeon Writing Fellowship, and Television Academy Internship Program. His projects won or placed in numerous competitions worldwide, and he has written scripts on assignment for an Emmy-winning producer. He continues to serve as the Screenplay Judge for The Art of Brooklyn Film Festival since 2017. Dave produced A FATHER'S SON starring Ronny Chieng (CRAZY RICH ASIANS) and Tzi Ma (MULAN), and he inspires his students with his passion for storytelling at Stony Brook University in his Film and Television Writing courses.

- Screenplays cannot be submitted over 120 pages without festival permission. Entries over 120 pages will require an additional fee to be eligible.

- Screenplays can be in any format (Feature, TV, Short) as long as they do not exceed the page limit.

- Screenplays must be formatted correctly for consideration.

- The draft of the screenplay that is submitted initially will be the one that is read and scored. A updated draft of a screenplay will not be re-read unless it is submitted as a new entry.

All deadlines are at 11:59pm PST on the date listed. Any deadline alteration or promotion of any kind does not make any entry valid of a refund of any kind.
There are no refunds for any submitted screenplay. Coupons may not be applied to previously submitted scripts.
There is no limit on the number of scripts a writer or writing team may submit.
Prizes are award per script and teams of writers are expected to divide prizes on their own accord.
The decision of the judges will be final and cannot be contested in any manner. There is no score on a scorecard that guarantees advancement to the next level as advancement will be based on all score in the competition.
The contest reserves the right to delay announcements for any reason. Delay may last up to but never more than 90 days. While we never anticipate any delays, such delays will not alter the standing of any screenplay entry and will qualify no script for a refund under any circumstance.
By submitting to the contest you are releasing your script to the film festival and its partners, and holding harmless the festival or any affiliates from any claims, expenses, and liabilities, including but not limited to invasion of privacy, defamation, copyright, libel, trademark infringement, slander, personal property infringement, etc.

Entrant also agrees to Stage32.com terms and conditions.