Screenwriting : Quarterfinalists Announced: 1st Annual Period Piece Screenwriting Contest by Pat Alexander

Pat Alexander

Quarterfinalists Announced: 1st Annual Period Piece Screenwriting Contest

Congratulations to all the Quarterfinalists in the 1st Annual Period Piece Contest! Let's show them our support and if you placed, tell us more about your script!

See the quarterfinalists here:

https://www.stage32.com/happy-writers/contests/1st-Annual-Period-Piece-S...

Dustin Richardson

Yay! I'm so happy to be a Quarterfinalist in this contest! Congratulations to all the Quarterfinalists! Period Pieces are so much fun. It's great to have a contest just for this genre :)

Maurice Vaughan

Congratulations, Quarterfinalists! Clap, clap, clap, clap, clap.

Jacqueline Smith

Congrats to all! does sound like a fun genre to write in. Well done, you lot!

Pat Savage

Congratulations to all the Quarterfinalists!

L. Tom Deaver

Woot! I'm a Quarterfinalist with "The Message" under my pen name of Earl Tom Devere. I wrote "The Message" in response to the 2020 election and the deep divisions in America and as a way to process my feelings towards my own mom who was on the other side of the political spectrum as I and with whom I had strong disagreements. I struggled to find a way to love or forgive someone I cared for deeply. In this story, I put the controversial Miklos Horthy on trial at Nuremburg following World War 2. Horthy was the ONLY Axis power leader to be found not guilty of war crimes or the Holocaust. Many Hungarians still love Horthy and many despise him. So, I share the incredible true story of the events in Hungary during 1944 in a biopic on Miklos Horthy.

Horthy was a racist, bigot, antisemite but was he guilty of war crimes? Was he a fascist or just a leader having to make incredibly hard choices? Was he a patriot or a villain? In order to try to surrender to the Aliied powers in 1944, Horthy tried to make a speech of surrender on the radio at the risk of his own son's life who was held captive by Hitler. This is that story,

"The Message"'s logline is as follows: The racist Admiral Horthy, Regent of Hungary, leads his nation in an attempt to surrender in 1944 to save hundreds of thousands of lives in a tale about judgment and judging and, perhaps, forgiveness.

It was a tough story to write and I felt like vomiting a few times as I wrote the Holocaust scenes. But such a true story and something I hope spurs people to understand some of Hungarian history as well as view modern problems through historical lenses. The origin for the story was another screenplay which I scrapped called "The Partisan's Lover" and during the rabbit hole of research for that script I discovered the story of Miklos Horthy, I had to walk a fine line as I wrote this story but I hope I managed to do so successfully as I do not wish to make Horthy a hero nor a villain but a human with weaknesses and strengths.

Thank you for your time if you read this but I am so very, very happy and honored my readers enjoyed "The Message" and hope you will also.

Pat Savage

L. Tom Deaver congrats!

Caitlin McCarthy

Honored that my WWII action thriller RESISTANCE has advanced to the QFs. Thank you Stage32! www.theresistancemovie.com

Meryem Ersoz

Our screenplay RENEGADES, which is a Quarterfinalist, had an interesting birth. My friend who is a SAG picture car driver brought me a draft, and I liked the bones so well that we collaborated in shaping it up.

My co-writer, Jake, comes from a multi-generational racing family. He based the script loosely on the historical fact that modern stock-car racing (NASCAR) has its roots in the underground racing competitions which took place in the 1930s between various moonshiner families who optimized their cars and tested them against each other, so that they could outrun the Federal agents who pursued them.

RENEGADES is a Hatfield and McCoy/Romeo and Juliet story about a pair of rival moonshine-running families, the affluent town oligarchs pitted against a scrappy farm family whose farm is a smokescreen for their moonshine operation.

I'm also happy to see a contest focused on period pieces - I love fictionalized history, and I think this story has great commercial potential, like BOARDWALK EMPIRE but from the 'shiners' POV.

Great idea, Stage 32!

L. Tom Deaver

Sounds like a great story, Meryem. I, too, am very happy for a dedicated Period Piece contest and this placement was a much needed shot in the arm. Thank you, Stage 32, great idea!

Dustin Richardson

RENEGADES sounds super interesting, Meryem Ersoz! I'm a fan of racing, and it is fascinating to hear about that history. I would definitely watch that film. Congratulations on being a Quarterfinalist.

Dustin Richardson

Congratulations on being a Quarterfinalist, L. Tom Deaver!

Asmaa Jamil

Congratulations on this accomplishment.

Jim Boston

Congratulations to all the quarterfinalists...great job!

Krista Bradley

So grateful to be a part of this competition! THANK YOU STAGE 32 and congratulations to everyone!

Inspired by true events, go back in time to the world's largest underground nightclub in Bella Vista, Arkansas during Prohibition - Wonderland Cave! You can learn more about this awesome project and see our award-winning proof of concept trailer here: www.wonderlandcavefilm.com.

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