PHILADELPHIA, PA — The Greater Philadelphia Film Office has expanded its 2027 screenwriting competition to include short films for the first time, increasing available cash prizes to $23,000 while barring scripts created wholly or partly with artificial intelligence.
The new Mitchell Creative Alliance Award will provide $1,500 to the writer of a short screenplay containing at least one scene set at a specifically named college or university in the Greater Philadelphia region.
Scripts submitted for the new category must be between five and 40 pages. The award is funded by film office board member Darla Wolfe in honor of her parents, Richard and Sylvia Mitchell.
The competition also offers a $10,000 grand prize for a feature-length screenplay, a $5,000 television pilot award sponsored by Comcast/NBCUniversal and a $5,000 children’s content prize sponsored by Hallee and David Adelman.
A separate $1,500 award sponsored by Laurie Lo Presti recognizes a female screenwriter. Feature films and television pilots are eligible for that category.
The children’s content award is restricted to writers with a connection to the Philadelphia region and projects suitable for audiences age 12 and younger. The female screenwriter award also favors applicants with regional connections.
Other competition categories are open to screenwriters worldwide. Entries do not need to be explicitly set in Philadelphia, except for the college-based short-film requirement, but projects must be capable of being filmed in the city or surrounding counties.
Judges will evaluate submissions based on writing quality and whether projects could realistically be produced locally. All genres are eligible.
The competition prohibits using artificial intelligence at any stage of the creative process. Entries generated in whole or in part by tools such as ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini face immediate disqualification, and organizers may request verification of authorship.
The early submission deadline is September 15 at 11:59 p.m. Eastern time, with a $75 entry fee using the code SIPEARLYBIRD. The final deadline is October 19 at 11:59 p.m., with a $100 fee.
Writers may purchase a one-page professional script assessment for an additional $50. The fee will be refunded to entrants who advance to the finalist round.
Feature-length scripts must be between 85 and 130 pages, while single-camera television pilots must run fewer than 70 pages. All scripts must follow standard formatting and include a title page without identifying the author.
Multiple submissions are permitted, but each requires a separate application and fee. Projects already in production are ineligible.
Finalists are scheduled to be announced January 29, 2027, and winners on March 31, 2027.
Writers retain all rights to their submissions. Winning scripts will receive public recognition and introductions to the film office’s network of readers, judges and industry sponsors.
Complete rules and submissions are available at https://filmfreeway.com/SetinPhiladelphiaScreenwritingCompetition. Competition updates are available at https://film.org/greater-philadelphia-filmmakers/sip-screenwriting-competition/.
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