MoviePoet.com is dedicated to the art of screenwriting, in particular, the short screenplay. Each month, we run a free online five page screenplay contest. Our goal is threefold: help writers improve their craft, celebrate our best work, and connect writers and their scripts with filmmakers.

On the first of each month we announce a new contest. During that month, you can enter your script. During the next month, you can read, vote, and comment on all the entries. Finally, during the third month, the results are announced and all the scripts are searchable in our database.

If this is your first time here, please take a look at our FAQ. MoviePoet.com is growing every day and I hope you join in on the fun.

Chris Messineo

Contest: "INT. ATTIC - DAY"

Your script must begin with the following:

INT. ATTIC - DAY

The attic is dusty and barren. A shaft of sunlight from a lone window illuminates a corner. In the corner rests a large trunk.

Contest: "Family Film"

No foul language, no sex, and no violence. Keep it fun and write a story the whole family can enjoy.

Contest: "Poetic License"

Your script must be an adaptation of an Edgar Allen Poe short story or poem. The title of your script must be the same as the original work.

"The Raven" by Chris Messineo ~ First Place
Lonely and despairing for his lost love, Edgar begins to realize that he is not alone.

"The Conqueror Worm" by Steve Dexheimer ~ Second Place
A disillusioned old man forces members of his retirement home to act in his stage adaption of a poem by Edgar Allen Poe.

"Dreamland" by Erich VonHeeder ~ Third Place
Trapped in a coma by a failed sleep experiment, a scientist reaches out to his assistant through her dreams, begging her to murder him.