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Alumni in the Spotlight

Throughout the years, Big Apple Film Festival Screenplay Competition has had the honor of recognizing, supporting and promoting the work of a wide array of diverse, talented and innovative writers

Previous Winners and Finalists

  • ​​Shia LaBeouf (SAG Award, People's Choice Award and Independent Spirit Award nominee)

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  • ​Ron Friedman (Emmy nominee and WGA Award winner)

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  • Elizabeth Page - Six time Emmy Award and three time WGA Award winning writer and playwright (ABC, CBS, TBS)

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  • Nicole Delprado - Development Producer, Flying Bark Productions (Netflix, Hulu, Paramount +, Disney, NBCUniversal)

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  • Harris Gurny (Producer, "Coup!" starring Emmy Award and Golden Globe nominee Peter Sarsgaard, "The God Committee", starring Emmy Award winner Kelsey Grammer, Golden Globe and SAG Award nominee Julia Stiles and Emmy Award winner Colman Domingo)

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  • Caytha Jentis - written/directed/produced projects for HBO, Warner Bros., Amazon

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  • Geoffrey Colo(Worked in development at Universal, followed by producer roles including 8 seasons of House M.D. and 6 years of Marvel TV dramas, earning him an Emmy nomination, 2 PGA nominations and 2 Webby awards)

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  • Aimee Pitta - writer of HULU's "Christmas on Repeat", "The Clue to Love" (Reel One Entertainment), "Love's Second Chance" (Reel One Entertainment)

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  • Alex Forstenhausler (optioned screenwriter, Finalist Fox Comedy Pilot Competition) 

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  • Lindsay Heiman (showrunner's assistant, credits include “CONAN”, Warner Bros., “VEEP” Paramount, “INSECURE” HBO, “THE SEX LIVES OF COLLEGE GIRLS” HBO Max, "THE GIRLS ON THE BUS" and "MORE," both premiering on HBO Max)

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  • Sheena Lambert (Author, "The Lake", published by HarperCollins, optioned TV projects in various stages of development, represented by Blake Friedmann Agency in London)

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  • Thomas L. Ferguson (writer, "Forgotten" starring Tom Sizemore, available on Amazon, Tubi, Roku)

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  • Kent Moran (Feature films have been released by Warner Brothers, Netflix, Showtime, Paramount+, Starz, Apple, Hulu, Amazon, Hallmark, Lifetime, LMN, Regal Cinemas)

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  • Rosemary Griggs (2x Quarter Finalist, award winning author, published by Fence Publishing)

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  • Larry Collins (Emmy Award Winner, NBCUniversal/Peacock Network)

 

  • Jyllian Gunther (Emmy Award winner, producer for NBC, ABC, A&E), 

 

  • Henry Sarwer-Foner (Directors Guild of Canada Award nominee), 

 

  • Daniel Talbott (writer ABC's "The Conners", "The Mist"  produced by The Weinstein Company and Spike TV), 

 

  • Michael Vaynberg (writer/director Cannes Film Festival selection "9.8 m/s²"), 

 

  • Shruti Tewari (member of the Sundance Collab Directing Program)

 

  • Ken Krauss (writer - Hallmark Channel)

 

  • Kevin Emerson (author of over twenty novels published by HarperCollins, Random House, Scholastic), 

 

  • Linda Shayne (writer/director "Undercover Kid" released by WARNER BROTHERS, HBO Family, "Little Ghost,” distributed by PARAMOUNT video airing on HBO), 

 

  • Chris Phillips (Finalist - Sundance Institute Development Track, Award for Overall Excellence in Playwriting-New York International Fringe Festival), 

 

  • Maia Henkin (repped by Abrams Artists Agency) 

 

and many more...

 

TESTIMONIALS

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"Two of the agents I’ve practiced-pitched to have requested my script and one has followed up with a phone call to discuss representation. Your service is career-changing" - Nate Bynum (screenwriter)

 

"Since being a finalist with Big Apple, I was signed by A3 (Abrams) and have taken meetings with Starz, Lionsgate, and Anonymous Content (among others). I was also recently a Semi-Finalist for the Sundance Episodic Lab!" -Maia Henkin

 

"I wanted to thank you, I have signed with an agent. I met her because of the Big Apple Film Festival" - Andrea Careri (BAFF screenplay winner, Agents and Managers Conference participant)

 

"My feature script The Tenant recently became a finalist in the Big Apple Film Festival. This accolade moved my script onto Coverfly's Red List. This helped in querying representation and getting signed by a literary manager." 
-Janet J. Lawler

Alumni in the Spotlight

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