11/1/98 - Philadelphia, PA. The Philadelphia Festival of World Cinema 
presented by International House is pleased to announce the seventh annual 
"Set In Philadelphia" Screenwriting Competition. The Competition is 
co-sponsored by the Greater Philadelphia Film Office and is open to all 
screenwriters nationwide. All genres of screenplays are eligible and will be 
judged on their overall quality and the extent to which they tell a "genuine 
Philadelphia story." Screenplays should capture the spirit, characters and/or 
locations of the region.
 
The winning screenwriter will be awarded $5,000 in prize money, a 
professionally-cast live script readings of their screenplay at the Nuyorican 
Poets' Café in Manhattan's Lower East Side, and also one at The Lab at Mike 
Lemon Casting in Philadelphia. There will also be a special prize of $1,000, 
the Irene I. Parisi Award, awarded to an outstanding writer under 30 who has 
not won the competition. The award is made possible through the generous 
contribution of screenwriter, novelist and playwright Stephen J. Rivele in 
honor of his mother, Irene I. Parisi (1925-1964).
 
Deadline for entries is January 26, 1999 (postmarked or hand delivered).
 
The winning screenplay will be determined by a panel of industry 
professionals who have lived in Philadelphia, or have strong connections to 
the region. Judges for last year's competition included: Steve Rivele, 
Screenwriter (Nixon) Michael Schiffer, Screenwriter (Crimson Tide, The 
Peacemaker, Colors, Lean On Me), Richard Suckle, Atlas Entertainment (Twelve 
Monkeys, Fallen), Jonathan Cohen and Jeffrey Clifford, Blue Guitar Films 
(Safe Men, Broken Giant), and M. Night Shyamalan, Writer/Director (Wide 
Awake, Praying with Anger).
 
Entries must be accompanied by a signed entry form, brief synopsis and an 
entry fee of $35. Entrants wishing to be considered for the Irene I. Parisi 
Award must be under the ago of 30 as of April 30, 1999, and are also eligible 
for the main prize, but can not win both.
 
For competition guidelines and form, interested screenwriters should send a 
self-addressed, stamped envelope to: "Set in Philadelphia" Screenwriting 
Competition, International House, 3701 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 
19104-2415. They can also visit http://www.libertynet.org/pfwc/sip to view 
rules & regulations, criteria and to download an application, email 
[log in to unmask], call (215) 895-6593 or 1-800-WOW-PFWC.
 
The 1998 winner of the "Set In Philadelphia" Screenwriting Competition was 
Robert Palumbo for his screenplay CHIAROSURO, the story of 19th century 
Philadelphia painter Thomas Eakins, mostly through the memory of his widow, 
Susan. Robert Palumbo's first feature film, Fallout, debuted at the 1995 
Philadelphia Festival of World Cinema and has since screened at the 
Edinburgh, Chicago and Palm Spring Film Festivals.
 
The winner of the Irene I. Parisi Award went to Hugh Sterbakov for his script 
West Philly, a compelling drama in which friends are torn apart when racial 
tensions rise.  Twenty-four year old West Philadelphia native Hugh Sterbakov 
is a graduate of Ithaca College, and is currently enrolled in the graduate 
program in screenwriting at UCLA, having placed as a finalist in the 
highly-competitive Disney Fellowship contest.
 
The Philadelphia Festival of World Cinema is an annual, citywide celebration 
of cultural diversity and artistic excellence highlighting the best of recent 
and classic world cinema. The eleven day festival, presented by International 
House, features premiere screenings of international and American independent 
productions, tributes, workshops, forums and parties. The eighth annual 
Philadelphia Festival of World Cinema will take place April 29 to May 9, 
1999. International House of Philadelphia is a non-profit organization 
dedicated to increasing intercultural understanding.
 
The Greater Philadelphia Film Office works to promote and market Philadelphia 
as a location for film and video productions and to foster the development of 
the local production community. The Film Office serves Southeastern 
Pennsylvania, including Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery and Philadelphia 
counties.
 
----
To sign off SCREEN-L, e-mail [log in to unmask] and put SIGNOFF SCREEN-L
in the message.  Problems?  Contact [log in to unmask]