FilmBath IMDb Script to Screen Award
Contest · 2026Prestige 62/100
Seven thousand pounds to make your short, judged blind, with actors performing it live before the panel decides.
Deadlines & fees
- LateNext deadline15 Aug 2026Europe/London£35
Dates and fees checked against the official site 9 Aug 2026.
Key facts
- Formats
- Short
- Page limit
- 10 pages
- Eligibility
- Open worldwide
- Required materials
- Original short film script of 1 to 10 pages · Submitted anonymously, with no writer name on the title page or anywhere in the body · No additional material may be attached or uploaded alongside the screenplay · No revised drafts accepted after submission
Entry is open to filmmakers and writers of any nationality from any country. Original short film scripts of between one and ten pages, any genre. Scripts must have been written after 1 January 2025 and must not have been previously produced, optioned or sold, and the entrant is responsible for rights clearances. Multiple entries are allowed but each needs its own fee. Submission is blind: no writer name may appear on the title page or anywhere in the body of the screenplay. Nothing may be attached alongside the script, and no revised drafts or additional materials are accepted after submission. No age limit or residency requirement is published, though the kit hire prize is restricted to UK filmmakers.
Prizes
7,000 pounds in cash to one winner, plus a 1,000 pound kit hire package from Visual Impact restricted to UK filmmakers, so an international winner receives the cash but not the kit. The cash is ring-fenced rather than free money: FilmBath states in three separate places that the award goes towards the making of the winning screenplay, that recipients are expected to use it towards future filmmaking work, and that all entrants acknowledge the winner will be expected to use the prize money to make their next film. No escrow or clawback mechanism is published. No cash alternatives to any prize are offered. Rights are light: no option or first refusal, and no obligation to let FilmBath produce the film. Entrants grant permission to screen, present or read the work at the festival and to use names, titles and synopses for publicity.
Judging
Judged blind, with finalists' scripts performed live by professional actors at the Awards Evening before an industry panel selects the winner on the night. The 2026 panel is not published: FilmBath lists only previous judges, and its two published lists disagree with each other, one naming Col Needham, Sarah Gavron, Gaby Chiappe, Kate Leys, Ashley Pharoah, Olivia Hetreed and John Hodge, the other naming Col Needham, Philippa Lowthorpe, Otto Bathurst, Elizabeth Karlsen and Jonathan Hyde. Treat all of those as past judges rather than confirmed for this cycle. Note also that FilmBath contradicts itself on the number of finalists, saying four in two places and five in two others, including twice on the same page. Notification is 4 September 2026.
The PreList verdict
The best short-script prize in Britain, and the format is what makes it. Your ten pages are judged blind, then if you make the final, professional actors perform extracts in front of an industry panel and a live audience at Komedia in Bath, and the panel decides on the night. That is a genuinely different experience from a laurel arriving by email, and 7,000 pounds towards producing the film is real money for a short.
The honest part: the money is earmarked, not free. FilmBath says in three separate places that the award goes towards making the winning screenplay and that the winner is expected to use it on their next film, though no escrow or clawback is published. The 1,000 pound kit hire is UK filmmakers only, so an international winner gets the cash and not the kit. And there is no feedback of any kind: nothing is published either way, and the only comment you might hear is whatever the panel says out loud on the night.
Two things to know before entering. The 2026 judging panel has not been published, and the two lists of past judges on FilmBath's own pages contradict each other, so treat names like Col Needham and Sarah Gavron as previous panellists rather than a promise about this year. FilmBath also cannot decide whether it shortlists four finalists or five, saying both twice across its own site. Neither affects whether it is worth entering. The late deadline is 15 August 2026 at 35 pounds, and no closing time is published anywhere, so do not leave it to the day.
Dylian Salvatore, Founder of The PreList · Updated 9 Aug 2026
Frequently asked questions
When exactly does it close?
The late deadline is 15 August 2026 and it is the final tier. No closing time or timezone is published on FilmBath's own site or on its FilmFreeway listing, so treat the day itself as the limit and submit early.
Can I spend the 7,000 pounds however I like?
It is intended for production. FilmBath states three times that the award goes towards making the winning screenplay and that entrants acknowledge the winner will use it to make their next film. No escrow or clawback mechanism is published, but the expectation is explicit.
Can I enter from outside the UK?
Yes, entry is open to writers of any nationality from any country. The 7,000 pound cash prize is unrestricted by nationality, but the 1,000 pound kit hire package from Visual Impact is available to UK filmmakers only.
Is it judged anonymously?
Yes, strictly. Your name must not appear on the title page or anywhere in the body of the screenplay, nothing may be attached alongside it, and no revised drafts or additional materials are accepted after you submit.
Is your script right for FilmBath IMDb Script to Screen Award?
Upload your screenplay and The PreList scores how well it fits this contest: genre, format, eligibility and readiness, before you spend anything.
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