The Great Pitch Competition

Contest · 2026Prestige 50/100

Genuinely free to enter, including with an unfinished script. The prize is ISA credit, not cash.

Deadlines & fees

RegularNext deadline
30 Sept 2026America/Los_AngelesFree
Final
22 Oct 2026America/Los_AngelesFree

Dates and fees checked against the official site 9 Aug 2026.

Key facts

Formats: Feature, TV Pilot
Page limit: 120 pages
Eligibility: Open worldwide
Required materials: Logline (required) · Synopsis (required) · Screenplay as a PDF, or the first 20 pages of a work in progress · A written pitch as a one-page PDF uploaded to the pitch deck field · 12-point Courier, standard spec format, with no name or contact details inside the body of the script

Open to writers from all countries, with scripts submitted in English as PDFs. Four categories: completed feature, completed TV pilot, work-in-progress feature and work-in-progress pilot. Features run 70 to 120 pages and pilots up to 70, though the FAQ states a 10-page floor for pilots that the rules do not carry. Works in progress need at least 20 pages submitted as a draft. Scripts must be your original work, not encumbered by a third party, and not sold, produced for profit or currently under option; selling after entry is fine. Adaptations need written permission or public domain status. Shorts, web series, novels, plays, musicals, treatments, reality concepts and documentaries are excluded. Writers under 18 need a parent or guardian's permission. Co-writers may enter but all prizes are issued to a single applicant. Do not put your name or contact details inside the body of the script.

Prizes

IMPORTANT: there is no cash anywhere in this competition. Two grand prize winners each receive 1,500 US dollars in ISA credit, redeemable only against ISA-run resources on the ISA site, and the rules state no transfer, substitution or cash equivalent is allowed. Alongside the credit each winner receives a Pitching Like a Pro class, an ISA pitch practice and coaching session, high-level script feedback from an ISA story executive with a live 60 to 90 minute development call, a one-page pitch document built alongside the VP of Development, and their logline circulated in a newsletter to industry contacts including HBO Max, Disney+, LuckyChap, CAA and Amazon MGM Studios. The top ten finalists are considered for the ISA Development Slate and the top fifty receive laurels. Every element of the prize is ISA credit, an ISA service or exposure.

Judging

Judged by an unnamed panel described only as industry judges. Individuals named on the page are feedback-service providers or prize deliverers rather than selectors: Shayna Weber, Max Timm, Felicity Wren and Jeffrey Ryan Morales. Announcements run quarter-finalists 3 December 2026, semi-finalists 6 January 2027, top 50 finalists 17 February and grand prize winners 10 March 2027. Note that submitting enrols your email address in the ISA newsletter, with an unsubscribe available. One thing the page leaves unresolved: its FAQ implies Script Pipeline selects and develops one of the two winning projects, but no Script Pipeline prize or benefit is described anywhere, so one of the two grand prizes may differ materially from what is published.

The PreList verdict

This is free to enter, and unlike most things advertised as free it really is: zero dollars at both deadlines, across all four categories, for ISAConnect members and non-members alike. Better still, you can enter a work in progress with just 20 pages and a written pitch, which makes it one of very few credible routes for a script you have not finished. If you want a deadline to force a pitch document into existence, this will do it at no cost.

The honest part, and it is the whole story: the prize is not money. Each of the two winners receives 1,500 US dollars in ISA credit, redeemable only against ISA's own services on ISA's own site, and the rules foreclose conversion by stating no transfer, substitution or cash equivalent is allowed. Everything else in the package is an ISA class, an ISA session, an ISA document or exposure. That can be worth having, since their catalogue runs from 39 to 799 dollars, but it cannot leave the building. And a free entry sits directly in front of an eight-tier upsell ladder running from 39 dollars to 799, where four of those tiers dangle consideration for the ISA Development Slate, which is the same benefit the top ten receive for nothing.

Enter if the pitch document and the deadline are what you want, or if you have an unfinished feature that 20 pages could represent. Submitting also enrols you in the ISA newsletter, which is the ordinary trade for a free entry and easy enough to unsubscribe from. Regular deadline 30 September 2026, final 22 October, no times published. One loose end worth knowing: their own FAQ implies Script Pipeline selects and develops one of the two winning projects, but no Script Pipeline benefit appears anywhere on the page, so half the top prize is undocumented.

Dylian Salvatore, Founder of The PreList · Updated 9 Aug 2026

Frequently asked questions

Is it really free?

Yes. Both deadlines are zero dollars across all four categories, with no difference between the standard and ISAConnect rates. Submitting does enrol your email in the ISA newsletter, which you can unsubscribe from.

Is the 1,500 dollar prize cash?

No, and this is the most important thing to understand. It is ISA credit, usable only against ISA-run resources on the ISA site, and the rules state that no transfer, substitution or cash equivalent is allowed. There is no cash anywhere in this competition.

Can I enter an unfinished script?

Yes. Two of the four categories are for works in progress, and you need at least 20 pages submitted as a draft alongside your logline, synopsis and a one-page written pitch. That is unusual and is the main reason to consider it.

What are the paid add-ons?

Feedback is not included and is sold at entry across eight tiers, from 39 dollars for notes on your first 20 pages up to 799 for an accelerator evaluation. Worth noting that four of those paid tiers offer consideration for the ISA Development Slate, which the competition awards its top ten for free.

Is your script right for The Great Pitch Competition?

Upload your screenplay and The PreList scores how well it fits this contest: genre, format, eligibility and readiness, before you spend anything.

Check your script's fit Apply on the official site ↗

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