Below is a list of all the screenplays that made it into the second round of SYS’s Six Figure Screenplay Contest 2023.
A big congratulations to all the writers who had screenplays make it out of the first round. Congratulations!
Trying to grade something as subjective as screenwriting is not always easy, and we acknowledge that no process, including our own, is perfect. If you didn’t place as highly as you had hoped, get another opinion. It’s always possible we’ve overlooked a great screenplay.
We will be announcing the quarter finalists on September 19th, 2023.
So without further ado here are the screenplays that have progressed to the second round of SYS’s Six-Figure Screenplay Contest 2023 (listed alphabetically by screenplay title):
Feature Screenplays
8-Bit Bloodsport (comedy) by Charles Thomas
Log Line: A disgraced, hypercompetitive weightlifter joins an underground Atari 2600 eSports league, but his cutthroat nature risks destroying the group and dredging up his own traumatic past.
A Mistlepaw Christmas (romance) by Judith Ingram
Log Line: An angel cat answers a young girl’s Christmas wish and helps her big-city aunt rediscover her hometown ties and capacity for love with a handsome local veterinarian.
Anywhere (drama) by Adam Seidel
Log Line: An underachieving Wyoming roughneck discovers that his charming scumbag brother is secretly screwing his restless and sultry truck stop waitress wife, and takes violent action to save his marriage to the only woman he’s ever loved.
Alaka’i Prep (drama) by Ross Matlin
Log Line: A houseless single mother journeys to the far side of O’ahu so her son can interview for kindergarten at the best private school in Hawai’i.
American Fallout (action/adventure) by Harry Kakatsakis
Log Line: When a global incident spirals out of control, a lone wolf doomsday prepper agrees to be the mentor for an unprepared owner of a remote gas station and finds she’s not prepared to fall in love.
Anchor Baby (drama) by Ran Jing
Log Line: An NYC architecture graduate from China confronts the emotional abuse she suffered as a child after she takes guardianship of her 6-year-old half-brother (who has Hepatitis C, and needs to be treated in the U.S.) in order to obtain a visa.
Closing Night (drama) by Andy Spyros
Log Line: Staff and cinemagoers at the Lois Theater stand to lose more than just their beloved movie palace when its most loyal patron takes extreme measures to assume control of closing night proceedings.
Gender Perfect (drama) by Brian Wapole
Log Line: A gender-non-conforming teen, facing intolerance and prejudice at their high school, must come to terms with their own biases and volcanic temper, when their BFF steals away their girlfriend.
Hospice (horror) by Todd Biggerstaff and Paul Gonzales
Log Line: A distraught hospice nurse moves to a rural farmhouse to care for a dying man when she finds herself living a nightmare the longer she stays and the longer he lives.
I Just Work Here (comedy) by Wes Cambron
Log Line: After his father loses his college tuition, a talented but lazy teenager works at a comic book store and learns to navigate the world of retail filled with irate customers, absent management and pop culture references.
Kaylee Age 8 (drama) by Molly Coffee & Charles Thomas
Log Line: Following the death of her mother and best caretaker, an 8-year-old girl with
autism embarks on a journey filled with a cast of colorful characters that help her deal with her grief.
Legal Gringa (dramedy) by angela page
Log Line: Undocumented Latina teenager finds sanctuary with a newly widowed attorney who helps her negotiate with her neo-nazi bio Dad and avoid deportation.
Like Hell It’s Over! (romantic comedy) by Cayn Perez and Pamela Finck
Log Line: When Kate, a lead fashion designer, experiences ageism when replaced by a young ingenue, she refocuses all her attention on her son’s breakup with the future daughter-in-law of HER dreams. She devises a campaign to get him to reconcile. Her meddling reveals that you can’t force love.
Last Call (drama) by Bill Wells
Log Line: A beloved teacher cherishes dinner at an annual Christmas gathering with five of his former students until the group uncovers his plan to commit suicide that night.
Local Talent (dramedy) by Vincent Scarsella
Log Line: A self-proclaimed TV producer disappears after convincing small-town actors and film crew with dreams of Hollywood, to raise $60,000 to shoot a sizzle reel that he can then pitch to Networks and Streamers. The sizzle is shot for much less and the TV producer then disappears.
Moksha (sci-fi) by Saurin Lakhia
Log Line: In the late 22nd century, a queer Indian-American man uses psychedelic science to lead humanity to its new interstellar home, but must first confront his past after receiving a dark message from Earth involving his long-estranged mother and her mass ritual suicide cult.
Mosshart (horror) by Alec Gutherz
Log Line: Reunited with his fragmented family to honor his deceased father, Sasha Mosshart’s mind, and his skin, begin to unravel. Plagued by escalating visions and a rapidly spreading rash, he spirals into a personal hell where guilt is the hardest demon to silence.
My Brother The Stick Man (drama) by John Broadhead
Log Line: A girl in high school, struggling to come to terms with her brother’s suicide, makes friends with two imaginary and funny cartoon figures who represent her guilt and her anger and engage in an epic battle for her emotions.
Nightfall (sci-fi) by Matt Curtsinger
Log Line: A scientist races to restore oxygen levels and sunlight to a dying world, only to send it into eternal darkness.
On Time (drama) by Xavier Burgin
Log Line: Renee Johnson, a mother living in South Central LA, must make a difficult decision when she’s late for her job interview.
Only Apparently Real (sci-fi) by Michael Richter
Log Line: Philip K. Dick investigates a break-in at his house . Before it actually happens.
Off the Mat (drama) by John Acquaviva
Log Line: Two very different male college freshmen roommates struggle to express their feelings for each other and be their true selves.
Our Toes In The Ocean (non-fiction/history) by Martha Tracy
Log Line: Based on true events: On a South Georgia island, Karen, the lone black member of a high school majorette squad, endures the enduring taunts of her racist team captain and befriends a mysteriously mystical island lady who tells Karen true stories that send her time-traveling into moments of the island’s captivating black history.
Powder (thriller) by Ria Fend
Log Line: In 1970s London, a gang of ex-convict femme fatales attempt to deposit a haul of looted drugs – but the bikers they stole from are hot on their tail and out for blood. A violent, retro, female-driven Crime Thriller – think PULP FICTION, LAYER CAKE and FASTER, PUSSYCAT! KILL! KILL! meets BRAWL IN CELL BLOCK 99- or the all-female RESERVOIR DOGS reboot we deserve.
Prodigal (dramedy) by Michael Ridge
Log Line: A drug-addicted stripper and a bartender meet then embark on a road trip across the country helping each other heal from their troubled past derived from their upbringing.
Purgatory (horror) by Brian Schwab
Log Line: After falling victim to a brutal and sadistic serial killer, a young paraplegic woman awakens to find herself living out the same grisly series of events over and over again.
Road To A River Somewhere (drama) by Russell Roberts
Log Line: ROAD TO A RIVER SOMEWHERE is a feature length drama. The journey through life of a boy, abandoned by his parents, raised by river, who endures horrific abuse and deprivation before travelling throughout Australia in search of rivers and a sense of belonging, and finally confronting his abuser and extracting revenge.
Sad Vacation (drama) by Adam Simmel
Log Line: After deciding to kill himself, a young man travels home to reconcile with his father before it’s too late.
Tasered (comedy) by David M Hinds
Log Line: After a celebrity therapist known online as The Happiness Angel is tasered, she develops a lethal compulsion to attack her lovers mid-act. It electrifies her sex life and transforms her into a dangerous Jekyll and Hyde-type personality. She experiences the real-life taser-related disorder EXCITED DELIRIUM.
The Best Men (comedy) by Oliver Diprose
Log Line: Just hours before his wedding, a groom discovers his wife-to-be is pregnant but knows it can’t be his. With the help of his groomsmen, he decides to solve the mystery of who the father is.
The Corpse Dresser (sci-fi) by Daniel Cooper
Log Line: A mortician who specializes in restoring the faces of the ‘traumatically deceased’ encounters an existential crisis when he finds the next body that crosses his table is himself, 20 years older, with a bullet hole in his head and an ominous message tattooed on his chest.
The Grass Is Greener (drama) by Miles Mccomb
Log Line: When a boy wakes up in a farmhouse in Alabama, he has no memory of who he is or his life before waking up. Faced with both kindness and betrayal, he must follow his heart to find his path in life.
The Pickleball Killer (action/adventure) by James Carroll
Log Line: Brigg, an aging pickleball sensation, with supernatural speed, and dark mysterious origin, becomes the target of the Cartel after he inadvertently rescues a young trafficked girl from their clutches.
The Surveillance of Ordinary Things (drama) by Susan Brunig
Log Line: A middle-aged, suburban housewife in the midst of a dark, existential crisis decides to run away and end it all. But when she stumbles upon an unplugged community of creative misfits, she rediscovers the artist she once was.
Undo/Redo (horror) by Brandon Doo
Log Line: When gathering at their condemned old home for a reunion, a family begins to unravel as toxic fumes and oil from a nearby oil derrick begin to affect them in ways they could never have fathomed.
Vengeance is Mine (drama) by Marcus Jones
Log Line: After being bullied all his life Darren decides to take MMA classes to learn how to protect and stand up for himself. He trains hard and gets good and decides to seek revenge on all his past bullies. However, his road to revenge will lead to an unfortunate end.
Short Screenplays
Anything (thriller) by Jude Birdsall
Log Line: When tragedy strikes, grief drives a young woman to desperate measures to reconnect with her fiancé. But happiness comes at a price.
Boiling Point (drama) by Amy Charlesworth
Log Line: A desperate woman must risk everything to escape her abusive husband and protect her unborn child.
Byrdie’s Call (drama) by Connor Austin Jones
Log Line: The night of Atlanta pride, gogo dancer Byrdie J (29) makes a call that changes her life forever.
Cleansing Acts (drama) by Carlos Perez
Log Line: A young man contemplating suicide calls a prostitute to keep him company before he commits the act.
Delta Sugar (drama) by Dianne Janis
Log Line: An unexpected visit from a long-lost friend stirs up deep memories – some are bitter, others are very sweet.
Dona Sebastiana (fantasy) by Patricia Chavez
Log Line: A mother tells her daughter a bedtime story to teach her about death in a witty and culturally unique western where outwitting death is just good manners.
Grounded (animation) by Martin Tylicki
Log Line: A frog awakens to find itself trapped underneath the Colombian rain forest with no memory. In its search for a way out, the frog forms an unexpected friendship with a large tarantula.
Johnny Jump Up (drama) by Shiva Ramanathan
Log Line: A grieving widower gets a booster shot of life when his dead wife cheers him up by grooming his biblical facial hair into exotic beard trims.
Nets Flicks (comedy) by Katharine Rex
Log Line: Two residents of the Bridgewater Assisted Living Facility want to spice up their lives with some Nets Flicks, but first need to figure out whose funeral is coming up next.
Papa (drama) by Bella Rinsky
Log Line: A woman in her late forties struggles to accept her father’s illness and combats a tearing desire to set herself free.
Primal Magic (animation) by Heather Parra
Log Line: After losing his mother to a poacher, a young shape-shifting tiger struggles to find his way as a Guardian.
Ramona (drama) by David Woll
Log Line: No logline provided
Tattoo (drama) by Steven T Smith
Log Line: A vicious tabloid reporter willing to do anything to get his next big story learns the true meaning of “skin in the game.” It’s enough to make anyone’s skin crawl.
The REVVER (thriller) by Mike Hanson
Log Line: At wit’s end with a motorhead neighbor always revving his big truck, a beleaguered artist takes matters into her own hands to finish her masterwork.
The Ride (drama) by Alysha Haran
Log Line: When Blake picks up a young Marine hitch hiking his way down the highway, he has no idea giving the veteran a simple ride will have such a life-changing effect on both of them.
The Rusty Nail (horror) by John Acquaviva
Log Line: Two best friends on a mission go clubbing when one meets a handsome stranger over drinks and things take a turn for the worse.
Two Fishermen (drama) by Richard Whelan
Log Line: When a young reporter is sent to cover a hanging, he must quickly come to grips with the bloody and painful realities of life as well as the spontaneous nature of true friendship.
Vinyl Taped Mary Jane (family) by Angel Hilson
Log Line: Feeling like an outsider, a 9 year-old scholarship recipient navigates the social pitfalls of her wealthy private school and the worrisome absence of her deployed father days before the Father-Daughter Dance.