Shoot in Philadelphia, Win $10,000?

The Greater Philadelphia Film Office has come up with an innovative way to boost their city’s relevance when it comes to moviemaking (although they’re already doing pretty well in that department, placing ninth place in our latest list of Best Moviemaking Cities). The 2010 “Shoot in Philadelphia” (SIP) Screenwriting Competition is offering cash prizes so enormous in scale that aspiring writers might choose to consider them on more practical terms—dinner for an entire year, for instance (depending on the quality and size of portions, of course). Entrants can potentially win the Parisi Award for best screenplay written by a screenwriter 25-years-old or under ($1,000), the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce Regional Award for best screenplay by a Greater Philadelphia Resident ($2,500), the Derek Freese Film Foundation Prime Time Award for best TV pilot script ($5,000) or the Grand Prize for best feature-length screenplay (a whopping $10,000).

These cash prizes for the SIP place the Philadelphia contest on par with any other screenplay contest of this nature. “Thanks to our wonderful sponsors, we are able to continue to present one of the top screenplay competitions in the country, even in this difficult economic environment,” explains Sharon Pinkenson, the executive director of the Philadelphia Film Office.

“We’re very proud of SIP,” says Joan Bressler, director, Greater Philadelphia Filmmakers. “The competition creates incredible opportunities for our community, from substantial cash prizes and free public programming, to creating access to high profile professionals that can change the course of a writer’s career.”

Judges include an accomplished roster of industry professionals, ranging from writers to producers to actors, with at least a nominal tie to the city of Philadelphia. Submission fees are currently $45, but after February 1, they will increase to $65. The final deadline is March 1 and winners will be announced at some point in the fall of 2010.

For more information visit the Philadelphia Film Office at www.film.org.