Make a short film for blockbuster writer and producer Steven E. de Souza
- Submit19 days 15 hours 19 Min. left
- VoteSep 28 - Oct 01, 2010
- Winner AnnouncedOctober 21, 2010
- Have your short film showcased with Steven E. de Souza’s suspense series UNKNOWN SENDER on StrikeTV, receive full credits and ad revenue
- Host: Steven E. de Souza
- Accomplished producer and screenwriter Steven E. de Souza invites aspiring filmmakers to produce their own take of his Web suspense series UNKNOWN SENDER, which was an unprecedented triple honoree at the 2009 Webby™ Awards for Best Writing, Best Dramatic Series, and Best Individual Performance - Timothy Dalton.
Steven's credits include the genre-setting action films DIE HARD and 48 HRS, as well as such film and TV blockbusters as COMMANDO, THE RUNNING MAN, RICOCHET, DIE HARD 2, JUDGE DREDD, LARA CROFT TOMB RAIDER, THE FLINTSTONES, TALES FROM THE CRYPT, and KNIGHT RIDER.
The selected filmmakers will receive full credits, $500 in cash, wide exposure through the release on StrikeTV and unknownsender.com, your share of ad revenue generated on StrikeTV and constructive feedback on your film. The 10 runner-ups will receive a signed copy of the DIE HARD DVD Collection plus autographed copies of Steven's critically acclaimed graphic novel re-boot of Will Eisner's SHEENA, QUEEN OF THE JUNGLE.
Based on 4 scripts selected by Steven through a script-writing contest by our partners at Scripped.com we ask you to select your preferred script and turn it into a short film. The four scripts are:
- CAR ALARMED / by Keith Martin
- FINAL ANALYSIS / by Myke Friscia
- THE FRIEND / by Clint Morey
- RED LIGHT LISA / by D.A. Hogg
How to participate:
1) Click "Participate" to download the available scripts and make your choice.
2) Create your short film based on the selected script.
3) Click "Submit" to upload it.
This is your chance to work with Steven E. de Souza, one of the handful of screenwriters whose films have earned over 2 billion dollars at the worldwide box office, to receive greater visibility, and have your film showcased with the UNKNOWN SENDER series online and potentially on DVD with full credits.
This Creative Invite is co-hosted by MakingOf.com and Scripped.com
Target Group Filmmakers, Producers, Directors
Selection Criteria Invite your friends and fans to vote on your submission. Steven de Souza will review at least the top voted submissions and select 4 films to be showcased with the "UNKNOWN SENDER" series.
Submission requirements
Click "Participate" to download the available scripts, make your choice, create your short film and once done upload it here on Talenthouse.
To submit your video:
1) Upload your final submission to YouTube.
2) Use the YouTube URL for your video to submit to this Creative Invite.
De Souza is credited with being the writer for twelve TV series, including The Six Million Dollar Man, The Bionic Woman, Knight Rider, The Powers of Matthew Star, and Tales from the Crypt. He was also responsible for several of the most successful films of the 1980s and 90s, including Commando, 48 Hrs., The Running Man (adapted from a Stephen King short story), Die Hard, and Die Hard 2.
De Souza later scripted Beverly Hills Cop III, Judge Dredd and Lara Croft Tomb Raider.
De Souza started his film career writing, directing, and producing the low-budget stoner comedy Arnold's Wrecking Co., which won the Special Jury Prize at the 1972 Atlanta Film Festival.
He has been nominated twice for the Edgar Allan Poe award, an award given to any piece of media for excellence in mystery writing, the first in 1984 for ‘48 Hrs.’ and again in 1989 for ‘Die Hard’. In 2000 he was honored with the Norman Lear Award for Lifetime Achievement in writing.
In 2007, de Souza appeared in the feature-length documentary Dreams on Spec, which profiled three aspiring screenwriters and featured comments from a number of distinguished writers like James L. Brooks, Nora Ephron, Carrie Fisher, and him.
In 2009, his suspense Web series ‘Unknown Sender’ became a triple honoree at the 2009 Webby Awards for Best Writing, Best Dramatic Series, and Best Individual Performance.
Mr. de Souza has also written for The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, Premiere, Buzz, and Fade In. Recently, he was responsible for the critically acclaimed graphic novel re-boot of Will Eisner's classic comic character Sheena, Queen of the Jungle.
About MakingOf:
MakingOf is the first and only centralized behind-the-scenes destination that gives consumers an inside look into the creation of entertainment. MakingOf’s offering includes more than 300 exclusive video interviews with established and emerging filmmakers (actors, directors, writers, producers and more), on-set video segments, trailers, photo galleries, filmmaker blogs and an interactive community of filmmakers and film lovers. In total MakingOf features more than 1,000 pieces of video content. Since its launch MakingOf has moved beyond gossip to showcase premier, insider content that uncovers the multi-faceted decisions filmmakers face throughout all stages of production.
About Scripped.com:
Scripped provides web-based screenwriting software to over 60,000 users worldwide. Scripped also crowdsources scripts on behalf of producers and brands. Scripped counts Edward Burns, Steven de Souza, Girls2watch.com and Alex Albrecht amongst its producer clients. In March 2009, Scripped merged with Zhura.
What is a Creative Invite?Established and respected artists launch Creative Invites (CI`s) through Talenthouse to find and support new talent. An CI challenges our artistic community to submit ideas or concepts for a new, creative and typically collaborative artistic endeavour that is sponsored by our established artists. CI`s are as diverse as the Talenthouse community itself and span everything from recording new tracks with well known musicians, to designing new fashion lines for renowned designers, to auditioning for film or television projects.
How do I participate in an Creative Invite?All artists are invited to peruse our CI page to find projects that appeal to them. When you find an CI that you want to submit your work for, click on that specific CI page. From there, simply click "Submit" and follow the instructions.
Who is eligible to participate?Anyone. If you are a member of the Talenthouse community, you are eligible to submit your work to any CI.
How is the winner selected?The Talenthouse community votes for their favorite submissions to any particular CI. The finalists are those who receive the highest number of votes. Typically, the artists who hosted the CI will select the winning artist from these finalists. In other instances, the hosting artist may look beyond these finalists to the entire pool of submitted work to find the winner.
How many artists enter?The number of participants for any given CI varies and depends on the interest of the project in the community. There is no maximum or minimum number of entries for an CI.
Is there always a winner?Typically, there will be a winner for each CI. However, if none of the submissions meet the hosting artist`s expectations or project vision, no winner will be selected.
How many times can I enter?You can only submit your work to a particular CI one time. There is no limit to the number of CI`s you can participate in.
Will I get paid if I win?Talenthouse does not provide any monetary compensation to CI winners. If the project has any financial component, the terms of that arrangement will be negotiated and agreed upon by and between the hosting artist and the CI winner.
What will I get if I don`t win?All CI submissions are available for viewing by the entire Talenthouse community. Because the Talenthouse community consists not only of undiscovered talent but also of industry leaders and established artists, each submission grants you the unique opportunity of global exposure for your work and talent.
Do you own the intellectual property rights to my artwork?Talenthouse`s mission is to liberate all artists. Thus, Talenthouse does not retain any ownership rights to your artwork except a very limited right to use certain materials on its website and in its marketing documentation (see, the Terms of Use). As part of the Creative Invite process, the host of the Creative Invite may request additional ownership rights in your artwork as a pre-requisite to winning the Creative Invite. The host may also seek to work with you outside of the Creative Invite process. In any event, the rules for each Creative Invite are different and you should read them carefully before participating. The property rights a host obtains from the winner are set forth in the rules.
How long will Talenthouse publish my submission?Submissions become part of the project and as such will remain on your profile for as long as you maintain one. Should you delete your profile, Talenthouse will continue to publish your submissions in connection with the CI for up to twelve months.
After the CI is over, will the Talenthouse community still be able to view my work?Yes. Your submitted work will be viewable on your profile and also, should Talenthouse choose to use it, could be viewed on other locations on the Talenthouse site.
Can I launch my own CI, even if I`m not an established artist?Anyone and everyone can suggest an idea for an CI. Talenthouse will review your ideas. If your suggested CI is in tune with Talenthouse`s mission and vision, we will publish it on the site.
How do I launch my own CI?Presently our website has a Suggest button for CI`s. Clicking on this button will allow you to suggest an idea or concept for a CI. Once submitted, Talenthouse will review your ideas. If your suggested CI is in tune with Talenthouse`s mission and vision, we will publish it on the site. Additionally, we are developing an automated feature whereby all artists will be able to submit and sponsor their own CI. You can also send your suggestion as an E-Mail to "invite-ideas@talenthouse.com" with the subject "My Artist Invitation idea for Talenthouse".
