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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Final Draft, Inc. Announces 6th Annual Big Break™! International Screenwriting Contest Winner to Receive over $15,000 in Cash and Prizes Plus Meetings with Industry Pros Calabasas, CA - March 20, 2005 - Final Draft, Inc., www.finaldraft.com, publisher of Final Draft®, the #1-selling scriptwriting software, today announced the launch of its 6th annual Big Break™! International Screenplay Contest. Big Break™! is an annual, global screenwriting competition designed to promote emerging creative talent. The winner is awarded $10,000 cash plus meetings with industry professionals and additional prizes worth over $5,000. Many of the previous years' winning scripts have been produced or optioned. For more information about the Big Break™! Contest, visit www.bigbreakcontest.com. Liz Alani, Contest Director, said, "We are thrilled to create inroads into a challenging industry, and look forward to paving the way for the next generation of screenwriters." The top ten finalists will receive a copy of Final Draft scriptwriting software, a Microsoft software package, a screenwriting course from Gotham Writers' Workshop, one-year subscriptions to Fade In and scr(i)pt magazines and a gift certificate from The Writers Store. The top three finalists will also receive a Tablet PC courtesy of the Big Break™! Premier Sponsor, Microsoft Corporation. About Final Draft's Big Break™! Contest Final Draft's Big Break™! Contest has become one of the most popular in Hollywood due to previous winners' success and its generous prize package. The first contest's winner, Dawg, by Ken Hastings, was produced and shot by Gold Circle Films (starring Elizabeth Hurley and Denis Leary), and 2001's winner, Breathing Underwater, by Torye Mullins, was optioned by Trevor Macy. 2002's winner, 8-Track, by Shawn Corridan, has been bought by Fox 2000, and 2003's winner, D.J. Richardson's Do Not Remove, is currently being considered by several producers. 2004 winner Rylend Grant was immediately signed by CAA and Kustom Entertainment. The worldwide response to the Big Break™! Contest has steadily grown, with the contest garnering almost 15,000 script entrants to date. The contest's international appeal is exemplified by entrants from over 30 countries in 2004. A panel of notable industry professionals conducts the final judging. Previous judges include Stephen J. Cannell, Francis Ford Coppola's Zoetrope, Syd Field and Hawk Koch. This year's contest is sponsored by Microsoft Corporation, Without a Box, The Writers Store, Fade In and scr(i)pt magazines, Gotham Writers' Workshop and The Screenwriters Store (UK). As the Premier Sponsor, Microsoft will contribute Tablet PCs to the top three finalists. In addition, Microsoft will provide Tablet PCs for script review and judging as a means of creating a more streamlined and efficient judging process. Tablet PCs offer a unique solution to electronically review, annotate and collaborate judging documents, saving time and money. "We are excited to work with Final Draft, and the Big Break™! contest, as a way to demonstrate the full power and functionality Tablet PC technology provides," said Susan Cameron, Group Product Manager for Tablet PC at Microsoft. "Tablet PCs combine all the benefits of Windows XP Professional, plus innovative pen and speech input capabilities to make it one of the most mobile and versatile PCs available today." About Final Draft, Inc. Final Draft, Inc. was founded in 1991 to develop a scriptwriting program that allows the writer to concentrate on the creative process and not on Hollywood's stringent formatting rules. Since then, Final Draft has become the Hollywood professional's choice and the world's #1-selling scriptwriting program. Final Draft won the 2000 Golden Satellite Award for Best Interactive CD-ROM. Final Draft is the software of choice of such industry giants as Alan Ball, Tom Hanks, Oliver Stone, J.J. Abrams and Michael Bay. Television shows such as The Sopranos, The West Wing, Band of Brothers, Sex and the City, Entourage and Six Feet Under, feature films such as Titanic, Finding Nemo and any of the Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter and recent James Bond movies are all the results of scripts written with Final Draft. Through its partnership with other companies, Final Draft, Inc. continues its commitment to making all facets of the production workflow run smoother, from concept to writing to scheduling and budgeting to shooting to non-linear editing. Final Draft, Inc. also publishes Final Draft AV, the only dedicated multi-column script processor specifically designed for writing commercials, corporate videos, documentaries, presentations, DV shorts, etc. The company's headquarters are in Calabasas, California. More information about the company and its products is available at www.finaldraft.com. ### Final Draft is a registered trademark
of Final Draft, Inc. Contact: Final Draft, Inc. |