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2008 Big Break Winners Announced

The top-3 Big Break winners have been selected! These outstanding screenplays were among the many well-crafted entries sent in from all over the globe. Congratulations to these talented writers on their remarkable success! A panel of notable industry judges scored the top ten finalists to arrive at the winning screenplays.

This year’s top-3 winners are as follows:

1st Place:
Winner: Terry O'Brien - Toronto, Canada
Flesh & Blood
Kidnapping and murder were never part of the plan. It was supposed to be easy. Dump the car, hike upriver and bust out an older brother from juvenile boot camp. Lost in the wilderness, the volatile gang of city kids turn on each other in a fight for survival.

2nd Place:
Jordan Thomas - Seattle, WA
Arctic Air
An Alaskan bush pilot turns bootlegger to save the airplane he believes houses his best friend's disembodied spirit. He crash-lands in a remote village inhabited by recovering alcoholics and the love of his life. If he can escape before the villagers get to the booze, he won't be forced to choose between the plane, or a promise made to his dead partner.

3rd Place:
Robert Bowden - Bristol, United Kingdom
A Child of Our Time
A shy and secretive artificial intelligence helps euthanize her dying creator only to become hunted by the authorities. When fate offers her a chance to redeem herself she takes it, knowing she faces certain destruction.

2008 Finalists (listed in alphabetical order)

Robert Bowden, Stapleton, United Kingdom - A Child Of Our Time
VJ Boyd, Los Angeles, CA - Crypto Baby
Mark Hammer, Orange, CA - Sonny Takes To Peru
J.P. Hills, Cochrane, Canada - Badland
David Van Hooser, Nashville, TN - Barefoot Mel
Nicholas Horwood, London, United Kingdom - The Sons Of Avalon
Ehud Lavski, Herzelia, Israel - The Things I Saw Before I Went Blind
Kevin Naughton, Laguna Beach, CA - The Great Christmas Train Robbery
Terry O'Brien, Mount Albert, Canada - Flesh And Blood
Jordan Thomas, Lynnwood, WA - Arctic Air    

2008 Semifinalists (listed in alphabetical order)

David Ball, Cumberland, ME - Chuck Hodges
Jennifer Barclay, San Diego, CA - The Fontaines
Nino Del Pesco, Saint Paul, MN - The Third Realm
Paul Gulino, Santa Monica, CA - The Lost Brigade
John Killeen, Dover, United Kingdom - In God’s Name
Linda Marr, Redondo Beach, CA - Involuntary Man
Michael Morra, Annandale, NJ - Shades Of Grey
Austen Rachlis, New York, NY - When The Shooting Stops
David Stieve, Hermosa Beach, CA - The Gunshot’s Echo
Coert Voorhees, Houston, TX - Air And Space
Terence Winkless & Raly Radouloff, Encino, CA - The Apprentice

Our heartfelt thanks go to all the entrants who made the 2008 Big Break Contest a success. We applaud you for your artistic endeavors and are honored to bring recognition to promising screenwriters across the globe.

Liz Alani
Contest & Events Director, Final Draft, Inc.

“Before Big Break I was doing the film industry equivalent of washing dishes. Now I’m getting paid to write and loving every second of it.”

Rylend Grant, 2004 Big Break Winner

Rylend Grant was quickly signed by CAA and secured a six-figure deal to write for an A-list actress and an Oscar®-winning director!

Big Break adds mentorship in 2008!
This year, Big Break has partnered with CineStory, a non-profit organization that provides new screenwriters with opportunities to work with committed industry professionals to raise the level of their craft and career marketability. CineStory's commitment to helping writers improve their craft and gain access into the industry aligns itself perfectly with the philosophy of Final Draft’s Big Break.

This partnership allows Final Draft to add to its Big Break contest prize package a mentoring component which sets its contest apart from the sea of others. While Big Break has always awarded its finalists with substantial cash and prizes, including industry meetings for the top three winners, the contest has never before offered a year-long industry mentorship as part of its grand-prize winner package. CineStory will also invite the top three Big Break finalists to participate in CineStory’s annual retreat in Idyllwild.

At the CineStory retreat, writers meet with several retreat mentors to discuss their script submissions and possible personal pathways to a professional life in the business. Industry executive mentors work one-on-one with writers to better their scripts and move their projects to the next level. At the conclusion of the three-day retreat, the Big Break contest winner will select two industry mentors with whom he or she will work for one year.

About the Contest
Big Break is an annual, global screenwriting contest designed to support emerging creative talent. Big Break rewards screenwriters with cash, prizes and A-list executive meetings. Winners and finalists alike have had their screenplays optioned and produced and have secured high-profile representation as well as lucrative writing deals.

Since its inception in 2000, Big Break has awarded screenwriters with over $100,000 in cash and prizes and invaluable industry exposure. A panel of notable industry professionals conducts the final judging.

Contest Objectives
Our objective is to pave the way for the next generation of film artists. We strive to create inroads into an increasingly impenetrable industry, and empower creativity.

Contest Notables
Visit our Success Stories, our 2006 Winners and Finalists, and this year's prizes!

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