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Exclusive: Stage 32 is launching a Global Screenwriting Contest Hub, bringing together dozens of writing competitions from around the world into one place including Oscar and BAFTA-qualifying contests.

The move comes with screenwriting website Coverfly set to shut down in a few weeks’ time, and Stage 32 has hired a trio of former Coverfly employees to oversee the new hub.

The Global Screenwriting Contest Hub will pool together on Stage 32 the Oscar-qualifying HollyShorts Film Festival Screenplay Contest, BAFTA-qualifying Manchester Film Festival Screenplay Contest, Page International Screenwriting Awards, Palm Springs Diversity Screenplay Contest and dozens others, according to Stage 32, which said the hub “provides screenwriters with a seamless, centralized platform to discover and submit to the world’s most respected competitions with access and discoverability the overall goal.”

Overseeing the platform are ex-Coverfly employees Geoffroy Faugérolas, who most recently served as Senior Manager of Development at Coverfly, Mitch Lusas as Chief Technology Officer,...

Hollywood – Fresh faces of vertical short-form video gathered at the NeueHouse Hollywood on a recent Friday for the latest collaboration in the fast-growing digital media space.

Sarah Moliski, 31, commanded the red carpet in a revealing leather corset set, reminiscent of the characters she plays regularly on ReelShort. The blonde villain, as she refers to herself, is not only an actress for the platform but a casting director. For a company producing 15 to 16 shows a month, Moliski stays busy.

ReelShort is one of the leading vertical short-form platforms that has seen a spectacular rise in users and revenue over the last two years. The Chinese-owned platform has seen a 992% increase in downloads in the last 12 months, from 3.4 million in Q1 2023 to 37 million in early 2024, and told TheWrap they took in a stunning $40 million in September with its micro-payment format.

Sarah Moliski attends the Crazy Maple Studio and Screencraft Celebration of the...

Erika Alexander, who starred as Maxine Shaw in Living Single, is partnering with WeScreenplay to bolster opportunities for underrepresented voices and marginalized people.

Alexander’s Color Farm Impact, the non-profit arm of the eponymous production company that she founded with Ben Arnon, is working with WeScreenplay Diverse Voices Labs on the program.

The partnership will offer a series of workshops, mentorship programs, and writing labs designed to empower writers from diverse backgrounds. Selected participants will have the opportunity to receive guidance from industry veterans, develop their scripts, and potentially see their projects brought to life on screen. Applications for the first round of workshops and labs will open August 15, with a kickoff event scheduled for later this year.

Alexander, who has also starred in The Cosby Show, Get Out and American Fiction, and Arnon, are behind documentary John Lewis: Good Trouble, as well as podcasts including Reparations: The Big Payback and Finding Tamika.

A dark glimpse into human evils, but with a positive message of strength through spirituality, Alice tells the story of a young girl who is forced into a mental hospital in 1967. Abused and alone, Mary struggles not to break down when all the world appears to be working against her. Based on the true story of the director’s mother, Alice works to expose mistreatment and show how spirituality can bring out strength.

Genre: Mystery Thriller, Drama

Directed by: Geoffroy Faugérolas

Producers: Alena Burova & Geoffroy Faugérolas

Written by: Marie-Ange Faugérolas

Cast: Masha Malinina, Alisa Schulz, Metra Dee, Carryl Lynn, Jonathan Tyler Ford, John C. Epperson

Music & Art Director: Matt Milan

Director of Photography: Jack Elliott

Run Time: 14 min.

The Craftsmanship

Alice begins with Mary and her parents walking into the mental hospital, and as it progresses, the excellent shot choices serve to create feelings of detachment and foreboding. There is...

Set in Russia in 1918, The Tsarevich tells the moving story of Prince Alexei Romanov and his battle with conscience, illness, and harsh reality during the Russian Civil War. It’s an ambitious and complicated topic for a short film to tackle, but director Geoffroy Faugérolas was apparently more than up for the challenge. In its fifteen minutes, The Tsarevich manages to both intensely capture interest and create genuine emotional investment. It’s a powerful piece of character focused filmmaking, and I’ll be watching with interest to see how it fares at upcoming film festivals.

Genre: Short, Dark Drama

Directed by: Geoffroy Faugérolas

Producers: Geoffroy Faugérolas & Alena Burova

Written by: Geoffroy Faugérolas & Marie-Ange Faugérolas

Cinematography: Jack Elliott

Music: Matt Milan (Score), Sasha Verner (Opera Singer)

Cast: Michael Fitzgerald, Mark Moses, Micah Fitzgerald, Jase Lindgren, Cristina Franco, Steve Humphreys, Zack Sayenko, Johnny Mask, Will Kleist, Ally Ioannides, Lizzie Zerebko, Arina Khoryakova,...