files/pictures/picture-35.jpgPress Release from The Writers Guild of America, West & East
New York and Los Angeles – The Writers Guild of America, West (WGAW) and Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE) today announced a joint call for submissions for the second annual WGA New Media Writing Awards.
In recognition of the diverse writing talent and creative work increasingly being broadcast via an array of new media platforms, awards for Outstanding Achievement in Writing Original New Media and Outstanding Achievement in Writing Derivative New Media will be presented at the upcoming 2012 Writers Guild Awards to be held on Sunday, February 19, 2012 at simultaneous ceremonies in Los Angeles and New York City.
Submissions for the 2012 WGA New Media Writing Awards will be accepted beginning September 19, 2011, through November 18, 2011.
WGA New Media Writing Award nominees will be announced on January 11, 2012, along with Videogame Writing Award nominees.
Eligibility requirements for the Guilds’ New Media Writing Awards (Original and Derivative) are as follows:
Outstanding Achievement in Writing Original New Media
· To be eligible for entry, an original stand-alone new media program or an original episode written for a new media series must have first been exhibited on a new me dia platform between 12/1/2010 and 11/30/2011. For this purpose, a new media platform is defined as the Internet via a major video-sharing site or unique URL, mobile devices such as cell phones or PDAs, or any other established new media platform.
· The submission deadline is 5:30 p.m. (PST) on Friday, November 18, 2011.
· Only work that was written and produced under a WGA collective bargaining agreement and for which the Guild has determined the writing credits may be submitted.*
· Submissions will be accepted by mail or online. Submission information and submission forms are available on the Guilds’ websites.
· Writers may submit either one stand-alone new media program or up to five episodes of a single new media series. The award will be given to the credited writer(s) of the submitted program/episode(s), not to the series.
Outstanding Achievement in Writing Derivative New Media**
· To be eligible for entry, a derivative stand-alone new media program or a derivative episode written for a new media series must have first been exhibited on a new media platform between 12/1/2010 and 11/30/2011. For this purpose, a new media platform is defined as the Internet via a major video-sharing site or unique URL, mobile devices such as cell phones or PDAs, or any other established new media platform.
· The submission deadline is 5:30 p.m. (PST) on Friday, November 18, 2011.
· Only work that was written and produced under a WGA collective bargaining agreement and for which the Guild has determined the writing credits may be submitted.*
· Submissions will be accepted by mail or online. Submission information and submission fo rms will be available on the Guilds’ websites.
· Writers may submit either one stand-alone new media program or up to five episodes of a single new media series. The award will be given to the credited writer(s) of the submitted program/episode(s), not to the series.
*In order for the Guild to d etermine writing credits (and for submissions to be eligible), the signatory company must submit to the Guild’s Credits Department a Notice of Tentative Writing Credits.
** For awards purposes, a derivative new media production is a production for new media based on an existing television motion picture that was produced for “traditional” media – e.g., a free television, basic cable, or pay television motion picture, or any new media production based on previously exploited material, ‐ e.g., a theatrical motion picture, novel, play, and is otherwise includ ed among the types of motion pictures traditionally covered by the MBA.
WGA New Media Writing Awards are based strictly on written material. Preliminary judging will be done by Guild members. Each script that qualifies for final judging will be read by a panel of Guild members selected for their experience in the new media genre.
The Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE) and Writers Guild of America, West (WGAW) are labor unions representing writers in motion pictures, television, cable, digital media, and broadcast news. The Guilds negotiate and administer contracts that protect the creative and economic rights of their members; conduct programs, seminars, and events on issues of interest to writers; and present writers’ views to various bodies of government. For more information on the Writers Guild of America, East, visit
www.wgaeast.org . For more information on the Writers Guild of America, West, visit
www.wga.org .
