Stellar City Launch Grant
$1,000 to help an emerging filmmaker move their short from script to screen.
About
The Stellar City Launch Grant supports screenwriters with a strong short script, a clear creative voice, and a story they are ready to take further.
Goal
To recognize compelling, character-driven storytelling and give promising writers meaningful support as they continue developing their voice and work.
Focus
We are drawn to authentic stories with emotional or thematic substance, strong characters, and clear ideas about the human experience, across a wide range of genres, tones, styles, and approaches.
Judging Process
Each eligible submission will be evaluated by at least one Core Judge. All participating Core Judges will review entries submitted with the scorecard or scorecard & written feedback option. Additional reviews included with paid evaluation options do not provide preferential consideration for advancement. Up to 10 finalists will then move forward to be reviewed by the Finalist Judges, who will help select the grant winner.
Judging considers five areas: Premise/Concept, Dialogue, Character, Story, and Originality. Entrants who select the Scorecard option will receive numerical scores in each category, along with an overall average score.
Finalist Judges
Stewart Lewis
Stewart Lewis is a screenwriter, director, and novelist. He holds a master’s degree in writing from the University of Southern California and published his first novel shortly after graduating.
He has since published eight novels, with his work translated into five languages, including You Have Seven Messages and The Secret Ingredient, the latter a Lambda Literary Award finalist. Lewis has written and directed two short films under Stellar City Productions LLC, Cookies and Stardust, the latter starring Priah Ferguson (Stranger Things).
He is currently developing The Mirror Effect, a feature-length screenplay that he plans to direct.
Jeff Brice Ornstein
Jeff Ornstein is an actor, entrepreneur, and host of the Next Act podcast.
Through Next Act, he has interviewed accomplished members of the film and television industry, including Emmy-winning producer and director Douglas Chang, BAFTA-winning showrunner Alfred Lawrie, and actor Darwin Shaw (Casino Royale).
Ornstein's experience across acting, interviewing, and a career in the creative industries gives him a broad perspective on artistic development, performance, and storytelling.
Core Judges
Lawrence Hwang
Lawrence Hwang is a producer, casting director, and founder of Stellar City Productions LLC. He founded the company alongside fellow artists to tell impactful human stories while creating meaningful opportunities for emerging actors and filmmakers.
Hwang has produced and cast four short films to date, including three developed from scripts written by other filmmakers, giving him experience evaluating material from development through casting and production.
His films have screened at festivals including the Manhattan Film Festival, Coney Island Film Festival, Festival of Cinema NYC, and Rehoboth Beach International Film Festival.
Anne Yasmine
Anne Yasmine is an Indonesian actor, writer, and producer. Her screen credits include Yuni, winner of the Platform Prize at the 2021 Toronto International Film Festival and now streaming on Netflix Indonesia, as well as Netflix's Joko Anwar's Nightmares and Daydreams.
She earned her master's degree at NYU, where her interdisciplinary studies combined psychology, cinema, and storytelling for social change. She has since expanded into writing and directing, with The Sea Between Us marking her directorial debut.
A Stellar City Super Star, Yasmine is one of the few individuals to have worked on every official Stellar City production to date, contributing both as cast and crew.
Kurt Griarte
Kurt Griarte is a Filipino-American writer and actor. He wrote, co-produced, and starred in Stellar City Productions' sports drama Ray of the Sun, taking the project from screenplay through production and performance.
His acting credits span a wide range of award-winning short and feature films. Working both as a screenwriter and performer has given Griarte firsthand experience with how character, dialogue, pacing, and dramatic intention translate from the written page into performance.
Entry Options
The different entry options to the Stellar City Launch Grant.
Entry Only
Entry + Scorecard
Entry + Scorecard + Written Feedback
Entry to the Stellar City Launch Grant. This option does not include scores or written feedback. Applicants will be notified if they are selected as a finalist or named the grant recipient.
Entry to the Stellar City Launch Grant, plus a scorecard with numerical scores across each judging category and an overall average score. Written feedback is not included. See below for additional details.
Entry to the Stellar City Launch Grant, plus a scorecard with numerical scores and detailed written feedback from each reviewing judge. See below for additional details.
Scorecard
Entrants who select a scorecard option will receive numerical scores from 1 to 10 across five judging categories, along with an overall average score. Each category score reflects the average of the scores submitted by all judges who reviewed the entry, rounded to the nearest whole number. Non-finalists will receive scores from all participating Core Judges. Finalists will also receive scores from the Finalist Judges. Scorecards include numerical scores only. They do not include written comments or explanations for individual scores.
Judging Categories
Premise / Concept - How compelling and clearly defined is the screenplay's central premise?
Dialogue - Does the dialogue feel natural and appropriate to the characters?
Character - Do the characters feel developed, believable, and compelling?
Story - Does the screenplay tell a cohesive and engaging story?
Originality - Does the screenplay bring a distinctive voice, perspective, or approach to its subject matter?
Written Feedback
Entrants who select Detailed Written Feedback will receive feedback from every Core Judge who reviews their screenplay. The judges' comments and observations will be compiled into a single written feedback report.
For entries that advance to the finalist round, the report will also include feedback from the participating Finalist Judges.
The report is intended to provide entrants with a range of perspectives on the screenplay's strengths and areas for improvement.