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The Great American PitchFest and Screenwriting Conference is a 3-day screenwriting and pitching event held in Burbank, California, and was rated the number-one pitchfest by Script Magazine. The annual conference offers free classes and panel discussions and matches aspiring screenwriters from around the world with production companies, managers and agents in a speed-dating style pitching event during which attendees have 5 minutes to pitch their movie, TV and new-media scripts to industry insiders. The PitchFest welcomes new writers each year and has generated a loyal fan base, with writers coming back year after year from as far away as China and New Zealand.

Each year, the Great American PitchFest hosts 120 film and television industry executives in the ballroom at the Burbank Marriott Hotel & Convention Center, who listen to screenwriters’ pitches. Writers pay for one pass that allows them to have as many 5-minute meetings as they can manage throughout the day—typically about a dozen.

While the pitching portion of the weekend is the conference’s cornerstone, the Great American PitchFest packs the weekend with activities. Saturday’s calendar is filled with free classes for screenwriters, taught by industry experts. Attendees can also purchase half-hour consultations with the experts and browse the trade show booths that line the hallways showcasing products and resources for writers and filmmakers. The weekend includes networking lunches, cocktail parties, and free and paid classes.

History
The Great American PitchFest was founded in 2003 by Canadian writer, producer and filmmaker Signe Olynyk following a frustrating experience with the now-defunct Creative Screenwriting Expo. Olynyk and longtime Executive Director of the event, Bob Schultz, collaborated on the award-winning feature Below Zero, which debuted in 2012. Olynyk launched the Great American PitchFest in 2003 as a way to help writers meet the people who could advance their careers. She has Associate Produced two feature films and written and produced several documentaries, TV pilots and a six-part series. Olynyk and Schultz are currently producing Schultz’s zombie thriller Breakdown Lane.

2013
The 2013 conference schedule features an interview with blockbuster screenwriter Shane Black and a panel discussion featuring Dave Reynolds.

GAPF introduced its Your Career in a Day track. For $120, writers can enroll in a full day of 15 half-hour power sessions that cover every aspect of a successful screenwriter’s career.

2011
In 2011, writers pitched Ron Howard’s Imagine Entertainment (Arrested Development, Cowboys & Aliens), Alcon Entertainment (The Book of Eli, The Blind Side), Tapestry Films (Wedding Crashers, Van Wilder) and Broken Road Productions (Jack and Jill, Zookeeper).