The 2005 Screenwriting Expo blew into the LA Convention Center in November like a tornado and once again produced some terrific scenes and showcased up n' coming talent. For 3 days, 4,000 screenwriters attended lectures, pitch sessions and networking events. But most excitingly, almost 1,000 writers participated in the CS Open, Creative Screenwriting's unique live writing tournament.

Screenwriters hard at work at the 2005 CS Open.

For the fourth year straight, Coverage, Ink. had the pleasure of coordinating and judging the tourney. 100 writers every two hours gathered in a classroom, and we gave them 90 minutes to write an original scene - in pencil - according to parameters we gave them.

These scenes were then evaluated by the Coverage, Ink. team of industry readers according to the following criteria: style, structure, characters and dialogue. Over 48 hours, Coverage, Ink. staffers read and evaluated close to 1,000 original scenes.

The 16 finalists who made it to Round 3.

The top 10% then moved up to round 2, and once again these folks had to write an original scene on the spot based on parameters we gave them. Then the top 16 gathered that Sunday morning to write one last scene.

The three finalist scenes were then performed by actors in front of 1,100 people at the Expo's closing ceremony, and the winning scene was voted on by the audience.

Eddy Gilbert's phenomenal team of actors.

Cressandra Thibideaux, a long-suffering (4 years straight!) CS Open contestant, at long last knocked it out of the park with her comedy scene "Jesus & Pedro." She took home $5,000 and guaranteed agency representation from David Friedman at Hollywood View! Congratulations, Cress - NO ONE deserved to win more than you!

D.R. Paylor grabbed second place with her scene "Jamaican Me Crazy," and clinched $500, and third place winner Jeff Dellinger took home $200 for his scene "Snap, Crackle & Pop." They all wrote original, funny and outrageously creative scenes that kept the crowd in stitches. And all three are having their loglines sent to a massive industry list courtesy of Creative Screenwriting.

L to R: Cressandra Thibideaux, Diana R. Paylor, Jeff Dellinger

It was a crazy, overwhelming weekend, and we'd do it again in a heartbeat! Many thanks to Expo Coordinator Erik Bauer for putting together another awesome event and to Eddie Gilbert for coordinating the live readings. For more info, please visit the official Expo site at www.screenwritingexpo.com, and Creative Screenwriting's expanded coverage in the Jan/Feb 2006 issue.