Here are some questions we've been asked over the years. If you have any questions not listed here, email us! We'll answer you, and maybe add your question to this page.

I'm just a beginner. What are my chances of winning?

The Tabloid Witch Awards was founded with the intent of discovering new horror talent. Yet winners have mostly been film students or those with professional experience.

This doesn't mean you don't have a shot. Christopher Alan Broadstone (Best Sound, Honorable Mention, 2005), is a self-taught filmmaker working with a consumer DV camera. Yet he learned his stuff well enough that he beat out some "pros."

If your film has decent writing and acting, you're already in the upper half of entrants.

Here are more tips on how to win.

We also recommend Horror Film Aesthetics, written by Tabloid Witch Awards founder & director Thomas M. Sipos. This book is about the aesthetics of film (as opposed to the technical stuff). Many self-taught filmmakers ignore aesthetics, concentrating solely on the technical elements.

This book is neither "artsy fartsy" nor "dummied down." It's written in an intelligent, yet accessible prose style. It's perfect for smart filmmakers who know how to use a camera (i.e., which buttons do what), but want to learn how to use their cameras well.

You might also learn something about film aesthetics at the Horror Film Aesthetics blog.

We have considered introducing a beginner award. Best Amateur Effort, or some such. But it would be a "third tier" award, beneath Honorable Mention. That raises an issue: would filmmakers feel insulted at winning a "Best Amateur Effort" or similar title?

Our recommendation: Try your very best, and then enter the Tabloid Witch Awards. Since there's no entry fee, you have nothing to lose.

Do you ever give feedback, or explain why someone lost?

Usually not a good idea. Some disappointed filmmakers might get argumentative upon receiving negative comments. Normally, if you lose, you won't hear from us.

You are, of course, welcome to email us and ask why you didn't win. The worst that will happen is (1) your email will be ignored, or (2) you'll get the criticism you asked for.

My film isn't really horror. Is it worth entering?

Horror is diverse. Quiet, supernatural horror. Grisly, twisted gore. Hitchcockian suspense. Spiritual films with a New Agey element (such as that excellent New Outer Limits episode: "The Conversion").

We want to see all kinds of horror, from a diversity of filmmakers, from around the world.

Some of our winners have played at many other horror film festivals. And some have played only at the Tabloid Witch -- because we consider horror films that other festivals ignore. Don't count yourself out!

And did we mention that we're a No Entry Fee contest?

My film isn't finished yet. Can you instead screen my trailer at your festival?

No, because we're not really a film festival. We don't screen all manner of films and trailers. We're primarily a contest. That's why it's the Tabloid Witch Awards, not the Tabloid Witch Film Festival.

There is a festival screening, but the screening is a prize for winning films. Only winners are screened, with a rare "special screening" of other worthy films.

If we screened trailers, there'd be less time for winning films. Plus, it may create a conflict for some of our venues, which are not for profit.

How about a No Entry Fee contest for horror screenplays?

It takes more effort (and endurance) to suffer through a bad screenplay than a bad movie. Thus, it's harder to find qualified people willing to do it for free (as a No Entry Fee contest, our budget is low).

Plus, audiences don't normally come to read scripts. Yes, there are public script readings in L.A. But they're harder to promote than a film festival. Harder to fill up those theater seats.

So for now, no.

Can I enter more than one film?

Yes. You can submit as many films as you like. If you enter more than one film per year, they'll compete against each other, but it does increase your chances of winning (assuming they're good films).

If my film loses one year, can I re-enter it next year?

No. Each film can enter only once.

A few films have been entered several times, in different years. But the Tabloid Witch keeps good records and remembers past entries. If you already entered a film, and it didn't win, there's no point in entering the same film in another year.

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