LOS ANGELES, CA (October 28, 2025)—Slamdance Group today announced the winners of its 2025 screenplay competition, awarding the Grand Prize to Brennan Cusack for her screenplay “The Badlands Woman’s Clinic.” Awards were presented this evening during a live ceremony at AGBO, the independent studio founded by Anthony and Joe Russo, in Downtown Los Angeles. Winners were recognized across five categories: feature film, horror/thriller, TV pilot, short film, and screenplay mentorship. More than $18,000 in prizes plus industry services were awarded to winners across all categories.
AGBO’s Chief Creative Officer Angela Russo-Otstot welcomed honorees. Presenters included writers and Slamdance alumni Emily Carmichael (“Pacific Rim Uprising,” “Jurassic Park: Dominion”), Daniel Casey (“Fast & Furious 9”), Neil Ferron (“Fishmonger”), Jamie King (“Jessica Jones”), Beverly Neufeld (“Action! Action!”), Elle Jae Stewart (“The Invention of Ella Jae”), and sponsor Aditya Ezhuthachan of Pessah Law Group.
Power, Dignity, and Survival
“The Badlands Woman’s Clinic” follows a young OBGYN who must trade a promising career in Chicago for a year working in her rural hometown’s Women’s Clinic in order to regain custody of her daughter. There, she’ll find that knowing obstetrics isn’t the same as knowing how to be a mother.
“In a country where millions live in ‘maternity care deserts,’ “The Badlands Clinic” celebrates the women who have worked together to create oases. This story explores the transformational power of choice in women’s lives. Here in rural America, choice is not just a headline. It is power, identity, dignity, community, and…survival,” stated Cusack.
“We read thousands of stories this year, and “Badlands Woman’s Clinic” didn’t just stand out—it recalibrated the room. It’s the kind of writing that changes how you think about what television can hold,” said Taylor Miller, Slamdance Festival Director. “At a time when storytelling is engineered to please algorithms, this pilot refuses the formula – and Brennan Cusack makes that refusal feel inevitable.”
A Story of Endurance
The ‘Slamdance Screenplay Mentorship Award’ goes to Erick Torres for “Cucuy,” a story about a fighting dog who escapes the pits and seeks redemption.
“Cucuy is a story of endurance, trauma, second chances, and the power of love,” said Slamdance Festival Manager Anna Lee Lawson. “Torres demonstrates remarkable talent through his emotional depth, creativity, and ability to tell a powerful story without relying on dialogue. We see tremendous potential here and look forward to working with Erick.”
Now in its 28th year, the ‘Slamdance Screenplay Competition’ received 4,218 submissions from around the world and has awarded more than $450,000 in prizes to emerging filmmakers to date.
This year’s prize package includes:
- $10,000 Grand Prize
- $2,000 to each category winner
- A one-year membership to Roadmap Writers
- Complimentary legal services from Pessah Law Group, Official Sponsor and Festival Legal Counsel
- Script coverage from Sony Pictures Classics to the feature winner
The Awards
The Slamdance Screenplay Awards honor the conviction that independent filmmaking remains one of the bravest acts in cinema—and there’s no better place to celebrate that spirit than together at AGBO. Since 2018, Slamdance and AGBO have partnered on the ‘AGBO Fellowship,’ a mentorship program supporting bold, independent storytelling. Together, they remain committed to keeping doors open for the next generation of filmmakers.
Slamdance congratulates the top three 2025 screenplays in each prize category, as follows:
Grand Prize Winner:
• Brennan Cusack, “The Badlands Woman’s Clinic”
Mentorship Winner
• Erick Torres, “Cucuy”
Feature:
• 1st place: Renn Tan, The Gift of Rain
• 2nd place: Amir Zargara & Gabe Berry, Vital
• 3rd place: Edith Storm, Burn Her Slowly
Horror/Thriller
• 1st place: Pam Covington, “MESA”
• 2nd place: Deborah Richards, “Scissor Mouth”
• 3rd place: Eric R. Lotter, “Frozen Lies”
Pilot
1st place: Brennan Cusack, The Badlands Woman’s Clinic
2nd place: Christina Keach, Entre Nous
3rd place: Jas Kandola, Broker
Short
• 1st place: Kyung-Ja Lee, The Comfort Woman Statue
• 2nd place: James Newman, Inbetweening
• 3rd place: Gádor Camacho Cervantes, Sourdough (Masa Madre)
About the Slamdance Screenplay Competition
The ‘Slamdance Screenplay Competition’ is dedicated to discovering emerging writing talent. With more than 25 years of recognizing and rewarding new voices, Slamdance has helped launch careers across the industry. Past winners include Gabriel Malasig (2022), Neil Ferron (2021), Joyce Sherri (2020), Tyler Tice (2018), and Nicole Kassell & Steven Fechter (2001), whose winning script “The Woodsman” premiered at Cannes and starred Kevin Bacon.
Slamdance welcomes screenplays in every genre, on any topic, from anywhere in the world. The competition is open to all and judged by working writers, filmmakers, and alumni.
About Slamdance
Slamdance is an artist-led organization, founded in 1995, dedicated to championing independent voices in film and digital media. Its mantra—by filmmakers, for filmmakers—guides year-round programming including the Slamdance Film Festival, Screenplay Competition, Slamdance Unstoppable, DIG (Digital, Interactive & Gaming), and Polytechnic, an accessible education initiative.
Slamdance will celebrate its 32nd Film Festival February 19–25, 2026, in Los Angeles—its second year in the city—‚as well as online via the Slamdance Channel.
‘Slamdance Unstoppable: On The Road’ was a seven-city national showcase in summer 2025 featuring films by and about filmmakers with visible and non-visible disabilities. In partnership with accessible arthouse cinemas and offering inclusive accommodations and a 50/50 box office split, the program highlighted award-winning work and expanded accessibility in independent film nationwide.
Notable Slamdance alumni include Anthony and Joe Russo (“Avengers: Endgame”), Christopher Nolan (“Oppenheimer”), Lynn Shelton (“Little Fires Everywhere”), Gina Prince-Bythewood (“The Old Guard”), the Safdie Brothers (“Uncut Gems”), Marina Zenovich (“LANCE”), Lena Dunham (“Girls”), Sean Baker (“Anora”), Rian Johnson (“Knives Out), Bong Joon Ho (“Parasite”), Merawi Gerima (“Residue”), Andrew Patterson (“The Vast of Night”), Natasha Ofili (“Creed III”), and Julio Palacio (“Makayla’s Voice: A Letter To The World”).
Slamdance’s mission is to serve as an agent of change in filmmaking and digital media, making the creative work of artists with divergent voices accessible to everyone.
