Best Screenplay Award 2026 – Exclusive Call for Scriptwriters
最優秀脚本賞 2026 – 脚本家限定募集
A Once-in-a-Lifetime Opportunity for Scriptwriters (日本語は下へ)
This is not just another screenplay award.
JWFF 2026 introduces the Best Screenplay Award Program – a brand-new category created exclusively for writers who dare to craft stories that breathe, resonate, and transform. We are looking for original scripts that capture the soul of Japanese Satoyama – the harmonious balance between nature, community, tradition, and human life.
The Theme of the screenplay is “Japanese Satoyama”
The Grand Prize is unlike anything else in the world. The winning script will receive:
- 1–2 weeks fully supported residency in the heart of Ibaraki’s satoyama (accommodation, meals, local transportation, interpreter, and production support – all covered by JWFF). (Travel to/from Japan is the winner’s responsibility.)
- Day 1: Stage appearance at the festival award ceremony – your name announced, your script celebrated in front of real audiences in Japan.
- Scenario Hunting Experience – immerse yourself in the actual satoyama: talk to local farmers, elders, artisans, and nature. Gather real voices, textures, and emotions to finalize and polish your script. This is the ultimate luxury: real-world inspiration in a living cultural landscape that very few writers ever get to experience.
- Film Production Guarantee – JWFF will select a director and produce the winning script into a short film for premiere at JWFF 2027. Your words become moving images on our screens – a real cinematic legacy.
In the past, original stories written by the locals have been produced and made in to a short films and are selected at Academy qualifying film festivals.
Why this award matters JWFF believes the script is the soul of cinema. We are not here to give certificates. We are here to give writers the rare chance to live inside their own story – to breathe the air, walk the paths, listen to the people of satoyama – and then see their vision realized on screen.
This is prestige. This is transformation. This is the moment your script stops being paper and becomes alive.
Eligibility & Submission
- Original scripts only (English or Japanese)
- Approx. 10~25 minute short film format
- Theme: Japanese Satoyama (nature, community, tradition, modern life intersection)
- Entry fee: $25 USD (non-refundable)
- Submit via FilmFreeway only
Deadline: August 9, 2026 (Early submission encouraged)
Submit Now on FilmFreeway
Your words could become the next chapter of JWFF history. We are waiting for the script that will change how the world sees satoyama – and how satoyama sees the world.
脚本募集
これは、ただの脚本賞ではありません。
JWFF 2026が新設する最優秀脚本賞プログラム – 物語に命を吹き込み、響き、変える脚本家だけのための特別部門です。 テーマは日本の里山 – 自然・共同体・伝統・人間の暮らしが調和する風景を、心から描いたオリジナル脚本を求めています。
グランプリ受賞者の特典は、世界でここだけ
- 茨城里山での1〜2週間完全サポート滞在（宿泊・食事・現地移動・通訳・制作支援すべてJWFF負担。渡航費はご自身で負担）
- 初日：映画祭授賞式ステージ登場 – あなたの脚本が日本観客の前で発表され、祝福されます
- シナリオハンティング体験 – 里山に実際に滞在し、地元農家・長老・職人・自然と対話し、声・質感・感情を吸収しながら最終稿を磨く 贅沢すぎる体験：脚本家として実際に物語の世界に“住む”機会は、他では絶対に得られません
- 映画化 – JWFFが監督を選び、あなたの脚本を短編映画として制作。2027年JWFFでワールドプレミア上映
この賞の意義 JWFFは、脚本こそ映画の魂だと信じています。 私たちはアワードで祝福するにとどまらず、 脚本家に「自分の物語の中に生きる」機会を提供し、里山の空気・音・人々を吸収してもらい、 そしてその言葉がスクリーンで動き出す瞬間を創ります。
これがプレステージです。あなたの脚本が紙から命を得る瞬間になります。
応募要項
- オリジナル脚本のみ（英語または日本語）
- 約10~25分短編相当
- テーマ：日本の里山（里山、自然・共同体・伝統・現代の交差）
- 応募料：25米ドル（返金不可）
- 応募方法：FilmFreeway経由のみ
あなたの言葉が、次のJWFFの歴史に。 私たちは、里山を世界に、そして世界を里山に伝える脚本を待っています。
