BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. - The American Screenwriters Association (ASA) announced today four bold initiatives to pioneer how people can become screenwriters and change the way future generations will be entertained. “If someone has an idea for a movie, or has been writing for years and needs a big break, our initiatives are the keys to unlock their success,” says John E. Johnson, ASA executive director. “We will dramatically change the lives of 250,000 writers and the viewing public.”

ASA, which has members in 40 countries and more than 2,000 cities worldwide, will begin by offering $1.5 million in free association memberships in their organization to provide greater access of critical screenwriting resources.

Additionally, in late September, ASA will host an International Screenwriters Conference in combination with the San Diego Film Festival. The event will empower writers and filmmakers to learn from each other while participating in screenwriting workshops taught by leading Hollywood faculty, attending movie screenings and making contacts at nightly networking festivities. The week culminates with the “Pitching to Producers Day” where writers immerse themselves in a “how to pitch” workshop and a power lunch with producers, and then pitch their scripts to Hollywood decision makers.

To engage young adults ASA will launch a $2.5 million high school program. “American high school students are remarkably responsible in caring about the future. For many, all they lack is the means,” says Johnson. “Our young people today should be encouraged to positively imagine how they can affect our world, and then we should give them the means to do it. Our program does this through day-long writing seminars where students are challenged to envision new possibilities and then “write the story” in the form of a short screenplay.” ASA expects 10,000 students in 50 states will flex their creative capacity for vision while honing the valuable skills of story telling and script writing. The program includes a $100,000 college scholarship writing competition and production of an educational DVD and workbook for junior and high schools enabling another 500,000 students’ access through their classes.

Finally, ASA will offer its International Screenplay Competition where writers compete for more than $30,000 in prizes including $10,000 cash, a script development trip to Hollywood, script consultations from industry experts and introduction of the winning scripts to 6,500 producers, agents and managers.

“Our initiatives will energize writers from Portland, Maine to Portland, Oregon and create opportunities utilizing reliable and practical channels where one can get their scripts written, read and discovered by Hollywood,” said Johnson.

For complete information on the American Screenwriters Association, visit at http://www.goasa.com. For interviews contact John E. Johnson, executive director at 866-265-9091.