Help Us Shine A Light on Antisemitism!

Our student visual arts and playwrights contests celebrate creativity,
promote understanding and empower individuals to stand for what’s right.

Visual Arts Contest

Students grades 4-12 and college use 2-D artwork that fights modern-day antisemitism or conveys the horrors of the Holocaust.

Cash prizes awarded in all divisions:

3 Divisions: grades 4-6; grades 7-9; grades 10-12

1st Place $1,000

2nd Place $500

3rd Place $300

7 Honorable Mentions $100 each

NEW! Collegiate level competition:

1st Place $1,000

2nd Place $300

3rd Place $200

10 Honorable Mentions $50 each

NEW! Playwrights Contest

High school students are invited to submit original one-act scripts that reflect how people can combat antisemitism through created stories, characters and dialog.

3 Prizes awarded:

1st Place $1,000

2nd Place $300

3rd Place $200

A staged performance of the 1st Place script will be performed: and all winning entries of the visual arts contest will be revealed at the Yom HaShoah Commemorative/Shine A Light Awards Event on April 23, 2025.

2D Art Competition

Playwrights Competition

Students of all faiths and ethnicities are encouraged to participate!

VISUAL ARTS CONTEST

All contest entries must be received by
5:00 p.m. on Monday, February 17, 2025.

GUIDELINES AND APPLICATIONS FOR STUDENTS IN GRADES 4-12

GUIDELINES AND APPLICATIONS FOR STUDENTS IN COLLEGE

Questions? Email ShineALight@JewishTampa.com

PLAYWRIGHT CONTEST RULES

Student Playwright Contest – 10 minute sample or 30 page play!

ENTER PLAYWRIGHT CONTEST

1. The Theme | Guidelines

CAN I WRITE ABOUT ANYTHING I WANT? The Shine A Light Student Playwrights Contest raises awareness of modern day antisemitism, conveys the horrors of the Holocaust or expresses Jewish pride through the power of theater. The play should be written with a Jewish lens keeping the Holocaust and/or antisemitism as the theme.
WHO CAN PARTICIPATE? The playwrights contest is open to students in grades 9-12 in Hillsborough, Pasco and Pinellas Counties. Students of all faiths and ethnicities are encouraged to participate.
HOW LONG SHOULD MY PLAY BE? Plays should be 1 to 30 pages in length and no longer than 10 minutes in time.

2. The Rules

The script must be the original work of one current student OR the collaborative work of no more than two current students.
The text must contain dialogue and have a minimum of two characters.
The script submitted must be in the form of a non-musical, one-act stage play with a maximum total length of 30 pages (excluding title and optional second page).
The first page of the script will be the title page, which will include the play’s title, playwright(s) name(s), school name and completion date.
The (optional) second page of the script may contain a synopsis, character list and breakdown, floorplan, or any other information the playwright(s) deem(s) necessary to understand the script.

3 – Standard Elements for Stage Plays and Tips

It is suggested that you use free, professional scriptwriting software such as Final Draft, Script It, Scrivener, Slugline, Trelby, Storyist or StoryO. Most of these have the pre-loaded template for Modern stage play as an option in the program.

FONT: Anything legible.
SPACING: ONE space after periods.
CHARACTER: ALL CAPS.
SCENE HEADING: ALL CAPS and Flush Left.
STAGE ACTION: Centered on the page

4 - How Do I Submit?

Save your play as a Microsoft Word Document (saved as .doc or .docx) or Adobe PDF (saved as .PDF) with the name of the document as Play Title_ Author Last Name.

Complete an electronic submission form by clicking HERE.

Once you have uploaded your play, you will receive a confirmation email. Please review your submission info to make sure you have entered everything correctly!

The deadline for submitting your work is 5:00 p.m. Monday, February 17, 2025.