The Electromagnetic Theater is a podcast series that updates the tradition of “theater of the mind” radio drama for a modern audience. Each episode is an original short play, performed by a stock company of professional New York stage and voice actors, accompanied by immersive music and sound effects. The six episodes comprising
Season One are being released between July 1st and August 6th, 2013 on our website – electromagnetictheater.com – on iTunes and and on social media including Soundcloud and Facebook.
One of the most important elements of this project is a collection of original scripts contributed by an exceptional team of writers. We are currently seeking submissions for a second season of between eight and twelve episodes, to be released in the fall of 2013.
General Submission Guidelines:
§ Submissions for Season Two must be received no later than Friday, August 16th, 2013
§ All stories must be original – no adaptations of work by other authors.
§ Submitted plays and their underlying storylines must be exclusive to The Electromagnetic Theater, and may only be submitted for production by other companies in any format and for any media if they are not accepted for production as a part this series.
§ Our editorial staff will likely suggest revisions to accepted scripts make them air ready. We want very much for the editorial process to be collaborative, but last minute changes may be made without consultation with the authors as we record and edit each piece for broadcast.
§ The EmT is, for the time being, a labor of love for everyone involved, and none of the production team, writers, or performers are being compensated for their participation.Submission Format:
- Each story must run between 8 and 20 minutes of total airtime.
- Please use no more than six characters with significant spoken dialogue per piece, though crowd noises, and short interjections from “extras” can bring the total higher.
- Each story needs to begin with a very short introduction, to be read by the series host, that sets the scene – for example: “Our story begins on a country road, fifty miles north of Topeka, Kansas. A lone man is hitchhiking in the hot sun.” – there is then no further narration, the rest being told through dialogue, sound effects, and music.
- Please give specific, but brief, descriptions of the effects and music you feel are needed as they occur in your piece.
- Each submission must be a .doc, .docx, or .pdf in 12-point “Courier” font (or similar), laid out in the following manner:
Style Guide:
- We’re looking for dramatically rich stories that make the best use of the audioonly medium. We’ll favor submissions with these elements:
o Interesting character arcs. Stories where the protagonist’s worldview significantly develops over the course of the piece.
o High stakes. We’re witnessing an event of crucial importance in the lives
of these characters.
o Engaging use of place and time – particularly when it gives our sound
designers interesting aural possibilities.
o Witty, well-observed dialogue. Characters who speak like real people,
but also like real people you’d be interested to know.
- We love genre fiction, and there are a whole bunch of genres we haven’t had the chance to explore: Science Fiction, Historical Fiction, Courtroom Drama, Western, Police Procedural, and many more… give it a shot!
- Pop-culture reference non sequiturs are boring. Yeah, we saw that movie too. So what?
- Fiction means fiction. Strongly avoid including real, living people.
- Each story should stand alone. We’re not necessarily against the idea of bringing a particularly terrific character back in the future, but don’t send us something that depends on it.
- No profanity. George Carlin’s “seven words you can’t say on television” are out, as are class-A racial slurs and any graphic terms for sexual acts. When in doubt, err on the side of caution.
- No graphic sex or violence. Romance and action are encouraged, but keep it PG-13 rated.
SEND YOUR SUBMISSION TO: david@CitizenRacecar.com, no later than 5PM on
Friday, August 16th, 2013