Crimson Honors

Crimson Honors is GALECA’s way of lifting up the next wave of LGBTQ entertainment critics who are already writing about film, TV, and theater and want to do it professionally. It’s open to college students and recent grads who are putting their work out there and figuring out their voice, and it’s all about celebrating smart, thoughtful criticism from people who don’t always get centered in media spaces. At its core, Crimson Honors is about encouragement, visibility, and helping emerging writers feel like they belong in entertainment journalism.

2026 Crimson Honors

The Crimson Honors, a college film & TV criticism scholarship program for LGBTQ students pursuing a career in journalism or entertainment criticism. GALECA will award $3000 in financial assistance to the top three contenders of the program. Students from all disciplines and majors are encouraged to apply.

    • Current full-time undergraduate students or recent graduates at a two-year community or four-year higher education institution in the United States and its territories, who identify as gay, bisexual, transgender, nonbinary or queer. Recent graduates should have graduated within the past year of the scholarship deadline (no earlier than April 1, 2025). 

    • Students currently paid or employed by an external media outlet are not eligible.

    • Non-print entries (radio, podcast, YouTube, etc.) will also be considered.

    • Entries from nonbinary persons, or women, of color are especially encouraged to apply.

    • Applicants may submit one (1) to three (3) reviews and/or features relating to film and/or TV, each originally written from March 20, 2025 to April 1, 2026. 

    • Video or audio segments must be two (2) to five (5) minutes in length. Please submit a script along with a link to the posted piece. Please note the timestamp of the beginning of your piece. 

    • Each review and/or feature submitted does NOT need to be published prior to the submission deadline of April 1, 2026. 

    • For published pieces, only up to one (1) posted on external media outlets will be eligible. Otherwise, entries must be unpublished, posted in an official campus media offering (e.g., newspaper, magazine, website, radio station, etc.), or a personal blog/podcast/YouTube channel.

    • Applicants must also include a resume and 300-word statement on why they hope for a career as a critic and entertainment journalist, and what they hope to achieve from GALECA mentorship

    • Non-English submissions are also eligible, but please provide an English translation along with the original piece.

    • Please note that materials sent will not be returned. 

    • Applications must be compiled into a PDF, titled “Last Name_Crimson Honors”.

    • For audio/visual entries, please include relevant links in your application.

    • Word documents or cut-and-pasted copy in email will not be accepted.

  • A select panel of GALECA members and advisory board members will review and consider all student submissions of film, TV and/or Broadway/Off-Broadway criticism and/or commentary starting on April 1, 2026.

    After deliberation, the panel will honor the three entrants who have best demonstrated excellence in criticism/commentary.

    • $1000 each

    • Two years of free membership in GALECA.

    • opportunities to meet members in the organization, which counts over 500 established journalists covering film, TV and/or Broadway/Off-Broadway.

    • Each mentee will also be matched with a mentor from GALECA, who will work with them on pitching and publishing their work for a year, from June 1, 2026 to June 1, 2027.

  • Applicants can submit all materials here by the deadline of 11:59 p.m. PT on April 1, 2026. Winners will be announced in June 2026. 

Press

“LGBTQ Entertainment Critics Relaunch GALECA’s Crimson Honors for Aspiring LGBTQ Journalists” (AwardsWatch)