Two films have tied for the University of Southern California’s 17th annual Scripter Award, which honors the year’s best film adaptation of a book, novella or short story, and is the only award that honors both the author and screenwriter.
The writers of “Capote” and “Syriana” received an equal number of votes in the Scripter selection committee balloting. A runoff vote will determine this year’s winning film, with the final results to be announced Wednesday. The award will be presented during a black-tie dinner on Feb. 11.
“Capote” is based on the biography of Truman Capote by Gerald Clarke and the screenplay by Dan Futterman. “Syriana” is adapted from journalist Robert Baer’s book “See No Evil” with a screenplay by Stephen Gaghan, who also directed the film.
The other finalists were author Annie Proulx and screenwriters Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana for “Brokeback Mountain”; author John le Carre and scribe Jeffrey Caine for “The Constant Gardener”; and authors John Wagner and Vince Locke and scribe Josh Olson for “A History of Violence.”
The last run-off race occurred in 2004 when “Seabiscuit” and “Mystic River” tied for the award. A run-off election that was held still produced a tie.