Love at Last Sight, a dating competition format from Houston-based producer Adam Jeffrey Everist, took the top prize at the Formagination at Realscreen West live pitch competition on Wednesday (June 5), presented by Armoza Formats.

The format sees contestants looking for love via the use of every sense except sight. Various challenges are employed to test a potential match’s suitability through smell, sound, touch and taste.

Everist’s idea was awarded the top prize by the competition judges — Armoza Formats founder Avi Armoza, BET Networks’ head of unscripted Marisa Levy, Facebook Watch head of unscripted Toby Faulkner, and TV-Scout managing director Michael Schmidt. It was also named the winner of an audience vote.

As first prize winner, Everist takes home up to US$25,000 which shall be awarded in two stages ($5,000 for further development of the format, and up to $20,000 to shoot a pilot if approved for production), as well as one registration to Realscreen Summit 2020, which takes place January 27-30, 2020 in New Orleans.

Other pitches vying for the top prize included Leah Rifkin’s The Stair Master, a quiz show that has contestants ascend a giant staircase through various physical and mental challenges in order to win a cash prize. The Toronto-based Rifkin took second prize, which includes an Entertainment Master Class module scholarship and one registration to Realscreen Summit 2020.

Also competing were Los Angeles-based Phil Viardo, who presented his physical competition format The Ambush Challenge; David Johnson, who presented the culinary competition What’s Cookin’, and Alain Gavrelutiu from Romania, who offered the sports-based competition series Sports and Stilettos.

Formagination is a unique format competition and a launching pad for creativity, open for anyone with a format idea. The finalists each had their format workshopped with the Armoza Formats development team in the weeks leading up to Realscreen West, culminating in the live presentation of their concept at the event.