Screenwriting : Rewriting, or starting again? by Steve Mallinson

Steve Mallinson It happens with every script. Once a director is put in place, they will start thinking about budgets, actors they can attract, locations they can afford or already have access to, and other things that will help the project get funding and distribution. Once they start thinking about how they can raise funding for "X,Y,Z" actors and locations, the story can radically change in an effort to get the project made

Options usually have some language around rewrites and a rewrite can even include a page 1 rewrite of the entire script. The main goal is to get the film made.

Sticky question.

Do you share the director's new vision? I would be hesitant to labor for free to realize a vision with which I disagreed.

The first mistake was signing an industry standard template (whatever that means).

I like Preston Poulter point, the stress of working hard towards a goal you disagree with may not be worth holding your peace. Perhaps a conversation with the director and the producer as to if they feel these overhaul changes still carry the weight of the original story, and if not then you've got to decide if you're going to go along with them. Sounds like a sticky question indeed.

Dan MaxXx I can only hope it provided for a payment to the writer.

A screenwriter's main goal is to be produced. The option will usually state how many expected rewrites are to be done. Rewrites are not polishes. A rewrite is a substantial updating of the script. Options usually assume a minimum number of rewrites an the original writer should get first crack at rewrites.

Obviously, no one wants to be taken advantage of and have "unlimited" free rewrites beyond the initial option specifications. However, if the original writer doesn't do it, other writers will be hired, which will dilute the % of work attributable to the original writer for screen credit.

Options usually have time limits on them. The payment structure will usually depend on the project starting production. So, if the changes aren't done at all before the time runs out, then no payout. Eventually, the option will expire and revert back to the writer. But that means starting all over again trying to get it optioned and produced.

Occasionally, a writer will have to walk away from the rewrites because the expected changes aren't in the writer's wheelhouse like an action story gets turned into a rom-com and that's not something the writer can do. That's understandable.

But, right now, the producer has the rights to the story. So, it's important to try and make it make work within reason.

Thank you for your input: the option agreement is a WGGB template. It has time limits, and something I hadn't noticed until I read the comments - there's a reference to WGGB rates for first and second drafts, which, when you dig into them, provide for funding, albeit not very generous. Anyway - the tension here is about how far the director's vision can be from the writer's original idea and still be workable. You might say that, as a new writer, I can't afford to be fussy: that's certainly what I'm thinking. But there are limits to everything. My purpose in posting was to establish how common this is and how you deal with it.

Steve Mallinson Well, if you're getting paid guild rates to do the re-write...

If the producer is keen on a director who is also a writer as you said, what difference would it make what you offer for a rewrite? The odds are high that the director will take a stab and render it unrecognizeable. Especially after cast get involved and start asking for monologues, snappier dialogue, etc.

There is the issue of "A Film By" credit and very often directors who write may do a full on rewrite of the script to ensure they get not only that possessory credit but also the bulk of the writing credit. This is why on my first script option I negotiated a directing agreement contingent on the option. I knew if there was a director involved, the film would turn out wildly different than what I wrote and all I'd have to show for it would be the check.

I'm learning so much from this discussion, thank you for sharing Steve Mallinson . The screenwriting space has a lot of aspects to it that don't come to the forefront enough. The options agreement, the dynamics of the business side of things are really important for writers to know. I wouldn't worry about the changing of the story if this is your "get my foot in the door" script. It might be more valuable to go through the process of getting produced. If not that then I can't see you staying on the project without losing your mind.

People write screenplays for all kinds of reasons: for some it's their career, for others it's an outlet, and for many it's both. I don't have a career hanging on this, but when my script was optioned I realized I would need to put on professionalism because I was working with professionals: it's a responsibility, isn't it? I like M LaVoie 's reply but directing isn't a skill I have, so not an option for me. Preston Poulter's comment about being paid guild rates is fair and valid, as are Christopher Phillips' thoughts about needing to support the producer. So we're now in discussion about whether there's a way forward that doesn't completely ditch the sensibilities of the original, while accommodating as many of the director's ideas as possible. Will it work? - don't know. But as Daniel Husbands has said, this element of the business of screenwriting isn't talked about so much. Getting "a foot in the door" for a new screenwriter is a great opportunity but only so far as the writer is capable of delivering on the revised vision, else it could turn out to be frustrating for everyone. Thanks again for reading and contributing - your input has helped!

In business, it boils down to what you signed up for. What are the terms of your agreement?

Stephen Folker Terms: First right of refusal on rewrites.

Steve Mallinson there is your answer.

Steve Mallinson, not only is this element of screenwriting not talked about much, when it is, it's talked about by people with little to no experience.

My advice here is to tread carefully, take all opinions with a grain of salt, and do your due diligence on who's giving them. There's already some quite bizarre comments in the replies.

I'm afraid this is a creative pain that will be perennial for as long as you collaborate with others. It will crop up during development, it will crop up during the shoot, it will crop up during editing, it will crop up during distribution. There is no getting away with it and it's tough for any artist to go through, as you have a vision in your mind's eye and most likely something to say in the process. Finding peace with it isn't easy either, or even possible sometimes. Just know that you are going through something every working writer does, even those who direct their own material.

Also know this though; you are further ahead than 99.999% of writers ever get. This is a wonderful place to be in terms of career building as you're, at worst, attached to a project that's circulating with investors, producers, and talent.

The producer should be doing what's best for the project, so try to default to that assumption first. Talk with them when you can and learn their reasoning. It's a lot easier to swallow the frog when you know it's less a matter of taste and moreso a matter of logistics, marketing, production value, etc.

At the end of the day, the person to reflect with is yourself. You're an independent artist cutting your own path. What you're comfortable with is your business and you need not justify yourself to anyone. You're going to get people who'll tell you they'd stick by their guns, demand complete control, and insist on gild rates, which is good for them, but they'll most likely be telling you the same in ten years when you've made three films and they haven't even got an option. Been there. Few what to work their way up through the trenches.

In this case, the director might be being a little bullish. I don't know. I had that with an actor who wanted to attach to a project once. They fancied themselves as a producer and had a lot of criticisms of the script. In that case, it stopped us attaching them as they came across as too difficult. One always has to ask, why would anyone attach themselves to something they didn't at least love 90% of? To be frank, it always smacks of desperation and entitlement to me.

On the flip side, I was brought in to rewrite of a script earlier this year. The producer was a huge name. One of the biggest in recent history. The writer was a nobody. The script objectively needed a lot of work. I wasn't interested in a credit. This writer would have seen a feature film produced, been linked to a big name, and had what they'd be credited for massively improved in the background. They chose to be awkward and the project died. Now they have nothing.

These days, I release my spec scripts as novellas first. That means there's a version as per how my mind's eye sees it out there on the record. That keeps me creatively satisfied because I know trying to get into film and trying to maintain creative control are two massively opposed forces.

It's no longer your script, which is hard to swallow but if you're not directing then it's no longer the story you're telling.

Great advice there - thanks everyone.

I think the ultimate goal of every screenwriter is to see their script see the daylight. If that's what you wish then go with the flow and do whatever it takes to see if not your story your characters come to life.

To zag here -- at a point though, if you can already tell you wouldn't be in love with a potential future film made off your script given the changes required, then it's okay to step away and let this option fade out. Or let the director take full control to do what they want to do. There really is nothing worse in this biz than having your name attached to something you don't love or you don't feel proud of, except doing 100x the amount of effort than you initially set out to do to come to that result. There's no shame in moving too hastily at times due to the excitement and possibilities, but realizing an errant step and letting go to protect yourself is also a completely valid option. It's much more spiritually freeing to let go sometimes than to marathon on the rewrite treadmill for what will eventually become diminishing marginal returns on your effort. Having a produced credit ain't everything, but it is the only thing. Just be careful what you sign up for.