Screenwriting

Move on. A pass is a pass.

If they were genuinely interested they'd move forward with the script and have you implement their notes.

Be careful implementing feedback from every Tom, Dick, and Harry. You can end up turning your script into soup. What you are looking for is alignment not consensus.

CJ Walley: Thank you for your comment! That was my instinct but a small part of me was excited by how well the pitch session went. And I am using their notes to hone my pitch, not change my screenplay. I have already revised that ad naseum and was mentored by a seasoned screenwriter. I feel like it's strong. As you may also have discovered, summarizing a 114 page screenplay is very challenging! And in my case that was after adapting it from a 350 page novel. So I read each pitch's notes carefully to see if I am doing so clearly in a way that excites the reader. :)

Sounds like you have your pitch nailed and some successes their, Laurie Woodward. I say go pitch it to some new parties and hopefully one will really connect with it.

yea, what CJ and Dan said. I'd move on and not go back to the same folks.

I'm excited for this AMA, Sam Sokolow! Audrey always has helpful advice and insight! I already posted a question, and I have a few more I plan on asking tomorrow.

I follow AUDREY Knox online and have had a few consults with her. I really value her opinion and am looking forward to her AMA.

Marty Howe No. Not a lawyer.

Get all your evidence and agreements and recent emails (re-iterate and confirm your recent conversation with the 2 individuals in writing) - collated and organised - then wait. If the film gets made, seek a lawyer but still wait. Once the film is released - then take legal action.

Thanks Simon. I'm on it.

One follow-up question, do you think that I should make them aware that I will be looking at taking action?

That’s another question for your lawyer, who can judge whether you have a leg to stand on.

Dont care either way, quotes before page 1; As an ex reader all I really care about was page count (less is better) and whose name & reps were on title page. If big agencies like CAA, WMA submitted their clients scripts with page quotes, it must be right.

I did it on my feature and no one gave a shit... as long as it helps theme, etc, it doesn't matter.

Obviously if the the guidelines of the individual(s) who are actually reading your spec stuff were universal across the board there would be way less FNG writing chaos questions. "It doesn't matter", until it does. The problem with standard veteran responses to questions like mine, i.e. "Do what the F you want" (and I do that, sometimes) is some people with your script in front of them will be like, "Oh you did what the F you wanted...well F you!" Your reader could potentially be: a competition grader, a studio/producer gatekeeper, a coverage analyst, a producer a director, a manager, artificial "intelligence" (apparently, unfortunately), studio writing program story analysts, actors, oh my! Naturally this quote/definition inclusion/exclusion thing is not a DEFCON 5-level make/break device. Plenty easy to drop a page like that in FD. Of course there is no such thing as "perfect" script, but there are ways to make it look like you didn't start writing screenplays yesterday... A prime example of "different strokes for different folks" is re: the Nicholl. I have looked at a bunch of winning scripts from said competition and what first surprised me is more than a few screenplays had blocky, verbose narrative descriptions. Basically everywhere else people are warning you off of any action line paragraph over four lines, and preferably less than four. Same re: the page count ceiling is 160 for Nicholl (even though they recommend less. So you can, and I do, write for different audiences.

Mike Childress, it happens every year with the competition finalists and each time a big spec sale happens. All the people who harp on about formatting read the scripts and do a shocked Pikachu face when they see their fictional rules broken. They then perform a load of olympic games worthy mental gymnastics to justify why it's all an exception and spend yet another day deluding themselves that this is engineering and not art.

You have to see the whole game like dating. If you obsess about everyone else's red flags and preferences, and attempt to make yourself into somebody nobody can find fault with, you'll become somebody nobody finds interesting.

CJ Walley I THINK I kind of did myself in by reading as much as I did about screenwriting in a short period of time. The spectrum of opinions (On the gasp Interwebz) on EVERYTHANG is as wide as The Milky Way. It's almost like posting nitpicky questions on here is akin to adding finishing touches on my Trojan Horse... "Will my scripts fool the Trojans?" Indeed you can't worry about every little detail of your operational plan when something, inevitably, will fail when the bugle sounds the "charge!" order, but I think there's still value in having both the hard-charging lunatics, and the more methodical planners on your team. They can potentially kind of balance each other out and reach some sort of ideation equilibrium.

Congratulations on the script request, Aaron Heinrich!

Thank you guys. Appreciate the support.

Aaron, way to GO! Here's wishing you plenty of success with "Hellbound Train" and future projects!

Hey Aaron! This is fantastic news! Congratulations on an excellent session. That is the goal of the platform and Script Services. We want to make sure that you're shortening the path to success. And it sounds like you're well on your way!

Aaron Heinrich How are you coming along with your projects?

Thanks for the script rec, David B. Wright. I'm gonna check out SEPTEMBER 5.

Agreed, read it the other night. It's a great example of how to do a chamber piece that doesn't feel like one by utilizing various screens and cycling through different points of view to constantly add conflict and context. Really great script

Having now seen the film itself, I'm convinced this should have been nominated for Best Picture as well. It is as close to a perfect movie as you could hope for. I've seen all the other nominees and "September 5" tops them all.

I'm sure it's a great script, but I do wonder how many people would be gushing over it if it wasn't nominated, and I wonder what the response would be if some unknown posted it for feedback on the likes of Reddit.

For a cheap movie, (less than $2M) the production looks like $10M+ on the screen. Wonder if the filmmakers had the rights to the real ABC broadcast footage before they started scripting, or after?

Thx Pat. I submitted "Dad Band", logline: "When an emo-teen singer's band quits on the eve of a break-in music competition, her last hope against fierce, young rivals is for her estranged Dad to reform his aging 80s band." Good luck to all entrants!

This one is about a woman who gets tired of falling for the wrong type of men and therefore breaks up with a lot of them. Hence the title.

Hey, Horatio Lewis Tihanyi. The Comedy Feature contest ended, but there are other contests going on, and there's gonna be new contests. Here's the contest page: www.stage32.com/scriptservices/contests

My submission in the Stage 32 Comedy Feature Scriptwriting Contest is When Pigs Fly. It is the only script that I have co-written with another screenwriter, Ed Learner. The journey follows an unambitious slacker whose life is upended because of a new government employment program which sends the unemployed to work on farms in order to receive their benefits. In exchange for their labor, all farm subsidies have been cut off, leaving a confrontation between the farmers and the new government farmworkers. After the workers are being terribly mistreated, the slacker gains enough courage to lead the workers on a strike. The core idea came to me many years ago and recently decided to write a screenplay with a satirical look at government programs and politicians. The absurd humor parallels some of the absurd programs passed in the U.S.

My wife and I submitted a juicy sex comedy about a loving couple who recover some much needed romance when they start sending their two year old son to the local preschool. Their dormant sexual chemistry is simultaneously reignited and complicated by the dawning realization that this tight knit community of parents is crawling with polyamorous, monogamish and otherwise non-traditional partnerships that flourish during the drop-offs, pick-ups and happy hours that our dual protagonists find themselves welcomed into with open arms. One part Radley Metzger erotic romp, one part mumblecore dramedy, The Busy Box is either a high minded guilty pleasure or a really trashy prestige picture. You tell us...

this is awesome

Writers getting paid. Glad to hear it, Geoff Hall! "Writers don’t have to be members of WGGB to be eligible, or need to register. But if they are writing under a contract for a show that is to be broadcast by the BBC or ITV, they should check that their contract contains a clause on WDP." I'm not sure what it takes to join the WGGB, but that's great for writers who aren't able to join.

I’m a new writer in the field and I wonder how could I be connected with the producer.

Welcome to the community, Iman Makki. My biggest tip is to network/build relationships with producers on Stage 32. Here are some blogs on networking: www.stage32.com/blog/tags/networking-41

You could search for producers and other industry professionals in the Browse Members section (www.stage32.com/people) and IMDbPro (https://pro.imdb.com/signup/index.html) to network with.

I suggest posting your scripts on your profile. Producers search profiles on here for projects. Click the gear symbol in the top right-hand corner and select “Edit profile” in the drop-down menu. Scroll down to “Loglines” and click “Add/edit loglines” to the right of “Loglines.” You can also post your scripts on your profile this way (near the top where it says “Add a Logline”): www.stage32.com/loglines

You could enter screenwriting contests that'll get your scripts in front of agents, managers, and other industry pros. Like Stage 32's contests (www.stage32.com/scriptservices/contests).

And you could pitch your scripts to executives, managers, etc. through Stage 32's Pitch Sessions (www.stage32.com/scriptservices/pitch-sessions). The Pitch Sessions are mainly to get feedback on pitches, but members have gotten managers, signed shopping agreements, etc. through the sessions (www.stage32.com/scriptservices/success-stories).

I suggest adding a profile picture. People will feel more comfortable networking and collaborating with you if they know what you look like. And if you have a picture, your profile will show up when someone searches for you.

Hope these things help.

Maurice Vaughan Anything you don't write?! Treaties?

Haha Mike Childress. I don't write treaties. Yet. Just scripts and commercials. I have written short stories, PSAs, poems, skits, etc.

Dig deeper into character arcs and relationships in my ensemble horror, Shadow Dance. After listening to Kay last night brilliantly dissect, and offer insight to a script during the coverage report, it made me realize I have a hell of a long way to go.

Rooting for you to reach that goal, Ricki Holmes! I'm working on those things with my script rewrite too. SHADOW DANCE is a catchy title. Kay knows her stuff, and she's always encouraging the community to learn more and get better at whatever area of the industry they're in.

Cheers, Maurice.

I'm a newbie and I'm part of the Writers Room. So consider me there. Call me Spongey Horatio cause ready to soak it all in! I can't tell you how excited I am and how much I'm looking forward to my first Pitch Tank event. Thank you Nick for letting me know. Time for this newbie learn what's what. :))

Where and how do I register (probably any obvious newbie question :))?

Hey, Horatio Lewis Tihanyi. Click the Zoom link in Nick's post at 11am PT tomorrow. It'll take you to the Pitch Tank.

Right on Maurice and thanks you. You take better care of me then my mom did. :)))

You're welcome, Horatio Lewis Tihanyi.