Screenwriting : Pitching/selling movie ideas by Tosin Omotayo

Pitching doesn't let you off the hook for writing. If you pitch an idea, you still need to write it.

Nowhere unless the script is written. no one will buy your pitch/idea. Truth.

Ideas don't really mean anything until they've been executed. Do the work.

Tosin - you probably would benefit by learning the structure of a story. Grab yourself a beat sheet and see how beat sheet stories flow. Also realize that writing is all about re-writing. Learn the structure of drama; come up with a great premise; write; and re-write. It's a simple formula, actually, but the devil is in the details. Good luck and happy writing, Tosin!

Yeah you need to make sure you write the script, especially as a new writer. No one is just going to buy your idea unless it's a true story to which you own the life rights. Writing a script can be tough, but here's a great class to help you get a foothold in the process: https://www.stage32.com/classes/Perfecting-the-Basics-of-Screenwriting

thanks everyone for the advice especially danny and jody.

bt am a guy based in Lagos, Nigeria, how do you expect me to write a dialogue for an american drama series or movie. what about story treatments, 10-15pages Script? how about that? i just started writing really due to that movie called 'brothers grimbsy'. it was the worst movie i ever watched, so i felt, if that movie could be made and someone got paid for writing the script? so how bad can my idea be?

Nobody buys a pitch - they buy the skills of a screenwriter to execute that pitch.

Tosin, not all bad movies started out being bad. that said, my suggestion to you would be: start out getting familiar with making an outline. outlines are good because they give you structure, without locking you into how your gonna accomplish every step. make an outline for the idea you have. if you don't already have an idea, go to your dvd collection, or rent one from the library, and make an outline for that. after you get familiar with doing outlines, there are one or two places, online, that you can download scripts for free. read some scripts. read books on script writing. take some classes. be active in groups (like stage32). also, nigeria has a film industry. you can start there, in your own language, and get ready to write content in english.

Hi Tosin, William is correct. Not only is it skill it is your take on the story, your voice as some people call it. You, William and me could be given the one of your ideas or a complete synopsis and we would all write different scripts.

Tosin, to your point about writing American dialect and writing for the American market when you are not native to America, there are 4 things you can do... 1. you can hire someone to write or americanize/Polish your script, though that can be expensive if you're hiring someone with experience. 2. write scripts for your local markets or for nearby international markets and sell something in your native language that can get made locally. many international writers break into Hollywood by starting in their own countries. 3. Make a short film that could become a feature and if it's great and goes a little viral, American producers may approach you to develop it as a feature. 4. Write a script with a concept that works as a local language films. what that means is you have a universal concept that could be done as a DIFDERENT film in numerous territories. So that you're not relying on an American story to sell in America. but a universal story that can be sold in US, germany, england, italy, South america, etc. it's another good way to get produced that isn't as reliant on hwood.

okay, thanks guys

have any of you submitted a script to amazon studios?

Yep Amazon studios is okay. Good free writing tools as well. 45 day options

There's a lot of good advice here for you. I hope mine helps. You have to understand that the script you'll be writing should be a spec script. This means you're speculating that someone will buy it. There is no rule that states your script has to be 120 pages, so get that number out of your head. The shorter a spec script is, the better chances you'll have of selling it. 85 to 110 pages is a good range. Most spec scripts are sold within that page range. There are some great feature films that were made from 45 or 60 page scripts. Page count and movie length all comes down to money. Most producers prefer to keep their movies under 2 hours because it means more showings per day in a theater, which means more money. So forget about the 120 page script. A spec script is bare bones. It's just a blueprint for the movie. That means no camera angles, no transitions... Just the scene setting, the action and the dialogue. Your job is the writer, let the director decide what angles and transitions to use. Don't include any immaculate details, either. Action paragraphs should be kept to 4 lines max. Same with dialogue, if you can help it. In a script it's okay to write short, choppy sentences. The more white on the page, the better. That means it'll be a fast read for whoever picks it up. As far as the treatment goes, you don't have to go all out with a 15 pager. 2-5 pages is fine. Remember that script readers, agents and producers are busy people. They don't have time, nor do most desire, to sit and read a 15 page treatment for a script that could have been told in 3 pages. Good luck.

There was something Max Landis suggested which is the three-things theory. Basically it's saying a lot of things happen in movies, but really only three things happen. These are thematic things. For example, my favorite movie, JAWS: 1. Chief Brody finds out there's a shark out in the water 2. He tries to keep everyone out of the water 3. He blows up the shark That's just one example, but there are many. Find the three things you want to happen in your screenplay, and from there, build more things that will connect those three things.

Mr brian and Mr Craig, thanks for the advice.