I’m not interested in getting scripts done quickly. That’s not how you make quality work, but I am curious to know how much is consider a solid start to a portfolio.
Right now I have finished two Features, and I’ve started writing two separate pilot scripts, as well as a SPEC for a season 5 episode of COMMUNITY.
I write every day, and I will continue to write everyday, but when do I say “Hey, you have solid amount of work here!”
I feel proud of everything I’ve finished so far, and I’m NOT planning on getting the minimum done, and stopping.
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What is your goal for your portfolio? If you're wanting to get a representative you really only need to have one script. It just has to be amazing. And exactly what they're looking for. Having multiple things in your portfolio is helpful for when you inevitably get the "what else do you have?" question. And even if you do have a solid first piece, they want to know you can do it again, particularly managers.
You don't have to wait to say you're a writer. Go out with what you have now and just keep writing so you eventually have more.
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I would focus on what you want to do. Features or TV. Then do that. They are like sprint vs long distance. Both running, both different.
Success is what fills your portfolio. When you have something you think people would kill to make, start promoting it. First stop (for me) would be scriptrevolution.com and host it there.
If it sells you then use that sale to open more doors.
Those doors may remain shut until it is made and distributed. Even then, if the work bad, the doors stay shut.
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I was exchanging DMs with a superstar Manager of Oscar Screenwriters & Emmy Tv writers and the manager expects his clients to write a minimum of 200-300 new pages a year (Specs, Assignments, adaptations, outlines, ideas, pitches, whatever). There’s so much delays, start and stop dead end non-paying projects that established and newbie writers must continue to create.
There is no definitive answer to your question other than you gotta have more than none.
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It's not just about outputting pages. It's about a long sustained commitment to learning, failing, and engaging in deliberate practice. That's learning in a whole range of areas from the craft of screenwriting, to filmmaking itself, storytelling as an art form along with the business of film and the long history behind it all. It's about knowing how and why films get made, how and why they make money, and where culture and market trends fit into it all. It's about being able to take rejection over and over and say sane while drowning your babies time after time, all while maintaining the charm it takes to network effectively with people who can make things happen for you.
A new writer is effectively an innovator within their industry. We're trying to get the iPod made when the mp3 player has just become a concept because we know what people want and need to find a gap where we can cut in and get noticed. Well, at least we should be. Most are walking into the room with a hacked together record player and wondering why they get a "thanks but no thanks".
Realistically, you're looking at the best part of a decade of hardcore dedicated effort to become good enough just for the little league and, while you can probably get a reasonable portfolio together quicker than that, being ready to face the reality of doing this for a living takes a lot longer.
I don't know the answer to that question. I know I wrote a half a dozen before I landed an agent and sold my first screenplay.