Scriptease; the Hollywood Screenwriter's Little Black Book

SCRIPTEASE: THE HOLLYWOOD SCREENWRITER’S LITTLE BLACK BOOK

SMASHWORDS EDITION

KEVIN T. STEIN

PUBLISHED BY KEVIN T. STEIN AT SMASHWORDS

COPYRIGHT 2011 KEVIN T. STEIN

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CHAPTER 1: THE FOUR RULES OF SCREENWRITING

Rule 1: The best you can work toward is a screenplay with a solid foundation, called the structure. The structure ensures the story is clear to the reader/audience, and keeps moving toward a dramatic conclusion.

Everything else is in the hands of the director, the actors, the editors, etc.

Rule 2: The best you can work toward is a screenplay with characters the reader/audience can respect (at the minimum), admire, and if possible, like.

Everything else is in the hands of the director, the actors, the editors, etc.

Rule 3: The best you can work toward is a screenplay with interesting scenes. An interesting scene ends with the characters being in a worse situation than they were before. Worse situations mean they have to take action, actions mean decisions, and decisions move the story forward (the most important direction for any story).

Everything else is in the hands of the director, the actors, the editors, etc.

Rule 4: The best you can work toward is a screenplay that will keep the reader’s attention past page ten. You have to make the reader want to know what happens next.

This is in your hands.

CHAPTER 2: WHAT’S A SCREENPLAY? WHO’S THE READER?

Screenplays are unique animals. They are considered the least important, or maybe the least sexy, part of the film-making process, but nothing starts without one.

Directors may be interested in beginning a new project, a producer may be friends with a well-known actor, but nobody moves forward, nobody is convinced to start a project, without the script.¹

However, the writer is always the first one to get fired, everyone has a say in the story (including the craft services people, if they’re friends of the director), and ultimately, the content of the script isn’t even what the audience sees when the film hits the screen.

The irony in reading about writing screenplays is that there’s questionable value in actually studying screenplays. The audience doesn’t see a movie and comment on the value of the script. All the things loved by the audience, the delivery of lines, fight scenes, special effects, even the all-important structure of the story, these are all interpretations of what the script presented. But the things loved are what the screenwriter wants to produce (or reproduce), and naturally, the average screenwriter goes back to the source: the screenplay.

A screenplay is not a piece of art. It’s a piece of work. Screenplays have no life outside the Hollywood system. In fact, screenplays have no value outside the Hollywood system. They are not great literature. They are not great plays. They are wholly different than those two forms. A screenplay is a blueprint for producer, director, actor, and a host of other people to follow in general to make a movie.

There are as many stories about first-time screenwriters selling their scripts for hundreds of thousands of dollars as there are million-dollar winners in Vegas. The truth of it is, when you read or hear something about these fortunate few writers, the stories rarely tell you things like how many scripts they’ve written before, what connections they had to the film industry already, and other factors that often make these stories less fantastic, though no less enviable.²

Screenwriters can’t bank on good fortune. They can bank on having a solid theoretical and practical foundation. Writing is like exercise: the more you do, the easier it is, and the faster you’ll do it. The more you do, the more experience you get, and with experience comes confidence, cohesiveness of thought and story, and a good instinct for what works and what doesn’t. In the end, you can only count on yourself doing the best work you know how.

The life-cycle of a script is similar to a ride in an elevator that stops at all floors, occasionally goes back down, or gets stuck, or never reaches the top. About a million scripts are submitted to Hollywood studios and agents every year, but only 400 or so are made into actual movies. Obviously, there are many obstacles to getting a script produced, but there are also many lucrative stops along the way before the script is actually shot. This all comes down to knowing for whom a script is written, which also means it’s important to know something about the system executives use to cull through, weed out, and otherwise eliminate scripts considered of no value.

It’s important to know about the reader.

Everyone in the film industry wants to be something else. Actors want to be directors, directors want to be writers, and writers want not to be hungry. People who become readers are no different, and want to be working screenwriters.³ They have probably already written scripts and registered them with the Writer’s Guild. They may have gone further. Nobody wants to stay a reader.

Reader is a much-sought-after, low-level studio position (outside of the mail room, where would-be producers start). Readers summarize screenplays in coverage. Coverage is what the reader gives to an executive after reading the script. Coverage typically includes a one line description of the story called a log line, a more detailed several-page description/synopsis, the personal opinion of the reader concerning the work, a variety of other information (such as name of the script and writer), and, most important, a one-to-ten or one-to-five point rating of character, dialogue, marketability, a couple other things, and a recommendation of whether or not to pass on the work. Concerning future projects and consideration, there may also be a suggestion to use or pass on the writer.

Coverage is rarely positive. Coverage will sometimes be more of an attack on the screenwriter. Sometimes, coverage is bizarrely inaccurate, making it obvious to the screenwriter that the reader did not finish reading the covered script. With that said, there are few occasions when the reader’s boss will discover the subterfuge, as Hollywood executives rarely⁴ read scripts.

The studios have access to research indicating an audience’s reaction to a film, allowing the studio to make educated decisions about improving the film before it goes to general release. Of course, if this tactic was flawless, every movie would be a success, and that’s certainly not the case, either in box office gross or artistic value. However, readers are still taught/shown/trained to recognize what the executives claim will be sure-fire hits. Naturally, these scripts are what the reader seeks.

The scripts sought by executives are those meeting the needs of the greatest number of audience members, that is, the script’s subject appeals to the majority. With these nonthreatening (some would say non-dramatic) scripts, the executives try to convince others to put money into a project. Please note this is not the same as having a film produced, just that money is shifted from one bank account to another and some people (executives) get paid.

The reader becomes a robot able to perform the task of generating uncaring coverage at the push of a button. Most scripts covered will not, in a reader’s opinion, meet the expectations of the governing executives.⁵ Robots do not look for innovation. They perform their task, moving on to the next until they get their upgrade, their chance to write/produce/direct.

As in Japanese culture,⁶ there’s an unspoken but institutionalized rule about the ladder of (studio) employment: you’ll get stepped on by everyone above you, and you’ll step on everyone below. A reader usually has an I’m more in the film industry than thou mindset, even though he’s at the bottom. The only people more at the bottom are new (and sometimes not so new) screenwriters, who are in every way beholden to the reader.⁷

In their defense, it must be said that being a reader is drudge work. It is the short end of the stick, though probably not as bad as personal assistant.⁸

Also in the defense of readers, many screenplays fail within the first 30 pages, and sometimes as early as the first ten. Sometimes, readers get paid per script covered, so it’s in their best financial interests to read as many as possible. There’s little incentive to read them all the way through, but plenty of incentive to look for the smallest error, give a pass on the script, and move on to go through as many as possible.⁹

Readers often reject screenplays on the simplest dogmatic criteria. Are there three holes in the paper? Two brass brads or three? Does it have the proper formatting? Too many pages or too few? In many cases, readers are completely justified in an outright rejection of a script if it does not meet the minimum physical requirements.¹⁰

Readers definitely reject screenplays if the pages are too dense or too sparse. Too much description, dialogue too long, not enough of one or the other. It’s subjective, but again, they think real professionals know how to mix it up on the pages to make the pages look right. Of course, pages must have the correct margins, spacing between lines, line breaks, etc. Software takes care of these particular issues, and at the writing of this book, the required tool is Final Draft, by the company of the same name.¹¹

Most people think screenplays get turned down or turned into movies. Not every script that’s turned down gets dumped in the trash, and not every script that’s bought goes to film. Here is a brief description of some potential avenues your script can follow.

If your script is turned down, you may be asked for a rewrite. This means it’s not wholly dead for that executive. Odds are, though, no money, yet.

If your script is turned down, you may get a recommendation of where else to send it. Maybe whomever read the script wasn’t necessarily interested in the subject, but felt it good enough to send to someone looking for that kind of story. This is especially good because then you can introduce yourself to this next person by saying you were referred, which is always a good thing.

If your script is turned down, you may be asked to send something else. This means whoever read your script liked you as a screenwriter.

Your script is turned down but you’re considered for a re-write on somebody else’s script. You’re probably going to get paid.

Now, the other side:

Your script is optioned. Simply put, an option on a script means whomever buys the option owns the script for a certain period of time, usually a year. During that time, the option-holder (usually) tries to get the script made. When the option runs out, rights to the script revert back to you. This is good, because it usually involves flowing money and the potential to get your film made.

Your script is optioned, and you are paid to do a rewrite. This is especially good, because not only do you get paid for the option, but you’re given extra cash for giving the option holders what they want changed.

Your script is optioned, and it goes into production. It’s on its way.

And finally:¹²

Your script is optioned, the executives try to put it into production, but the production has problems and the script goes into turnaround. Your script is on its way to becoming history. Turnaround is something of a stigma. It means the story is no longer new and fresh, and therefore, for reasons unknown, is no longer desirable. It is said that having a script in turnaround is Hollywood’s equivalent of baptism by fire.

A number of these options involve getting cash. There are screenwriters making a good living having their scripts optioned, doing rewrites, polishes (a sort of final tweaking to the story rewrite), and being hired to re-write other screenwriters’ work. This is not as spectacular as having your script turned into a film, but there are a limited number of films made every year, and getting anything for your work is an accomplishment.

Getting to yes is the unspoken art of the screenwriter.

Here are some basic truths about the Hollywood studio system. These will help you avoid many of the problems encountered by new screenwriters.

Hollywood is a very small town, and everyone knows everyone else. Almost literally. In the right areas, when you sit in a cafe, bar, or sidewalk restaurant, you will, without doubt, hear someone talking about the industry.

If you earn yourself a reputation among a small group of executives in the film industry, your name quickly spreads. If you have a good reputation, that’s great. If you have a bad reputation, that’s very bad. Many new screenwriters often feel that attitude will get them where they want to be. But attitude is perceived as disrespect for the very busy people in the film industry. Use common sense.

Film is a business. Treat it like one. Be Professional. Screenwriting is a business. Have good business acumen, which includes patience.

The first word out of every executive’s mouth is No. Are you looking for this kind of story? No. Could I send you my script? No. Could you tell me what you’re looking for? No. Why No? It’s safe. Hollywood doesn’t want to make movies, Hollywood wants to make profit. Executives want to make the next big hit. That’s why they always say No first. Executives can wait, considering they are offered hundreds of script a week to read. No is also safe because someone who says Yes to a flop often gets the blame.¹³

Whether or not you’ve had a script sold, you are a screenwriter. Someone asks, you say Yes, I am a screenwriter. If you do something else in writing, maybe you’re a novelist, never say you are a novelist. If you do, you will hear, Oh, you must have made this mistake because you’re just a novelist. You can tell them you’re an author if you are someone like Stephen King, but otherwise, be forewarned.

Take opinions with a grain of salt. Take them with a whole shaker. Everyone in Hollywood has an opinion about your script, and if you take them all to heart, you will be very unhappy, then you will go very crazy. Pay attention to the people who have direct influence over your work. If they all say the same thing, odds are, what they’re saying is correct. If they each say something different, odds are you need to find a new executive to buy your screenplay. It’s just a matter of logic.

The success of a movie is believed to be connected to its market. A movie with a market can potentially make money where a movie without a market will not.¹⁴ A market can be loosely defined as the potential audience for a particular type of movie, or that movie’s demographic. In other words, there are markets for romance pictures, action pictures, buddy-cop pictures, science fiction, horror, suspense, crime thrillers, etc.

Obviously, some markets are bigger than others. If a script has a big market, it is thought to have greater potential to earn money. A script with a greater potential to earn money has a better chance of being read (don’t forget, it gets read first, then sold).

For the most part, executives want something already market-sold, something with an established market demographic. Psychic western is probably not an established market demographic. Romantic comedy definitely is. However, each new incarnation of a kind of story needs a twist.¹⁵ A buddy-cop film, only with an older cop and a streetwise kid. The Scarlet Letter, only in modern-day Manhattan.

Ultimately, executives look for last year’s hit, because last year’s hit has already made money and (potentially) opened the door for more money.¹⁶ That’s one of the reasons audiences are treated to two or three films at a time with similar stories or settings, or a continual stream of bland, lifeless remakes. Hollywood executives like to gamble on a sure thing. But everyone knows that other than the movie of the same name,¹⁷ there is no such thing as a sure thing.¹⁸

Ironically, you can’t predict a market. But you can follow a trend to its logical, profitable conclusion. Hollywood is slow to pick up on what’s new until a short time after said new thing hits the mainstream. If you can see something that seems to be gaining acceptance, notoriety, or fame, then sometime, Hollywood will start making movies about it. You can also use this to your advantage when you pitch your script, pointing out the next big trend.

Some final notes. Your script can be rejected based on its title.¹⁹ Also, at a guess, if you were to try to make the Wizard of Oz today, most executives would not understand why the beginning of the story was not in color.²⁰

If you’re nobody, if you don’t have friends in studios, know name actors (and if you don’t have studio friends or know actors you are nobody by Hollywood standards), then you have to make a hard decision about your desire to write a screenplay. You have