book

Screenwriting for Profit

Name: Screenwriting for Profit
Author: Andrew Stevens
ISBN: 9781317361756

by Andrew Stevens

June 2017

Intermediate to advanced

216 pages

6h 59m

English

Routledge

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Cover
Title
Copyright
Contents
Introduction
Prologue
1 Critical Criteria Before Determining Your Subject Matter
Understanding the Global MarketplaceShelf LifeStudio FilmsDistribution CostsIndependent FilmsUnderstanding Sales AgentsSales Agents’ Responsibility to BuyersHow Films Are Bought and SoldFilm MarketsFilm FestivalsTermRightsTerritoryBuyersHow Sales Are DocumentedSales Agents’ ContractsBuyers’ RepsProducers’ RepsNorth AmericaMarket Value Is Critical for Screenwriters to UnderstandThe Market-Savvy ScreenwriterOther Ways of Gathering Trending Information
2 The Independent Film and Television Alliance and the American Film Market: Services and Opportunities That Benefit Screenwriters
Legal ContractsGlobal Research and TrackingAdvocacy EffortsThe American Film Market Seminars and Conferences Financing FinancingAFM—Pitch Me Your ScriptBenefits of Attending Film MarketsA Writer’s Goal While Attending the AFMGet in Touch With the MarketplaceHow to Navigate the AFMThe American Film Market and Connections for Screenwriters
3 The Cannes Film Market and Festival
JuriesSelection ClassificationsEventsWhere Film Sales HappenPre-Sale Marketing
4 Writing for the Marketplace
Trends + Analysis = ProfitThe Necessity of Developing ScreenplaysKey Territories and Associated ChallengesSecond Level of SellKnow Before You WriteUnderstanding Territorial Desires and WhyGenre Beats and Running TimesAn Example of Developing a Script Based on Market DesiresA Catchy TitleWorking With the Department of DefenseDevelopment RecapThe Creative ChallengeWriter Wannabes vs. Career ProfessionalsAnomaliesBuyer and Sellers: Screenwriters Are SellersThe Creative Process in the Real WorldThe Cognizant Writer

5 Building a Career—Everyone Starts Somewhere
Study the Market and Ask QuestionsPay Attention to What Is SellingSuccess Breeds SuccessApply What You LearnPre-Determined ProfitThe Market Often Dictates Story StructureOrganic Integration and Running TimeImportance of the Second Level of Sell in Multiple Genres
6 Historical Context of the Recent Evolution of Media Gives Writers Perspective
Directors as Well as Writers Need Market AwarenessThe Trend Shifted and New Media EmergedThe Historical Evolution of Audio-Visual MediaFilmmaking and Emerging MediaNew Media and Distribution PlatformsMarketing Challenges in New MediaAttracting DistributionStar Name Recognition HelpsWriters Should Be Aware of the Fiscal Realities of DistributionVisual ConceptsSales CampaignsMarketing via Digital PlatformsNiche Marketing—Identifying the Target Audience for Your Story Building Awareness for Your Film
7 Screenplay Structure and Components
Three-Act StructureAct Structure for Television FilmsThe Syd Field ParadigmThe PrologueEntrance and Exit of Major CharactersScenesWord of Mouth ScenesMemorable LinesPlant and Pay-OffExposition
8 Inspiration, Sequels, Remakes, and Reboots
InspirationDraw From the World Around YouSequelsRemakes
9 Character Development From an Actor’s Perspective
Most Screenplays Lack Depth of CharacterPersonalizationTransference or Substitution and Sense MemoriesSynergy of Writers and ActorsA Personalization Exercise for WritersAn Example of an Actor’s BackstoryAn Actor’s Prep for a Television Pilot and SeriesAn Example of an Actor’s TimelinePreserving the Writer’s IntentSome Actors With Power Have No Regard for a Writer’s Words
10 A Screenwriter’s Perspective
The World Before Final DraftTwo Sample Writer’s Character BreakdownsExamination of Character BreakdownsArchetypesThe Four Basic ArchetypesWeaknesses, Needs, and Super ObjectivesPhysical Description (Physiology)SociologyPsychologyUse What Works for You
11 A Director’s Perspective
The Writer/DirectorCriteria and Process of a Film DirectorWriters RewrittenIt All Starts With the ScriptDirectors’ Preparation TechniquesSuggested Criteria for Being a Successful Film Director
12 A Producer’s Perspective
Assimilating How the Business WorksCertain Writers for Certain ProjectsThe Business Changes, but the Paradigm Remains the SameWhat a Producer Looks for in a ScreenplayA Producer Isn’t a Producer Without a ScriptAn Example of a Malleable Writer
13 Writing for Cost-Effective Budgets
Night ExteriorsLimit Locations and Company MovesLimit Speaking RolesWorking With MinorsWorking With AnimalsResidualsAn Example of When Theatrical Film Residuals Become Due for Various MediaReduce or Eliminate Distant LocationsReduce the Number of Shooting DaysRethink and Modify Costly SequencesRecap
14 Financing
Equity FinancingSelf-FinancingBank FinancingCompletion GuarantorsLimited PartnershipsPitching a Deal to Equity Investors Is Like Pitching a ScriptSocial Media and CrowdfundingGrantsSubsidiesSubsidies: Too Good to Be True?Multiple Source Financing
15 Writing Is a Team Sport
Content Is Dictated by the Coaches and FansLiterary DevelopmentTelevision DevelopmentStudio DevelopmentIndependent DevelopmentReadersPost-Production StorytellingNational Research GroupGathering Information From Demographic GroupsAvoiding Major CompetitionDeclining Audience ShareThe Tent Pole Danger ZoneCalculating Audience ShareAudiences Can Dictate Editorial Cuts of FilmsCurrent NRG Screening ChallengesAltered Content
16 Studio Due Diligence: How the Big Boys Cater to the Little Boys
Comic-ConMillennials
17 New Media—New Model—As Significant as the Majors
NetflixAmazon StudiosAmazon PrimeHulu and Hulu PlusYouTubeYouTube Red
18 Non-Union vs. Union Writers’ Agreements
Writing for Independent CompaniesWriters’ AgreementsWritten Agreements Are EssentialUnion and Non-Union RatesWGA Low-Budget Rate Tiers and FeesRewrites on Spec ScriptsRestrictions, Obligations, and Penalties to a Producer or Production CompanyRevision of the ScreenplayInitial Release in a Non-Theatrical MarketReportsCost ReportRight to AuditMinimum TermsP&W Contributions and ResidualsPractical Contrast of Union vs. Non-UnionUnion Overview From an Independent Perspective
19 Writers’ Protections
Ideas vs. StoriesWGA RegistrationCopyrightsThe Library of CongressSteps to Registering a CopyrightUnderlying Source MaterialChain of TitleExample of Chain of Title
20 Non-Disclosure, Non-Circumvention, and Confidentiality Agreements
Sample Non-Disclosure AgreementNon-Circumvention AgreementsSample Mutual Non-Circumvention, Confidentiality Agreement
21 Screenplay Submissions
Query LettersSteps for Constructing a Query LetterReal Examples of Bad Query LettersSamples of Query Letters That Got My AttentionWhat If I Don’t Get a Response From My Query Letter?Alternatives to Query LettersSubmission ReleaseSample Submission Release FormA Real Life Illustration of Why Producers and Studios Protect Themselves From Litigation
22 The Pitch
Personal PresentationGetting the Job: The 7 KeysRecap

Content preview from Screenwriting for Profit

Chapter 5Building a Career—Everyone Starts Somewhere

I was an actor for many years before I changed careers and segued into being a writer, producer, director, and foreign sales and production company executive. During my acting years, I wrote many underlying stories for prospective films, as well as a couple of feature film scripts, which, despite my efforts, I was never able to get made. I never wanted to be just an actor and was always looking for ways to expand beyond being on camera, and that began with writing.

Study the Market and Ask Questions

Finally, in the late 1980s, in an effort to figure out how other people were doing it and I wasn’t, I started studying the international marketplace. I went to the Cannes Film Market, which coincides ...

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Screenwriting for Profit

by Andrew Stevens

Chapter 5Building a Career—Everyone Starts Somewhere

Study the Market and Ask Questions

Become an O’Reilly member and get unlimited access to this title plus top books and audiobooks from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers, thousands of courses curated by job role, 150+ live events each month,
and much more.