Screenwriting : Are viewers tired of political TV series? by Doug Fetterly

I don't think viewers have grown tired of Political Drama as long as the show stands out from the ones that are already done. Yours sounds unique.

I don't think so but make sure it's not just another stand in for the news networks (on either side of the aisle). Show the good point and bad of both sides and I think it becomes a show people talk about the next day,.

You will have plenty of content for seasons that's for sure.

Great advice, Bop Shipman.

Any viewer with the functioning brain likes political TV series, most people will agree. Maybe the "CRITICS" didn't like the fact that you marked Big Pharma, a senator, FDA Commissioner, and a few others as a bad players in your pilot. But those critics were right about one thing. Viewers are getting tired of REAL LIFE political dramas, not the fictional ones. Don't give up of quit because of one NO, there will be a YES, sooner than you think. Good luck!

How many political dramas can they name right now? Just because some Americans are getting tired of REAL political drama doesn't mean you can't have a good series.

JC Young - This is not me arguing with you or starting a political debate, this is just my opinion. It's not just Americans getting tired of this political garbage, the same problems exists in every country and territory on the planet. If any one of us comes up with some good idea or with some fresh approach in TV series or a movie I will always encourage him/her to keep going,. Then again, this young man came up with the idea for a TV series and just because some so called CRITIC told him that people are tired of political dramas on TV doesn't mean anything. How does that critic knows that, is that his shallow opinion, was there a survey, a nation-wide research, where did he get that information, from twiter, CNN, MSNBC... If this young man keeps asking, I guarantee you he will get the YES, sooner then later.

Depends....throw me something deeper and I might be interested....but I'm a guy who knows Ford had factory/HQ in USSR in the most dark times of Stalin's rule, for example...so dig deeper :)

You get a lot of sweeping statements like this and then something always comes along to completely disprove them. The industry is full of people who talk in absolutes depending on which way the wind is blowing and they will u-turn in a heartbeat if they see an opportunity.

Generally speaking, nothing is off the table. Entertaining content will always have an audience.

I think if the characters are interesting enough along with the world they inhabit and it's written well enough everythings salable.And as it usually takes years to get anything from concept to a reality what's in vogue today and what people want in 2 years or longer down the road is 2 different things.I think it's silly to chase trends as by the time somethings production ready that trends over anyway.

If ppl truly know what audiences want, they would have salary jobs as executives, and it's still a guessing game. More fails than success because you're predicting the future. Your pilot idea, if it ever goes into development, is 3-4 years from filming.

I look at my writer-peer who created a series for a network airing this year and she began tv development 5-years ago. Before covid. When trump was still prez. Her show changed showrunners and fired & hired new tv executives. And they reshot the pilot.

Interesting concept. I personally would be curious about a show with a premise like that.

Doug, I wouldn't mind watching that pilot you've written.

Glad you're here on Stage 32...all the VERY BEST to you!

Craig Prickett - All good remarks in your comment, 3 to be exact but here's what some people can't understand and it doesn't make any sense (keep in mind, I'm one of them). Now, Point #1 - "it usually takes years to get anything from concept to a reality" Point #2 - "what people want" There's no easy answer to these questions because they are interconnected, No matter what approach you take, from which side you look at it, every answer creates another question and again everything is interconnected. If you ask; why does it take 2+ years for production to get started you will most likely get two answers: They are dragging their feet because they get paid either way regardless what gets produced. You might even hear; They don't know how to do their job.

Imagine the movie industry as a wall that looks like a Pyramid. First row has 9 blocks, second row 8 and all the way on the top there is only 1 block. Imagine that single block as one of these executives who has the final word on which TV series or movie will get greenlighted. Hold on! If that's how this industry is built, this should be stable, I mean, we're talking about 5 or 6 tone blocks connected to each other. In reality it should work exactly like that. The problem is: The block on the top is not only disconnected from 2 blocks beneath, he' disconnected from the reality. He's driven by what's trending this week or month, who should he pander to this weekend and of course how to make some profit out of all this. 1 out of 10 top executives takes this path and as a result of this approach We, the people, the audience gets 1 watchable movie out of 10 produced.

Goodness! First off, I am so appreciate of he outpouring of support, ideas, reality checks--aka wisdom. Pardon that this will be a longer response, adding detail in reference to what you all wrote.

As to the suggestion that I'm a young man, I still feel as one (still surf, hike), but the young man status disappeared several decades ago. Secondly, when I "quoted" a critic, I used the term loosely more as someone who suggested I reconsider writing about politics (and, yes, I appreciate the point about writing a political series as fiction and not about following the news feeds). I have an agent in Hollywood, one who knows the ropes. But I can appreciate that he can only(?) put so much energy into a project in its current form (after reaching one roadblock) and suggested a new project (novel, screenplay). Still, i'm not one to give up, and the ebbs and flows you all referenced are what I stand behind as part of the process.

We all have our stories, yes. I've been writing (short stories, interviews, articles, one novel, forays into screenplays/tv) beginning in the early '90s, with scriptwriting just this past two years. I studied Shonda Rhimes MasterClass (which, I know, does not make me a scriptwriter), and studied with a showrunner (L.A.) and cohort for a couple of months last year. And then there are the comments relative to my initial pilot entry (which received a decent review) and the 2nd pass (that person had a bad day--I'm sure of it :-).

No sales pitch intended here. My novel is Silence Her, which I departed from slightly in my tv pilot.

Two questions:

1. Does tv still seem the best approach? I know my pilot ia 64 pages, and a full movie might be double that.

2. Do any of you share your scripts, or is it best to do so only through an agent?

Aloha and mahalo (we live here on O'ahu).

Doug (Fetterly)

Doug Fetterly

1. Does tv still seem the best approach? I know my pilot is 64 pages, and a full movie might be double that.

Do you feel a show is the best approach for your story? Would it take seasons to tell the story, or can you tell it as a movie?

2. Do any of you share your scripts, or is it best to do so only through an agent?

I had a manager, but I pitch my scripts now/share my scripts with producers, companies, etc.

Hey Doug Fetterly - great question - and there are a lot of great answers here. I don't think anyone can predict exactly what audiences want, because audiences can't predict what they want. So my guess is that this executive wasn't a fan of political series personally and they projected that dislike across the entire industry. Keep writing what you want to write and you will find the market when it's time.

Amid the outpouring of so much wisdom, I received one request to share my pilot. The temptation is that it would be seen by many of you, which could lead to it getting some additional attention. And, yet, I ask if that is foolish in terms of it being “borrowed.” I’ve traveled widely and am not naive, but this one stumps me. I want to be completely trusting of anyone in a Lounge of this nature. Any suggestions? Aloha and mahalo.

I think there will also be love for political drama. Don't give up on your dream :)

Congrats on the script request, Doug Fetterly. I'm not sure what your question means.

If it provides a different outlook on something familiar, enabling the audience to see it from a different perspective and may challenge their previous experiences, then it absolutely still has a chance. In one review for the Danish political drama "Borgen", broadcast in its original language but still had a primetime spot on one of the main channels in the UK: "Who would have thought Danish politics would be so interesting?"

I know I'm late jumping on this thread but I was curious if others were running into the same problem I was experiencing with my political piece "The Judas Branch". I've been told a number of times by "experts" that the audience will not tune in to a political piece. My attitude is, if the characters are strong and the plots unique, people will tune in. There seems to be a mindset now that viewers will only sit through mental pablum and nothing is further from the truth. "Experts" and "executives" have to stop underestimating the general public. Reality TV has it's place but the real heart and soul of the industry is in solid storytelling, political or otherwise.

I agree with Bill, especially underscoring "and the plots unique'. I imagine the big players (Netflix e.g.) have a certain groupthink about political work, but I'm thinking the Indie producers might be more amenable.

Bill & Doug, re: political dramas. It's not the political drama/thriller genre per se that audiences are "tired" of, I believe. It's the agenda driven (right or left) political films that audiences are frustrated/bored with. Most films so predictable, audience can sing along with the dialogue without a bouncing ball. For example, I started watching a legal series on Netflix (high-price female lawyer who is fired by her firm, hired by a black law firm) and the first four episodes were wonderful. Then, it turned into "blame the Republicans/hate Trump" fest, and I turned it off. I get enough propaganda on the "news" stations. Right or left spin, I know the scripts. However, I kept my DVD player and just watch movies. If you can avoid the "message" and just tell a story, you should do okay.

I will agree with that. If you want to start a fight and divide countries further, write a political drama. This is probably why you will never see a Trump movie like JFK in theatres. Even with a conviction Trump would still divide the country because enough people still believe he can do no wrong.

Jenean and Tim: Excellent points about a right or left spin, and furthering division. I'll go through my one-hour pilot and keep those in mind. I would want both sides of the aisle (too bad there are sides) to be enticed by the story without being turned off by division.

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I think maybe THIS guy is sick of being disagreed with politically, so he's going around saying "People are sick of political drama." Which is ironic given every cop show in existence is a "political drama", and there are still loads of those on the air!

In my head I picture a sort of "cop show without cops" from what you've told us—the detective-hero is a WoC journalist and her beat is exposing political corruption. To me it sounds like a perfect "reach across the aisle" program, because both Trump Haters and Trump Lovers think "the system is corrupt" and needs fixing—the only disagreement is on who should be cuffed and perp-walked while the audience pelts him/her with rotten fruit!

I suggested to a ACAB/"Defund the Police" type recently that maybe a weekly series about an investigator looking into police corruption, racism and brutality might be worth doing—but he was too busy trying to beat all of us up while he fumbled for a match to burn the whole system down to listen or care.

Doug Fetterly It sounds like it might make a good movie. You could try reworking the story into a feature, which is a good exercise anyway and can help guide a series, should that come to pass.

@Ewan Dunbar Borgen is so well done and I think what makes it work, for me anyway, is that the characters are so vivid and their relationships fully explored.

Doug: I just thought about a film I showed to my poli sci students: Advise & Consent (starring Henry Fonda) about how the Senate operates. If you haven't seen it (maybe you're too young), you might want to as it is one of the best public education movies ever made. Granted, the hysteria over one senator's homosexual wartime experience will seem dated, but the point of the film is how every president differs in his approach to power and uses a "uniparty" approach to the subjects of "sides."

You know for me it really depends, I think if your screenplay in a feature or TV show is really good and is not very biased and it actually tells a very truthful or very unbiased story or narrative about the politician or president or world leader or monarch. Even though I know there is a lot of liberal bias in Hollywood and on the west coast in general and in the blue states, I think if you can write and make feature that is non-biased and very research biased and is truthful like you use ground news to check your sources and all that, and then you have a good cast and crew and all that and you don't attack your audience. Then I think you will make a good feature or TV show. And you know, people will always like political stuff in movies and TV shows especially if it's done right and not biased and does not have an agenda behind it. that's just my take on the matter.

I actually like political drama, as long as it doesn't feel forced. Everything works in subtlety.

Jenean, thank you. I'm definitely not too young. I put Advise & Consent on my to watch list.

Christiane,, I've been tempted to expand the one-hour pilot into a feature film. Thank you for the suggestion.

I think politics can still work so long as you're not hitting people over the head with a sledgehammer of your political POV. And of course, with good characters, good plot, and GREAT writing, almost any subject will work, and without those things it almost no subject will work. So focus on quality rather than passing trends.

Remember, if you don't get any traction right away, wait a year or two and all the development execs will have changed and you can try with it again! LOL.

Craig Prickett You're making a fair point about social trends, specially when it comes to the TV industry. Sure, following a certain trend might help your product in the short run, but once a trend dies, what's the point?

Jenean—I've seen ADVISE AND CONSENT a few times, and the regressive attitude towards homosexuality aside it's an excellent look at how the system operates when it more or less works. Even the closeted gay Senator subplot isn't offensive so much as it's lurid—the Senator comes off like a decent guy caught between a rock and a hard place, the young man he had a fling with never meant to hurt him but somehow somebody high up found out, and it's all shot with what looks like a handheld camera for maximum disorientation. Thankfully that's only a few minutes out of the whole movie and the rest is well-written and -directed, even if a few of the characters kind of...telegraph their stances from the moment you meet them.

Timothy and Doug, another good unpolitical poliical film is 7 DAYS IN MAY about a hypothetical military coup d'etat. (Burt Lancaster is good in everything in does! Kirk Douglas is ... well, Kirk Douglas.) Again, the story is more important than the political "sides" and shows how such a scenario could occur whichever party is in power.

If the passion for the story is there, find a way to put a unique twist into it. Be it the character or the circumstances the character faces. It all comes down to character, right? Think of movies in that genre that drew you in, then ask yourself why they did so. Hope that helps.

Jenean, seen that one, too—my ex-wife in particular loves it for how it generates suspense from a lot of things you don't really know if they're happening or not, and how far Kirk Douglas's Jiggs will go to stop a man he deeply admires from committing treason. It's probably the best work Douglas and Lancaster did together. (I'm not a big fan of GUNFIGHT AT THE O.K. CORRAL because Burt Lancaster seemed to be channeling Charlton Heston in his Wyatt Earp, and Kirk Douglas's Doc Holliday had to be the HEALTHIEST consumptive I've ever seen!)

Since we're tossing around political movies, did you enjoy THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE (the original one with Frank Sinatra and Laurence Harvey)? The movie's a bit screwier than the others, but I really think it's a smart thriller and an interesting look at unreliable memories.

I've seen both Manchurian Candidate movies and the original is, of course, the better of the two. And, I've always been a big fan of Angela (I'm on a first-name basis because I feel I know her). One of the most interesting things about that film is that it's the Chinese/NoKo who unleash the plot, but it's the commies who are the villains --- a believable way to avoid bashing American politics and get straight into the story. I also took it as a warning against how powerful (and easy) psy-ops can be. The playing card angle was great. too. Something so simple and something no one would suspect. But think about it .... all of the movies mentioned are political movies, but no one is offended to the point where the film bombs. And they were all black & white film. As for O.K. Corral....a little too slow for my tastes. The story could have been told in 20 minutes, really. :) I don't know what Doc was taking for his TB ....maybe the warm climate helped because he lived a long time.

:: I don't know what Doc was taking for his TB ....maybe the warm climate helped because he lived a long time.::

The warm air and drier climate really help with lung diseases like TB—but given the medicine of the time that was all they knew how to do as treatment. I'd started writing a radio drama* about a tubercular Sheriff during the Great Depression who goes on a quest to take down the bank robbers who killed his wife, even though his condition worsens as he goes. As a result, I did some research into TB, which this being the 1980s meant going to the LIE-berry? and reading these big heavy things called Buhks? And actually talking to doctors and nurses?

Wow—sometimes these days I pull out my iPhone to look something up, and I just remember how incredible all of this is now....

----

* Yes, radio drama—it enjoyed something of a renaissance in the mid-Eighties with radio stations playing old radio dramas at weird hours, and NPR carrying a lot of BBC radio drama as well as licensing original radio drama from the U.S.

Since as an Army Brat living in Germany there were several years when we didn't have an American television, so I heard a lot of old radio plays like the original GUNSMOKE starring Willam Conrad as Matt Dillon, several hardboiled jazz-loving PI shows Jack Webb wrote and starred in before hitting on DRAGNET, and the SF anthology series X MINUS ONE which dramatized a lot of SF short stories I was also reading in collections. Joining a radio drama company in the 1980s just seemed natural, especially as I was looking for a place to write and act in New York City—it's where I met my wife (well, ex-wife now) and made several friends in the mystery, SF, men's adventure and classic radio communities.

Radio dramas? I'm looking for someone to do an audio book and need a male reader for some of my male-oriented material. (I write war/noir/mystery stories, for instance, that wouldn't sound right with a female reader.) I had an interview with an audio book producer Monday, and got tons of info, and even though she has roladex-full of guys who read, she said I should ask around, too. I need to find someone who is older who has read and can read with an understanding of story, character, and inflection of grammar symbols. Funny, hunh? But I guess there are people out there who don't know what a "!" or "?" means. If someone comes to mind, I've got a few projects. I've never been to NY, but I grew up in San Diego, and knew several dudes in the beach bum, armed forces, and college communities. :)

Well, here's my resume (audio reel link at the bottom)—https://drdarkeny.blogspot.com/2022/07/timothy-e-liebe-resume-072022.htm .

I'm going down to New York City today (family emergency), so while I'm there I'll see if a few of the people I used to work with still do voice acting.

If pushing an agenda and promoting an identity is your main concern, you'll lose the audience. They want to be entertained, not indoctrinated. Sadly, Hollywood doesn't get that. No reason to make the other side feel bad. As Michael Jordan once said, "conservatives buy sneakers too"

Gee, Stan Eans—does that mean I should throw out my Tom Clancy and W.E.B. Griffin novels, and stop watching Dick Wolf shows, because they could be said to be "pushing an agenda"?

Having a point of view is not the same as "pushing an agenda" or "promoting an identity". It's where the writer is coming from that makes the story of value to them, and if the writer is any good (as the writers I listed above certainly were/are) then their storytelling skills transcend their point of view.