Recently my red flag has been the phrase, "We do not accept unsolicited material." I’m relatively new—just a couple of months—into this business, and I’ve only encountered this problem. I could never have imagined that everything would be so complicated, so closed off, and so guarded, like it’s locked behind seven seals. I thought that in the democratic West, things would be far more transparent. But no.
I come from a country where bureaucracy seeps into the walls and soaks into the asphalt, so this topic feels both painfully familiar and deeply frustrating. But honestly, I think it might even be better back home. Why is it that most issues—or almost all of them—can only be resolved through a phone call or by knocking on the right door of someone you know? Why can’t studios just read what screenwriters send them? But no—there it is again, that sacred phrase: "We do not accept unsolicited material." Sometimes, I feel like I’ll wake up in the middle of the night, hearing that dreaded phrase echoing in my head and find them sitting on the closet with ''unsolicited material'' nearby as toilet paper.
Apparently, you don’t need to be a good screenwriter. You just need a friend who’s a costume designer or a makeup artist at the studio—or better yet, You should live nearby. Or you could sign up for all the platforms, pay monthly fees, and participate in festivals, which, of course, also charge you to join.
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You can't just go knocking on busy people's doors and demanding their time.
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I'm not used to such difficulties. I'm sure there is a way, and I hope I'll find it. If not, I'll wait until the time comes. And about busy people, we are all busy people, and we are not presidents of countries to be so busy and unable to solve such small problems. And what about those movies that are full in Hollywood, where someone somewhere wrote a script about something, and companies fight for this script and give millions? A Hollywood fairy tale? Yes, but very sweet... and inspiring hope. We grew up on them behind our Iron Curtain, by the way))
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Hi, Ella Asvar. One of the reasons there's a "We do not accept unsolicited material" is so producers, directors, and companies don't get sued. If they read unsolicited material from a writer and make a similar movie/show later on, the writer could try and say the producer, director, etc. stole their work.
One way to get around the policy is networking/building industry relationships. The person who doesn't accept unsolicited material might accept it from a friend. Another way to get around the policy is to win a contest that sets you up with meetings with industry professionals, like Stage 32 contests.
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You are right in some way. And I'm new on this stage. I'll dive into it a bit later ) And pitch something. This is a new professional term which I've learnt ) ''Pitch a meeting''. Hope it will be fruitful )
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Ella Asvar , Maurice is right. The main reason is legal liability. If you send the studio a script about something and they never read it, or even if they do read it and pass, then they release a film that has some similar elements, they could face a lawsuit from someone claiming they stole their idea. They get enough lawsuits for every project they make, they don't need more.
Also, they just don't have the staff to read every script that comes their way. Why would they hire a bunch of readers to read a bunch of scripts they didn't ask for - especially since 99% of scripts are terrible. As Dan Maxxx says, "they don't owe you" anything.
The way to get around that is to ask them if they want to see your script. If they ask you for it, it's no longer unsolicited. A cold email or call to a studio won't get you that break, but maybe an independent producer, or an actor's manager may like your pitch enough to request the script. You might also look for an entertainment attorney willing to send it for you, as some producers or managers may prefer or require it.
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Ella: You've already received sound advice from this thread, particularly what Maurice said about companies wishing to avoid litigation with unproduced writers. Some people, like Zero Gravity, will accept unsolicited material, but the chances of success are low. I did over 900 queries this year and received a small percentage of responses, including No UNSOLICITED MATERIAL. However, I wrote various (hopefully) compelling queries and used my upcoming film as leverage. At least that netted me more personal rejections from filmmakers who said my material seemed interesting, but their slates were full. Finally, I received some script reads from filmmakers, including Cary Soloman (God's Not Dead), who requested four screenplays.
Though I'm not a big fan of paid pitches, for someone like yourself, I would recommend investing a few dollars in trying the paid pitch service at S32 (https://www.stage32.com/scriptservices/pitch-sessions) to get your feet wet. At the very least, consider that a learning experience for either speaking with "pros" or writing a compelling pitch in two pages or less.
However, vet any prospective industry pro to see if they've made films or what connections they would have to further your career. S32 offers script plot point evaluations and essential feedback with their package and the experience is worth the price of admission. But you should also consider doing much research to find as many pitching channels as you can, including IMDB pro, and targeting producers you think might be a fit for your material.
Is your material pitch ready? Is your script free of grammar, spelling, and sentence structure errors? First, ensure you or someone qualified proofreads the material or use IA software like Grammarly Pro, which you can embed into Final Draft 12. Don't make excuses about the money for these things. It's the cost of doing business. So, figure out how to fund your screenwriting business expenses. Lastly, pitching work is a numbers game; you must put much time and energy into doing it.
My best wishes to you and Happy Holidays.
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Thank you, Phillip, Same to you. Intersting thing, I wrote this Zero Geavity just two days ago ) Yes, they'are supposed to accept this kind of material. I prepared a query letter and the short version of my synopses. I have 6 scripts for now! I wrote them in 1 month or so ) And it's not the end. The matter of fact is that I write them based on my books. So the plot is ready. I write very quickly and as for grammar I use AI. My native is not English but I studied it at University so I needed ıt. As I said, it's just the start )
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Ella: You're cranking out the content. Well done. Look at each screenplay or teleplay you write as unfinished until someone buys it and makes a film. Therefore, I rework screenplays all the time. Some that I wrote years ago. Reading your posts, I would never know you were not proficient in English.
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Thank you, hope you saiid something good ) As for the content, it's my post, I'm the owner of it ) And we are just talking and sharing some ideas. We are communicating! İnteracting...We are not obliged to write in some borders. besides, it all concerns screenwriting.
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Keep pushing forward, you clearly have a passion for storytelling, and that will shine through. Looking forward to hearing more about your journey and ideas!
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Welcome to my world. Keep going, you'll break through.
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Ella Asvar just an FYI- I worked at a studio across from Paramount when they ripped off "Coming to America" which turned into a HUGE lawsuit and which was won by Pierce O'Donnell against Paramount and hence, everything after that was that writers could no longer walk their work in "unsolicited." An acquaintance that I knew had come from Nigeria, told his story to Eddie Murphy (and Art Buchwald who wrote it) and had been working on the lot in the accounting department. Art sued Paramount and took a settlement. But this is a HUGE reason there are no more "UNSOLICITED SCRIPTS."
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Ella: Sorry, I had problems with my English proficiency. I meant to say that you're very proficient in English.
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Thank you, Phillip. I understood it in exactly that way ) I studied it in the Russian University, maybe that's why )
Haha!
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Dan MaxXx What's up with the attitude, Dan? Ella is voicing a frustration that's in every screenwriter's mind about sucking up to someone in the "club" but instead of relaying some information that might help her rethink a strategy, you slap her down with a 'no one has to give a damn' about you" attitude. I've seen that a lot in your responses to people. Yes, it's a cutthroat industry and everyone is out for themselves. I wouldn't step aside for you or anyone any day of the week, but comparing this to wanting be to a ball boy is kind of out in right field. (No pun intended...well maybe a little.) Try and give her a little hope. There is enough talent on this site to start our own film company and have a slate of 5 good strong film projects for a start up investment of $7M. You literally have everyone you need at your fingertips to start one. Remember, everyone is on this site for a positive experience. The people we need to talk to don't care about anything we say or do. I don't need to talk to them because they are all pretty much dirtbags. People in the same boat need to row together.
Ella Asvar Make yourself a force to be noticed. Do a video reading of a portion of your work for social media. This business is all about casting lines out and seeing who will bite. Find a way to make them come after you. People get fame for a lot of stupid reasons. Find a smarter way without becoming another Hawk Tau girl or the crying Brittany fan. This is an entertainment business. Find a way to be entertaining. Make them come for you and be ready when they do.
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Good voice, loud and clear, and I heard it, Philip David Lee. And everybody heard I hope. Now it's very early in the morning ( for me) here, 08.46. And I'm going to sleep, later I'll write more specifically what I think about it though ''no one has a little interest'' about it. But I'll try anyway )
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The legal thing is more of convenient excuse. The main issue is that industry members are overloaded with stuff they need to read.
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It was the expected answer. Everybody knows, the market is oversaturated. Everyone wants to write something, create, and declare themselves a writer or artist. But let’s be honest—that doesn’t solve anything but the easiest solution - slap on the phrase, “We do not accept unsolicited material,” toss submissions straight into the trash, and wave off these “annoying flies” with one neat sentence. Problem solved! Then, of course, it’s off to grab a beer with your buddy Frank - the guy you’ve known for a century - and buy his utterly talentless script simply because, well, he’s Frank.
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Ella Asvar a solution: there's ways to be Frank
Susan, haha...Yes, I would like and I could. The problem is I'm on another continent, moreover in the other hemisphere, as they say, I'm from the Old World )
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Ella Asvar yes... look at my last name and it might give you a clue that my people are also from Old Country.... but I hear you... I'm in a different world then you are as I live an hour from LA, grew up in LA, forget how any people I know who are well known when I just remember them cheating on my paper in French class.... however, this is a platform to network on and there are others online where you can get your scripts out to people. I have found some success on here and a few other places to move mine forward. It can be very frustrating. Please don't give up. I walked away from Hollywood for 30 years and this year coming back have made some big strides. In my perspective-- there's always a way. And films get made in Turkey too... why we don't speak off this platform and DM each other or set up a zoom at some point? Besides, any time I get an opportunity to make friends with a Turkish person I feel that it can build a bridge of hope between cultures (me being Armenian) after so much strife and pain.
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Thank you for inspiring words, Susan. I'm not Turkish, I've just been living there for a long time and a citizen already. I was born in Russia, mixture of nationalities and Caucasian also, my father is. My mother is Ukrainian, Polish. I brought up on Russian and West culture both. Glad to meet you here
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Dan MaxXx If you think that is equal, I'm not going to explain to you why it is not. It does show an incredible lack of understanding logic and how it works. This lack of understanding could negatively impact your work. This flaw is one of the main creators of plot holes.
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Ella Asvar, be careful about creating narratives like that in your head. People are just busy and have material/writers they already like. That's life. Some of us have been waiting years in line.