Screenwriting

Congratulations on the requests!

That's the stuff! Let's hear it for the writers who earned those script requests and those meeting requests!

My thoughts - you asked about thematic clarity.

Para One

We know you are alluding to Nazi ideologies of totalitarianism, extreme nationalism, racism, and anti-Semitism, but its roots were hardly ancient, they were Prussian - or have you invented a new ancient ideology which is what the story is about? It would be the Third Reich which they inherited as the Fourth hasn't happened.

Para Two is fine - I like it a lot.

David Taylor really appreciate you taking the time to dig into this.

To clarify Para One: the protagonist (Aliza Warsowski) is Polish-Jewish and culturally modernized, not Hasidic. Her identity matters, but it isn’t her only defining trait — which is intentional. She’s a person first, whose heritage becomes unavoidable once the ideology she uncovers directly targets it. She’s also from a suburban town in New Jersey, Lyndhurst.

You’re right to flag the wording around “ancient.” I’m not suggesting Nazism itself is ancient, but that the human impulses it feeds on — cruelty, supremacy, inherited power — are as old as recorded history. The story treats the Third Reich as a modern manifestation of something far older, rather than a closed historical chapter.

The “Fourth Reich” language is meant to be provocative, not literal — a thematic inheritance rather than a historical claim. That tension is very much part of what the story is interrogating.

Glad Para Two landed — that’s reassuring. Thanks again for the thoughtful critique.

— Matt-E

Thanks. Although Nazism was constructed by Hitler, I do like the idea of a fictional device or culture which says it was more ancient than that. Anyhow - best of luck with the story.

Unique concept, Matthew Wach. I like that the story starts small and grows into something bigger. I can see audiences liking this movie. It's about things people deal with/have dealt with for years.

“What is the actual asset I’m creating — and does it behave like one?” I don't understand these questions. Can you give an example of what would differentiate a regular screenplay from an asset, and how an asset would behave?

Great question, Ryan. Here’s the short version.

A regular screenplay is just a document — a story on the page.

An asset is a screenplay with:

- clear ownership

- defined rights

- a stable identity

- predictable behavior in deals

Example:

Two writers have the same script.

- Writer A has a PDF.

- Writer B has a clean chain‑of‑title, defined rights, and a project identity.

Producers can use Writer B’s script because it behaves like an asset.

Writer A’s script is just a story — harder to protect, sell, or finance.

So the upstream question is:

Are you creating a story, or something the industry can actually transact with?

TRUE - Every screenplay is started because of a clever idea or story needing told.

TRUE - The method of building is research, experience, imagination and writing.

TRUE - Building a screenplay is very technical and requires learning the craft.

TRUE - A completed screenplay of good story etc. and properly presented has value.

TRUE - A completed screenplay is Intellectual Property, and its value has asset rights

TRUE - An asset can be sold, traded, bargained for, swapped, altered and improved.

TRUE - The screenplay asset does NOT have behavior, people have behavior.

TRUE - A screenplay story produced for screen is NEVER EVER told by the author alone.

TRUE - The screenplay therefore becomes a Project involving many moving parts.

TRUE - You don't need to think about your screenplay as an asset - just write it.

After somebody buys it, there are a great many examples of screenplay stories and their projects becoming unstable of identity - but happily this does not apply to the majority, and in most cases the writer/builder was already paid, and he/she has written more.

CAVEAT - If you think of your completed screenplay as your precious little baby nobody is allowed to touch, be aware that the mortality rate for that delusion is 110%

Hi Patrick, I just stopped by to say hello and Happy 2026. My holiday break only served as a reminder that I am addicted to my writing. Having sent family back to whence they came, I’ve occupied my study with an electric fan heater, and made another attempt to finish my 3rd/4th books. They are currently conjoined. I need to select a dividing line with a suitable closure for book 3.

Incidentally, I was just wondering, I have pitched books 1 and 2 already, for a TV series. Will I ever get a reply, even if it’s not a good one?

Beverly Thompson Happy 2026 to you too! I can tell by "having sent my family back to whence they came" that you know your way around prose, so I bet your books are at the right level developmentally. As for pitching, if you mean here at Stage 32, the date of the pitch (not the date you signed up for the pitch slot) is the start of their review, and they have 3 weeks to assess and score you, providing feedback and an outcome (pass, request, etc.). One thing I noticed when I first started pitching was the Stage32 emails have a tendency to go straight to spam, even after I mark them "not spam", so I keep the pitch "receipt" window up that shows the progress bar, and refresh it every day. I've found that's the fastest way to see any changes.

If you're working outside of Stage 32, or pitching execs directly, there isn't a timeframe so to speak, but usually 2-3 months. This is also true in Stage 32 pitches where they request your work after the pitch. They get 3 weeks for the pitch, but can take months if they're reviewing the actual project.

Thank you @Elle Bolan! I love developing concepts because the sky is always the limit and it's when the possibilities are wide open.

Happy New Year Patrick Koepke ! It sounds like you struck the perfect balance, rest is absolutely part of the creative process. Coming back to the page with a fresh mind and a new seasonal concept is a fantastic way to start the year.

I appreciate it Sam Rivera . I definitely agree. Creativity needs space to breathe sometimes.

I guess I'd better bite the bullet and pitch Lunar Window early February ^^;

I work on another project(s), network, pitch, watch webinars, read scripts, etc., Holly Fouche.

Holly Fouche Hi Holly - I would love to her how this goes for you. I am also adopting this as a daily activity and am curious how to best go about it so that it produces responses. I am happy to discuss approaches and strategies and outcomes.

I have a full-time job, but I also work on other projects, starting production on a project, trying to make contacts, editing,...

Congratulations on completing your first feature! That's always such a good feeling. The drive to just make it is so relatable to a lot of people. Finding hope in the mundane... That's how life is, right? Congratulations again. I can't wait to see what comes of it.

Congratulations on finishing your first feature script, Hermina Orcsik! I like the title! When the Door Opens sounds incredible! What really hooked me is "especially those who have had to rebuild their lives from nothing."

Elle Bolan

Thank you so much — this truly means a lot to me.

Finding hope in the mundane was exactly what I wanted to explore, because that’s where real strength often lives.

I really appreciate you taking the time to read and share your thoughts.

Maurice Vaughan Thank you so much.

This story is also about me. I built my life from nothing, and I know what it feels like to be at the very bottom.

With this film, my goal is to give hope to women and mothers who are where I once was — to remind them that even from the darkest place, a new beginning is possible.

You're welcome, Hermina Orcsik. Congratulations! That's really impressive and inspiring! I hope you reach your goal! I'm looking forward to watching When the Door Opens!

Maurice Vaughan I started working on the story board for my zombie short film. It's just something I want to do to get a better understanding of the process. So far, it's fun!

I'm rooting for you to set a goal and reach it, Sallie Olson!

I'm looking forward to seeing your zombie short film, David Horton! I've been thinking about making storyboards for my scripts/hiring someone to make them. I'll probably try to make them.

Maurice Vaughan I bought a sketchbook and divided the pages into 3 panels, so I'm free-handing everything right now.

Great idea, David Horton. I never thought about using a sketchbook for storyboards. Thanks.

Don't beat yourself up. Take the constructive criticism and keep going. No matter what always, always believe in yourself because if you dont why should anybody else? Lastly be reminded that some of the greatest movies/scripts of all time were turned down by so many productions that now regret it!!! God bless

You're doing great. The indie film producer who read my script said, "The first half is boring. Who would want to see this? Start your story on page 60."

Translation: Page 60, where the hero gets stabbed. Skip the love story. Nobody wants to see that.

Shamila Habibi connect with the success team here at Stage 32 they will guide you with your current work. Don't give up on it yet, with all the work you have put into this script. There is so much help here in Stage 32 you are not alone with your work.

I'd be happy to read it and offer my own advice. I find the Blacklist to be hard critiques, but also, they can point to some very strong issues. The issue I have with their 'evaluations' is they're highly subjective and often not as informative on how to address the issues.

Do you know who did the evaluation or was it just some nameless entity. Everyone has an opinion, but one never knows the level of expertise the evaluator has. We also have to deal with humans which is a very inconsistent variable. Does the evaluator even like the genre you're writing in? Do they have any proof they even know what they're talking about? Do you have to pay again for them to evaluate your rewrite? If these guys were really trying to help producers find the best screenplays, they would evaluate them for free, hook you up with the best producer and take a cut off the deal that eventually develops.

Every score you received was a 5 or above with your highest scores being for Premise and Setting. Your Characters and Dialogue got 5 &6 while you're plot got a 4. Now you don't go into any examples of what they found "wrong" with your screenplay so it's hard to tell if they are right or just morons. Personally, these scores mean nothing to me when you haven't established a scale. It's like a doctor asking you on a scale of 1-10, how much pain are you in? If the Oscars are any gauge, there are no standards of excellence.

Just remember that every screenplay that goes into production comes with a budget and it has strict goals attached to that budget. Not that it seems like modern day investors are interested in making a profit these days, but you still have to go by the assumption that they want to see a favorable return on their investment.

So when you look at your story with a critical eye, ask yourself 1) Did I write something entertaining? 2) What would be a reasonable budget for this story? 3) Figure for every million dollars they spend on the budget, they need at least 300,000 ticket sales at an average ticket price of $10.78 per ticket. 4) Lastly, is it a film, when completed by a competent cast and crew, that will warrant multiple viewings by the same person?

Writing a screenplay can be a daunting task that sometimes we blaze through it just to get it done. We can take pride that we finished it, but ultimately it has to come down to if your story, as you envisioned it, has generational legs. Can anyone really evaluate that and if they could, what are they working for Black List for and not writing their own screenplay masterpiece? Don't take what these "experts" have to say too seriously. With all the multi-million dollar failures in 2025, these "expert" are more times than not, talking out of their collective rumps.

Screenwriters just can't be writers alone. They have to know how to position their work so that it's a no-brainer to the elites that don't always use their brains. Have faith in what you created otherwise these so-called experts will continue to take you to the cleaners.