Screenwriting : Tough to sell or pitch a drama? by Kamala Lane

I'm hoping to answer the question instructively... Thus, may I ask you, Kamala, which recent movies fall into the straight drama category and have had global box office success? Can we please see where your answer takes the discussion? If you're not comfortable answering, no worries.

Well, your friends aren't wrong. Dramas are hard sells and wartime Dramas are even harder just because we went thru 4-5 years where the market was saturated with them and only 2-3 were even mildly successful. So, it not only has to be a true story but it also needs an interesting hook. Tango Foxtrot whatever - the Tina Fey movie - tried to do something new and bombed (no pun intended). And that was based on a successful book. So, yea, a straight wartime drama about friendship that isn't based on successful IP, is probably a very hard sell. So you have to know how best to pitch that to make it sound commercial. And you need to make sure you come off as the expert of your story.

@Regina - Whiplash, American Sniper, The Fighter, Spotlight, although I'm not totally sure how they did globally

Hey Kamala, I have to out myself and admit that I have yet to see Whiplash. Blush!! Pardon my quick reply. American Sniper was based on a NY Times bestselling autobiography. It's a war biopic. Spotlight is associated with a Pulitzer Prize, which The Boston Globe was awarded. It's also based on biographical events. It's heavily rooted in investigative journalism and investigative drama. The Fighter is also a biographical drama with a strong sports action element. I believe Whiplash has a strong music element. It's the only one of the 4 examples that is wholly fictional. Giving precise genre classification to movies is a bit of an art, not a science. But based on the genre/subgenre classification and biopic/true story elements, I would say that at least 3 of those movies aren't solely dramas. Whiplash is perhaps the only straight drama. As you can know, the NY Times bestseller status, the Pulitzer Prize, and the true story certainly help get a script set up and eventually, the movie made. American Sniper has Clint Eastwood telling Warner Bros that he wants to make the movie. The Fighter has David O. Russell telling TWC that he wants to make the movie. Spotlight took about 8 years of blood, sweat, and tears; it had Tom McCarthy and an incredibly well-respected, Oscar-nominated producer in Steve Golin trying to get the movie made. Tom McCarthy had been a sought after writer/director since The Station Agent premiered at Sundance. The short film version of Whiplash won the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance. The bar is really high for drama. Whiplash wasn't a global box office hit, but it's certainly considered an overall success story. The others overperformed at the box office. But when the bar is that high, producers see a steep hill to climb. You've given great examples, though I wouldn't say the examples are actually best classified as straight dramas (i.e. without a strong subgenre). Those examples aren't solely dramas, right? If I have time later, I'll try to add to this very imperfect reply.

Sounds like they are hoping to find new IP to exploit. That is tough to create.

It s a movie, it s gotta be entertaining! "Dear John" was a love story, straight drama but the filmmakers made sure to add "war scenes" because "war" sells to audiences. If you believe your script is great, go after Actors and "younger" directors. Attach Talent with your script. Bradley Cooper, Tina Fey, Walberg- they are Superstars and have their own entourage of Writers/Directors and movie projects lined up for the next 3-4 years. Find the second tier talent like the next Channing Tatum, Michael B Jordan.

Good info, all. Right now this story is very important to me. It seems as though war stories with female service members are starting to pick up. Reese Witherspoon's prodco has something in the works and an HBO miniseries of that ilk is coming down the pipeline. But yes, those projects also are based on books. (Everything's IP!) Also I'm a vet, however my script is fiction, so the plot and high intensity scenes didn't happen to me. Other folks I pitched to responded very well to my pitch. It was one guy who mentioned the straight drama and it struck me as good intel and I wanted to know more.

@DanMaxx Never pictured myself going after talent or promising directors. I'll think about working that into my plan.

Kamala Thats part of the job, hustling. U bring talent, names, to the table and your scripts end up on Producers' desks than the trash icon on computers. Thats how I sold my script to Lions Gate; Eva Longoria put her name on my project.

I wouldn't worry about tailoring your work to fit the tastes and opinions of one or even several different producers. You constantly hear producers' stories of how they regret passing on a project that went on to become huge hit films. Conversely, you also hear stories from writers and filmmakers whose projects were passed on by "every studio in Hollywood except [blank]" and that their perseverance paid off once the film was actually made. If you have a project you truly believe in, keep submitting it until you find a studio, producer or filmmaker that can see it for what it is.

@Kamala - thank you for your service to our country.

Kamala, research High Concept. Basically, it means that in your pitch you should try to highlight those tentpole scenes...the scenes that will cost a lot of money and be in the 60 second trailer that will draw people to pay to see the film at the box office. It means he liked your movie, but in a pitch weave the drama into the draw. In your pitch, paint that 60 second trailer. What and who is in it and why is this story compelling enough to spend my $12 on it instead of the cheesie comedy or the romance on a Friday night. Gee, I think I need to take my own advice!

Just happened to stumble across this article after reading your post. Hope it helps! http://www.scriptmag.com/features/drama-genre-tough-sell

@Jim - Yes! I just completed my mentorship in this program last month. Such a remarkable opportunity to get guidance from folks who know what they're talking about because they are working writers and made some great connections, got some cool perks around town. It's become quite fashionable for the industry to offer opportunities to vets. There's also a great org called Veterans in Film and TV. Thanx for ur service.

Ms. Lane. How you doing? You have a wealth of information in front of you. Have you try pitching it for cable?

^ The folks I pitched so far have relationships with movie studios and cable networks. I'm open to any opportunity that arises.

I like your positive attitude.

Write the kind of movies you pay to see every week at the cinema... And if you look at the top 5 films every weekend, you'll have an idea of what kind of movies get made... and what kind of movies the people who buy tickets want to see. Not much straight drama in there until we hit Oscar season - and still probably not much in the top 5 films. But maybe in the top 10 or 20 films right before Oscars. If you are going to the cinema every week - you've noticed that. But every film (okay, most films) is Drama Plus. A drama at its core, wearing the clothes of some genre. I'm working on a book on the BOURNE movies, now - and the first film is an action packed thriller... with a drama at its core. This guy has amnesia, and in his quest to find out who he is, begins to discover that he is not a nice guy. He needs to know who he is, but every new piece of information makes him dislike himself more... and struggles with that. So we end up with a dramatic story where a character realizes they may be a bad person and wants to change that... with car chases and hand-to-hand fight scenes. It's Drama Plus. The key is to not just be drama, but add the plus element. The plus element is what sells the tickets, and the drama is what makes us care and feel and maybe even cry. You aren't just going to write one script, you're going to write a huge stack of scripts... so if they're telling you that this one is a hard sell... just write a bunch more which aren't.

All of the above information is true, but you might also want to adjust whom you're pitching to. Look for producers who are looking for what you're selling (i.e. produced a drama).

Dramas might be a tough sell right now. I am producing a romantic comedy right now and finding investors has not been easy. You just have to keep looking for producers that like and want to make dramas.

Thanx y'all. I'll keep at it. Got a request to read the script which is cool so I'm finishing up a polish before sending it out. Anxious to look for other opportunities to pitch it and get cracking on my next idea.