Screenwriting : When job leads dry up by G.R. Barnett

You don't. Your writing speaks for itself. Your writing dictates your pay. If you haven't mastered the art of screenwriting, the art of storytelling, and dramatic writing, there's much homework to be done. Much. Hope this helps :)

G.R.

If I had a dollar for every happy-talking flake I've ever dealt with in the music, real estate, literary and screenwriting industries, I'd be a thousandaire. Until you have something on paper, and even then, it's very difficult to squeeze shekels out of "industry folks".

A few years back, I had a European director contact me. He said out of 100 scripts he read on ISA, mine was by far the best. He enthusiastically stated he wanted to work with me on an idea he had for a film about the sex trade in Istanbul. I vetted this guy out and watched a short film he had recently completed with a well-known international actor. The film was high quality and demonstrated loads of ability. So, I said, "Okay, let's put together and agreement." It was for what I considered a very reasonable fee for writing a screenplay and subsequent rewrite. The agreement was based on standard WGW option contracts. However, the fee I was offering was significantly lower than WGA standards. Now, I offered to let him modify anything he didn't like; but what he really wanted, was to gladly pay me Tuesday, for a hamburger today. And, this guy went running for whatever hills are near his house. My time was wasted, primarily putting together an option agreement. However, any time put forth to nail someone down to a deal, is time well spent.

If you want to make money writing screenplays, you must be prepared to kiss a lot of frogs before you meet your prince or princess. But if they're not willing to put up, then ferreting out their true intentions via negotiations and written agreements, is a good way to get them to shut up. Finally, if you can come to an agreement, always get some money up front.

Finally, job leads come and go. You should equate it to searching for water in the desert. Make the best of the water you find. When that's gone, keep digging until you find more. Water is scare out in the desert.

When I ran my own video production company, people would frequently ask me if I could go film this event, or that event. Sure thing, it's £100 per hour I'm at the event (plus 50% of that fee per hour of travelling to the location if far away) and that gets you a final product including all editing and final cut. The people who appreciate the work wouldn't quibble. They would agree the payment (only once did I have someone after the event complain about the invoice - just once! And they wanted substantial changes to the music and everything else as well!) and away we'd go. One guy wanted me to film his brother's stag party. I requested details of where it was and how long they'd want me there for. They suggested about five hours and, as it was local, I informed them it would be £500. They baulked at the figure. "I was expecting around £50!" He said. "That's how much it would cost me to do it!" He suggested. "That's fine. But you won't get my experience in filming and editing, my camera, my operational and event experience (knowing where to be and when to film), my kit to produce the final edit, my licencing for using music in the soundtrack, and a final product that you can watch again and again." I told him. If you hire a plumber, you don't complain at his charges because you're buying his experience, his training, his tools, his knowledge, certifications, etc. It's only in the creative professions where people seem to expect you to work for nothing to help them achieve their goals. So, ask away. :-)

Happens all the time. Part of the business and the result of many scars if you're not prepared. As usual Dan MaxXx offers great advice.

Low payments/no payments/Let's-See-How-Little-We-Can-Get-Them-For is a sad reality for writers who aren't working in a Writer's Guild situation. Sorry to hear that you went through one of those scenarios, and I hope you have better luck in the future.

It was really a cruel thing to do because I had been hoping to be able to get this job and keep my other one and be able to recuperate from the hell that is my life currently. (Long story.) I guess my next question is, what is a good ballpark starting figure? That is the one thing they don't teach you in film school is how to put a value on your work.

LOL, Dan MaxXx, I would totally demand they pawn the watches if I had seen this person, as it is, it's all online.

-G.R.B.

G.R.: A lot of folks will tell you many different things. This is just my opinion. But here are some things you might wish to consider:

1. Who is the party your dealing with?

2. What is there track record and do that have the ability to raise money to fund a project?

3. What is your time worth? Are you looking to cut a fat hog or pay your bills? Bear in mind, you have a right to paid for your work.

4. There are thousands of writer's out there answering ads and pitching work. Though, there are lots of "producers" in the ether saying they want to make a movie, most of them don't want to pay you up front. Therefore, you should be focusing your attention of work for hire situations where they say they're paying something up front. If they're not, then look for something else.

5. You are more likely to find a work for hire writing a screenplay with a subject/genre a producer wants. In other words, you answer an add like the one I saw a few years back looking for a Buddy Rich biopic. Scoring a gig like this is easier than selling your spec script.

6. If you're looking for a figure to charge for writing a script, that's for you to decide what you can live with. And don't let your writing buddies shame you into trying to charge twenty grand, which you have a snowball's chance in hell of getting. If you can write a first draft spec script working full time, in two weeks, then decide how much you want to make for each week. If you want to make two grand per week, then charge your client four thousand for a first draft and then maybe twelve hundred for a rewrite. Again, you need to decide what your time is worth and then realize you're competing against a large pool of people that may work for less.

This does happen all the time. My advice? Don't dwell on it and second guess yourself. Just move on. The reason why they stopped communicating probably had nothing to do with you. Sometimes an empty inbox is just an empty inbox.

Your value - or anyone's value - is quite simply what the market will bear, with "market" referring to each unique writing opportunity.

There is a lot of guesswork/posturing/negotiation in trying to determine what a non-WGA member can receive on any type of media project - from shorts to features, from ULB films to plays, and from new media projects to ghostwriting novels.

It isn't until I know (or partially know) the specifics of any type of writing gig - needs, budget, etc. - that I can ask a price. I know that there is a lot of competition for writing gigs that I've done this year (playwriting, comedy writing, business writing and book editing), and that buyers sometimes are trying to do things on shoestring/low budgets. Some simply accept the lowest price from a writer with some type of credibility. Some try to lowball as much as they can. Some pay good amounts that a writer would deem to be fair/more-than-fair, all things considered.

So again...it's all about what the market will bear. And also keep in mind that there is an oversupply of writers in all fields of writing - even at the highest level of writing, where something like half of the WGA members didn't have any reported writing income in the last few WGA annual reports. Good luck!

Okay well, it's good to know I was right in asking the budget then. Because they didn't tell me the budget, nor how many episodes they would need, just that they needed the episodes done quickly. I'm all for getting it done but when I barely know what the premise is about or how many episodes they need then I think it's rather unfair that they just ghosted me rather than telling me "Hold that thought, the budget is not secure yet." If they had just said something like that I would totally understand and wouldn't have been expecting anything.

Back to ye olde drawing board. I'm beginning to think I should just work customer service for the rest of my life and completely give up.

-G.R.B.

Uncle Phil, forgive me, I'm going through every kind of problem in my personal life that fate can throw at me. If my post smacks of a pity party, well, sorry. I'm just very weary and this little tidbit was the last thing I needed. (P.S. How do you make line breaks on this forum?)

-G.R.B.

Hey GRB

If this helps let me share that we have all gone through it, going through it and it wont end any time soon unless you find that sweet spot and everything falls in place. But till then, these hard lessons will be your only guide to glory.

I am of the firm belief that not talking about money or asking the right questions (Is the budget secured?) right at the beginning is a big mistake because no matter how you articulate it, the foot prints of desperation become evident to the other person on the table very soon and a drop of disrespect (not keeping you in the loop after a great 1st meeting is just that) and exploitation begins.

Think of such meetings as a blind date but for work... and apply all the rules that apply for blind dates for romance except playing hard-to-get, the rest will apply fairly well.

For starters, would you go on a second date with someone who wasn't forth coming enough on the first date? They dont have to lay it all out but there are certain info-exchanges that are mandatory, aren't there?

Don't invest enough in the first meeting but let the project lead know that you are excited to work with them provided a few check boxes in your mind get ticked in that meeting. so on and so forth.

More often than not I have found that they respect and reciprocate more if they notice that you take your work very seriously and they learn to respect those red lines very early in that relationship. If they are intimidated or find it aggressive it isn't going to go far anyway.

I am not advising just sharing what I have applied and worked with and after the initial anguish I have found, peace of mind and respect irrespective of those first meetings converting in to paychecks. Hope that helps. All the best and keep trying.

Maybe it was premature to get into the money part of the conversation. Who knows. Maybe you could have said, "Let me know when you are ready to move forward and discuss deal terms." In any case, all any of us can do is try to make the best decision at the time that we have to make a decision. Then try to move on with no regrets because you did the best that you could do.

GR, You haven't done anything wrong and 'uncle Phil' is being a bit of a jerk on this. Just consider that you dodged a bullet. If they don't want to discuss money then they haven't bloody got any and they would have screwed you more ways than you can imagine.

GRB: Sorry, if my last remark was insensitive. I've deleted it. I hope things get better for you soon.

I believe I ran across the statement in Lent's Breakfast with Sharks that in show biz the only Yes is "Yes" in writing; everything else is No.

I'll go one farther A.S. - the only "yes" is when the check clears!