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Script Reader spills his guts PT2
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CHARACTER, OR: WOW, THERES CHARACTERS ARE AWESOME!... NOT
Just like dialogue what we’ve all heard before, you have to be careful not to write characters that we’ve all seen before. Sure, there are some exceptions. Often, particular genres like comedy. But in most other genres, producers and agents like to see characters that bring fresh dimensions to the page. Roles that you know are just fat enough for actors to think “ I’d love to play this character…”.
It’s worth doing, just look up scripts where you’ve loved the characters, and see what qualities they bring to the role. More often than not, they bring admirable qualities. Even characters that we love to hate, somewhere along the line, have qualities in them that make them likeable to the audience. That’s the key to locking down an actor in a role. Make the character irresistible. Make them challenging. Make them compelling. Make them dimensional. Make them so attractive no actor can say farewell to them.
HOW A READER CAN ONLY DO SO MUCH
A lot of what goes on when reading a script is in general, subjective. Sure, you can catch a reader on a bad day (sorry buddy, my foul mood has struck you out already) or alternatively, a good day (you are one lucky SOB). One reader has different tastes from another. What one reader might like about a script, another one could hate. And on goes the vicious cycle of hate/love of a script under review.
But when all is said and done, and that rubber stamp is thumped down on the coverage leaving the print CONSIDER behind in blood ink, the script moves up to the next level of the Donkey Kong game, and the script is subject to another read and series of hard questions asked about the elements of the Story. It’s at this next phase of evaluation, that the new reader can be prone to all of the above failures. Maybe you caught them on a bad day, or was it a good day. Sometimes they have other projects going on, demanding more attention, thus the script is merely “glazed over”. Sometimes they just don’t get why they are reading a script.
One thing is for sure though, liking or hating a script is a subjective experience. And sometimes that first reader can only do so much. Your job as a writer though, is to make it so it doesn’t just appeal to one person – but that it appeals to all those in the chain of command. Heck, I never said it was easy. Did I?
A SERIOUS FAQ: YOUR COVER LETTER
A lot of people get really confused on what should be written in a ‘cover letter’ that attaches that script. And having seen a good few in my time, from rookie writers, to semi-writers, to even represented writers with the letter head ICM, CAA, WMA, etc, at the top, they should all have the same info on them:
- A greeting (personal one) and a brief line about thanking them for requesting your material.
- A logline of the script, with a mention of the genre.
- If it applies to you, details about scripts in production/made/competitions won related to screenwriting/and training in screenwriting or writing (like BAHon or MFA etc)
- All your contact details (name, address, phone number, email etc)
And that is more than enough. Including a long four page synopsis of your script is redundant. Including a four page list of your other great screenplays is redundant. Just get in there and get out and get them reading your script. A cover letter shouldn’t bore, it should simply inform the development exec that your script has arrived, was requested, and a simple reminder (logline) what your script is about.
REMEMBER FOLKS - ALL THEY WANT IS A GREAT STORY!
It really is that simple. When a reader /producer /agent receives a script, they hope to spend the next few hours in sheer bliss, being entertained to the nines. And leave an impression in their mind that in no question – this will make a great movie (and investment). You know it yourself when you’ve read a great script. That it stands head-and-shoulders over a lot of what you’ve read/seen recently. It’s like love at first sight. You know it just feels right. So if there is any elements in your script that feel ‘not right’, then there’s a fat chance your subconscious’s is trying to tell you something.
Listen to yourself - listen to people around you. And when you’ve exhausted all the cards in the game called ‘re-writing’, then submit. A fact about most screenplays, is that most are sent off to the production house when they are not ready. And like a man who’s forced into fighting a war without training – he hasn’t a chance. So do me a favour, and yourself, and give your script every fighting chance it has…
EJ Pennypacker
EJ acts as a Story Consultant to many people, and has optioned several feature works of his own, aside from of course, acting as a Script Reader for a few NYC motion picture companies.
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