Another Doubtful ContestComplications Ensue
Complications Ensue:
The Crafty Screenwriting, TV and Game Writing Blog




Archives

April 2004

May 2004

June 2004

July 2004

August 2004

September 2004

October 2004

November 2004

December 2004

January 2005

February 2005

March 2005

April 2005

May 2005

June 2005

July 2005

August 2005

September 2005

October 2005

November 2005

December 2005

January 2006

February 2006

March 2006

April 2006

May 2006

June 2006

July 2006

August 2006

September 2006

October 2006

November 2006

December 2006

January 2007

February 2007

March 2007

April 2007

May 2007

June 2007

July 2007

August 2007

September 2007

October 2007

November 2007

December 2007

January 2008

February 2008

March 2008

April 2008

May 2008

June 2008

July 2008

August 2008

September 2008

October 2008

November 2008

December 2008

January 2009

February 2009

March 2009

April 2009

May 2009

June 2009

July 2009

August 2009

September 2009

October 2009

November 2009

December 2009

January 2010

February 2010

March 2010

April 2010

May 2010

June 2010

July 2010

August 2010

September 2010

October 2010

November 2010

December 2010

January 2011

February 2011

March 2011

April 2011

May 2011

June 2011

July 2011

August 2011

September 2011

October 2011

November 2011

December 2011

January 2012

February 2012

March 2012

April 2012

May 2012

June 2012

July 2012

August 2012

September 2012

October 2012

November 2012

December 2012

January 2013

February 2013

March 2013

April 2013

May 2013

June 2013

July 2013

August 2013

September 2013

October 2013

November 2013

December 2013

January 2014

February 2014

March 2014

April 2014

May 2014

June 2014

July 2014

August 2014

September 2014

October 2014

November 2014

December 2014

January 2015

February 2015

March 2015

April 2015

May 2015

June 2015

August 2015

September 2015

October 2015

November 2015

December 2015

January 2016

February 2016

March 2016

April 2016

May 2016

June 2016

July 2016

August 2016

September 2016

October 2016

November 2016

December 2016

January 2017

February 2017

March 2017

May 2017

June 2017

July 2017

August 2017

September 2017

October 2017

November 2017

December 2017

January 2018

March 2018

April 2018

June 2018

July 2018

October 2018

November 2018

December 2018

January 2019

February 2019

November 2019

February 2020

March 2020

April 2020

May 2020

August 2020

September 2020

October 2020

December 2020

January 2021

February 2021

March 2021

May 2021

June 2021

November 2021

December 2021

January 2022

February 2022

August 2022

September 2022

November 2022

February 2023

March 2023

April 2023

May 2023

July 2023

September 2023

November 2023

January 2024

February 2024

 

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Q. This contest makes some enticing promises, but I'm not sure it's worth a $40 ENTRY FEE ...
There are very few contests I'd consider legit. The Nicholls, the ABC Fellowship ... competitions sponsored by major showbiz organizations (AMPTP, DGA, WGA), or networks, or studios. Agents take the winners seriously. The fellowships practically set you up with a career.

The rest are, I feel, junk. The economics of script competitions are just too good for the people organizing them. With a $40 entry fees and awards in the low thousands, how many entries do you need to break even? How much does it cost to get someone to skim a script and decide it's not going on the short list? I think a lot of people are organizing script competitions to make money.

I also find script competitions suspicious in general because what's the point? There already is a script competition. It's called "getting your movie made." There are no entry fees to this competition, and the prize is, you get your movie made. (That should mean at least $100,000 in cash and offers to write other stuff, not to mention you get your movie made.) Producers deciding whether to invest two years in getting your movie made are making a hard, honest judgment. Juries are deciding, in the abstract, which are the "best" or "best-written" scripts. That's not an honest judgment.

Competitions have all these "quarterfinals" and "semi-finals" so the max number of competitors have something to put on their resumes. It's like getting three out of four strawberries on a one-armed bandit. It gets your hopes up, but it doesn't get you where you want to be.

I suppose getting an award at a competition gives your script a bit of an advantage if it's something that's hard to describe in a few words. An agent might be more willing to read your script if it's a finalist somewhere. But how many winning scripts would have got picked up anyway, without winning a contest?

But I'd rather you focus your energies on coming up with great hooks. Any agent, and any good producer, will read a script with a great hook, for free.

Labels:

5 Comments:

It was this same skepticism that led me to conceive of the Cowrite contest, www.cowritescript.com.

I wanted to create a contest that was both cost effective to join ($10 per 10 page entry) and whose ultimate goal was to actually get the community-sourced screenplay sold and produced.

Partnering with Benderspink also allows the winning writers to potentially further their own careers.

I hope you'll check it out. Thanks.

By Blogger toddsoffian, at 10:06 PM  

So, most contest are out there for money. One thing I've been particularly interested in is Script Coverage (ex. "ScriptXpert").

They push it like crazy in the magazines and at the Expo, but is it actually worth dishing out $200 to get someone to read your script?

By Blogger Adriano Ariganello, at 2:03 AM  

Depends on who's giving you comments. Delivering notes is a skill and a talent like writing scripts. There's a wide range in performance.

By Blogger Alex Epstein, at 8:02 AM  

Might it be different for TV writing competitions as opposed to movie screenplay competitions? With one, you're trying to sell yourself, gain a rep; the other, you're just trying to sell your script. Surely any tiny credit to a spec pilot or series spec would stand the budding TV writer in good stead. Or am I just being naive?

By Blogger Unknown, at 7:23 PM  

Awhile ago, I read an interesting thread of blog entries about science fiction/genre contests and awards working to legitimize/receive recognition for a genre. Another interesting aspect of that thread was the guidelines and the merits of the winners worked to get legitimation (sp?).

Just another viewpoint, even though TV and movie writing certainly have legitimacy, but what genres of the writing. And, of course, winning or placing in a prestigious contest would certainly help to catch the eye of someone that takes the contest seriously.

By Blogger The_Lex, at 10:51 PM  

Post a Comment

Back to Complications Ensue main blog page.



This page is powered by Blogger.