Hey, folks!
Happy Easter! We wanted to give everyone a quick Get Repped Now update.
But first, our animator Mohammad Ali Sharifpour has done it again with our new Get Repped Now cartoon. Mohammad was key animator on To Your Last Death, and since then we’ve done 6 other animated projects with him. An amazing talent. Check it out below!
We’re now a little over two weeks in to Get Repped Now, and I’m happy to report we have not fallen majorly behind yet! This year we put new procedures into place to help ensure that those who enter early will get their analyses back in a timely fashion. Today we even had our first resubmission. Of course, we will fall way behind as we approach the deadline. But for now, take advantage.
A couple of quick observations of what we’re seeing so far:
The biz. Things are in a bit of tumult at the moment, in part due to holdover effects of the strikes. Scripts are going out, but things have tightened up a bit both in TV and features. Many agents and managers are not really reading; they are just trying to find work for their clients.
This may actually work out for Get Repped Now, because we don’t send out anything until the fall. By then, hopefully things will have settled back to normal and we will have a proper fall spec season.
Submissions. No considers yet. Two near misses though!
One thing I have noticed is the resubmission of a few scripts we’ve been seeing for five years or more. While I admire the stick-to-it-iveness, and we certainly believe in doing as many drafts as it takes, there comes a time to take the brush off the canvas – especially if that is your only script.
Reps don’t generally sign someone off a single sample. They need to see two (or more) at that same level, demonstrating that you can create at a high level consistently. So much though we are always happy to take another look at your material, past a certain point it may be diminishing returns. That creative energy may be best invested in something new.
Voice. Several scripts have come in where the story is solid, but the way it’s told perhaps lacks a certain zing. That pizzazz on the page, your style, your je nais sais quoi, excites readers and creates passionate advocates.
We could fill a whole book on the topic, but here are three quick hacks that may help.
Study Scripts. I mean, pretty obvious, right? Look at how great writers convey the story on the page–the flourishes, the tricks they use, how they keep certain things hidden so there’s always a surprise or a reveal. Many pro-level writers employ a super lean, mean style – the opposite of a novelistic approach.
Now we’re not telling you to crib other writer’s style, but… get inspired.
Here’s a link to 20 great horror scripts. And if horror isn’t your bag, a quick web search will certainly hook you up.
Supercharge your Verbiage. Carefully scrutinize what you’ve written, every sentence, looking for deadwood that can get the axe. In particular, really consider the verbs. Are they the punchiest, most captivating choices? If you characters just walk, talk and sit, you may need a shot of sizzle. There are many punchier options than these boring, overused verbs.
Bring the Subtext. We’ve hit the subtext topic hard here over the years, and that’s because it is often the key difference between a pro writer and everyone else. Subtext means there’s more going on in a scene than the dialogue conveys. This can be indicated via body language, sarcasm, acting, etc. Deceptively difficult, subtext is one of those things all of us use every day, but get it on the page? Faggeddabout it.
Check out this article and then challenge yourself to go back through your script and add the meaning beneath the words. Watch your scenes come to life.
Go get ’em, folks.
Jim C.
Hi Jim
Thank you for the link to my article. You give good advice too. Especially reading. Most would-be screenwriters read far too little. I shock people by recommending three scripts a week for a year! And that’s probably a minimum. Do you think Aaron Sorkin didn’t read like a madman? It shows in every line.
And spot on with not sitting on a script for too long. (A mistake I certainly made in the early days). You learn so much more from writing the next five scripts than you will from eternally polishing the first.
Very best
Charles
Thanks so much, Charles! Your article is one of our main go-tos. We send it to writers all the time. Thanks for much for the sage counsel and being a beacon in the dark. As I often tell folks, subtext is one of those things that seems like it should be easy. We all use it all the time without even thinking. But once we start writing, we revert back to “term paper” mentality and adopt this odd, formal, and overly expository way of writing that is staggeringly unnatural. It’s bizarre that we have to retrain our brains to use subtext in our screenplays, but we do. Cheers to you! Jim C.