A couple of weeks ago, we wrote a column about all of the people who take a bite out of your awesome spec sale. Your agent takes 10% so does your manager; the lawyer charges a million dollars/hour or takes 5%, depending on how established you are and how big the deal is, and so…
DOOM and GLOOM. That’s what 2025 has been for the movie and TV biz so far. US box office has been nothing short of catastrophic, with the only ray of light coming from (egad) The Minecraft Movie. TV writing jobs are down a whopping 42% from last year. Panicky reps have been wondering how to…
Writers are often worried about someone stealing their idea. So let’s parse out what we should worry about, what we shouldn’t worry about, and how we can protect ourselves. Let’s say you’ve got this killer marketable idea and it sings on the page. Great! If you send it out to someone, will they steal it from…
March 17th through May 31st 2025 We’ve gotten hundreds of writers read by our management panels, which has resulted in over 80 meetings, writers working with managers on developing new material, writers signed to agencies and management companies, and even a big spec sale — when manager Jake Wagner sold writer Brandon Barker’s script “Nottingham…
There’s a whole hidden infrastructure in Hollywood devoted to tracking and scoring Open Assignments. Come get some. (Note: This article was originally published in 2019, and some of the people mentioned have moved on.) It’s not just about specs. The vast majority of a working screenwriter’s income often comes from assignments. We spoke…
What the heck is “voice”? Do I need it? Can I buy a bag at Costco? Read on… By Jim Cirile You’d probably guess that we read a fair amount of scripts here at CI. But you may not suspect how few of them display one crucial factor to help your writing grab…
Screenwriter Jay Adams’ affordable feature drama TITAN blew us away with its impressive dialogue and strong characterizations. An award-winning writer, Adams’ distinctive storytelling and unique perspective as a Queer creator have earned him critical acclaim and numerous accolades. “With ‘Titan,’” said Adams, “I set out to weave a family drama rich with depth and a…
Twenty years ago, Creative Screenwriting magazine published my article below. I thought it would be fun to revisit it and see what (if anything) has changed in the last two decades. So here’s the original piece, mostly intact. Things which are no longer relevant have been edited out, and I have added new commentary in…
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….
“Fealty” Screenwriter Joe Marino Caught the Eye of Schemers Entertainment We’re delighted to report that Joe Marino has signed with managers Gavin and David Binns from Schemers Entertainment as part of our Get Repped Now promotion. Marino’s Southern Gothic horror/thriller screenplay FEALTY was an intense, slow-burn page-turner, The script received a “consider” for both…