How to get noticed in 2012

Richard Alan Phipps · Jan 8, 2012

I believe the sticky at the top of the forum list, relating to opportunities and contests, is largely outdated at this point. I know many people venture to this particular forum because they've got the next great script worth millions... but they just don't know what to do next.

So here is the question. It's 2012 and I've got the next great script. My logline and synopsis are itching to be read by a professional. Where do I go to find a hungry talent manager/agent? I can query dozens of available agents seeking representation for my novel, using QueryTracker and such, so how about scripts? The only active link I can find listing screenplay contests is, honestly, kinda crappy. Most of the contests simply do not look legit.

There's got to be some legit direction out there for us.......

Jonathan.Bentz · Jan 9, 2012

Hey, had the same trouble recently. Found this site and have sent out six queries (online only at the moment). Listings of agents and managers for screenwriters. Might be worth looking into for ya. Just remove the spaces when you copy/paste in address bar.

http:// www. hollywoodscriptexpress . com / screenwriter_agencies . html

ragasssd · Jan 9, 2012

yeah how about these "submission services" online like this one:

http://www.equerydirect.com/order.asp

anyone ever tried one?

clockwork · Jan 9, 2012

Richard Alan Phipps said:
I believe the sticky at the top of the forum list, relating to opportunities and contests, is largely outdated at this point. I know many people venture to this particular forum because they've got the next great script worth millions... but they just don't know what to do next.

So here is the question. It's 2012 and I've got the next great script. My logline and synopsis are itching to be read by a professional. Where do I go to find a hungry talent manager/agent? I can query dozens of available agents seeking representation for my novel, using QueryTracker and such, so how about scripts? The only active link I can find listing screenplay contests is, honestly, kinda crappy. Most of the contests simply do not look legit.

There's got to be some legit direction out there for us.......

Well, the Screenwriting Competitions, Opportunites etc thread isn't really any kind of advice or recommendations thread, it's a place that we use to stash post and announcements that would otherwise clutter up the main board. There's no real endorsement or commentary on anything that appears in there, it's just FYI.

Most people say there's only one competition worth entering in terms of the impact it will have on your career and that's the Nicholl.

See here (and here) for some excellent advice about it all.

Stijn Hommes · Jan 11, 2012

ragasssd said:
yeah how about these "submission services" online like this one:

http://www.equerydirect.com/order.asp

anyone ever tried one?

Services that send your query to a big group en masse are never a good idea. Spend time to get to know the person in question and what they're looking for. That way you can avoid sending it to uninterested people and you can adjust the query to their particular needs.

Summonere · Jan 12, 2012

Well, you could try rustling up a copy of this: Hollywood Representation Directory

http://www.writersstore.com/hollywood-representation-directory

Or you could try getting a copy of this: Hollywood Creative Directory

http://www.writersstore.com/hollywood-creative-directory

...and contact those who produce the kinds of scripts you've written.

Both of these books can allegedly be found in your local library, and I'm told you can subscribe to them online (though looking at the page for the first, I don't see how...).

Paradis · Jan 13, 2012

Should post your logline in the SYW forum

Maverick914 · Jan 15, 2012

Yeah I'm actually trying to get my first screenplay off the ground. The next process would be to get it copyrighted then seek a talent agency. Would we have to join the WGA in order to get a better talent agent?

Maverick914 · Jan 15, 2012

Picture & Tagline

I like your picture. That's one of my favorite war movies because of the intensity it brought to the screen and how most WWII films don't show how it was an unfavorable war amongst some of those who fought. America deems it as our gateway into being a superpower but I'd say WWI did that already, just as the Spanish American War deemed us as a developing imperialist nation. The tagline was great too. Is that for your story idea?

Jamesaritchie · Jan 16, 2012

Getting noticed today is the same as it was fifty years ago. If you want to get noticed, writing something noticeable. That's all it takes.

DrRita · Jan 26, 2012

There is no easy way to get noticed . . . Screenwriting competitions are not a bad place to start but the good ones (the ones that get you noticed) are tough. Getting your script read is tough if you don't know anyone. The best way to get noticed is to know people, make contacts and get to know filmmakers. Most scripts don't get sold but a good script can get you a writing job and that's what you really want. But you have to show you are more than a one script wonder. So write a pile of scripts and work on your pitches. Make contacts in the industry and try to find that little crack where you can squeeze in . . .

DrRita · Jan 26, 2012

Maverick914 said:
Yeah I'm actually trying to get my first screenplay off the ground. The next process would be to get it copyrighted then seek a talent agency. Would we have to join the WGA in order to get a better talent agent?

You can't just "join" WGA . . . The fundamental requirement for becoming a WGA member is that you are hired to write by an employer who is signatory to a WGA contract. Agencies want to know if you have several scripts and ideas, not just one. You will probably have to write at least 5 scripts before you get the hang of it. So write this first one, start another, and another and keep going. All the while, keep knocking on doors and one day hopefully, someone will answer.

hansenmv · Jan 27, 2012

To get noticed in 2012... start earnestly in 2002.

Lucas · Jan 30, 2012

If you live in Sweden, bash christianity, males or racism. That works the trick. Boring and predictable, but the cultural establishment loves it.

erhall · Jan 30, 2012

I don't know what I did with it right now, but a couple months ago, out of boredom, I looked up every agency on the WGA site and looked up their submission requirements and made a spreadsheet. If I find it, I will let you know the useful information - that is, the agencies that accepts submissions.

How to get noticed in 2012

Richard Alan Phipps

Jonathan.Bentz

ragasssd

clockwork

In the zone...

Stijn Hommes

Know what you write...

Summonere

Paradis

Maverick914

Maverick914

Jamesaritchie

DrRita

Act One '08

DrRita

Act One '08

hansenmv

Lucas

erhall

New kid, be gentle!