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Hi Johnny

you can use good ole' www.infospace.com to try the reverse lookup.

Not much found on the 'net with exact phrase searches, found a job ad they put up back around March or so, no pay but free lunches.

Sorry couldn't be much more help...

I hear you, Steve. I have handled all the mailing and e-queries for me and my writing partner and after almost 100 queries sent on one script with mixed results (very polite query rejections, some reads and very nice rejections and some reads and nothing but silence which we all know, sucks the most) it's easy to walk around with a grey cloud over your head.

My headspace is constantly switching from "I don't need no stinking agent!" to "Holy crap, what am I doing? I'm trying to ram a beachball through a basketball hoop! Gotta get me an agent!"

What's the solutions? My strategy right now is very sophisticated, keep throwing stuff at the wall until something sticks......

Well being Canadian and all I feel it is my patriotic duty to....uh, well, whatever.

I'm not sure that chaw-chewing is really something that's big with the kids nowadays, since it is widely known that it destroys your mouth from the inside out. Being in Eastern Ontario most of my existence (and rural at that) I only knew two people who chewed the stuff on a regular basis. One was a guy I worked construction with when I was in high school. The other was this old car mechanic my father knew quite well and would take me over to see him so I could climb all over his vintage cars. The guy was five-foot nothing, I seemed to remember him always looking around eighty years of age and he worked until he dropped on the spot repainting a '77 Impala. Told stories and in between his major story points he would lean to the side and gob that spit anywhere. Never used a spitoon. Had a wad of that chaw in the side of his mouth the size of a baseball and has a perma-stain down his chin you'd swear was a pinch.

I tried it once, took four chews, accidently swallowed some juice, gagged and never touched it again....

Bryan is right on. Either comes in a pouch or a small cylinder.

Same goes here.

Answered the ad just like everyone else. Must be looking at alot of scripts to build up a roster (stable?).

Sent mine out around a month ago. Anyone heard anything yet?

WSN is a great site.

Only costs $30 to place your script on their site (though I think it's going up to $40 next month). Threw both of my completed ones in there and have had some really good interest in both. Also has a pretty eclectic mix of big and small companies, managers, agents and producers.

Jerrol is really hands-on and helpful. Had some problems downloading my script and he went so far as to call me to give me instructions on how to fix it. Pretty cool considering I live 3000 miles away.

I like the service and I recommend it.

It is said that there are only 7 original ideas out there (something to do with the (7 deadly sins?).

I think all of us have been there. I wanted to write Velvet Goldmine even before it went into pre-production. My heart sank when I saw the previews for it. My idea was so similar.

Me and my writing partner are right now working hard on a new story but have been racking our brains trying to come up with that 'big budget' concept, y'now, the ones the studios like. Problem is, we go through that 'been there done that' scenario until we just quit.

My advice to you is similar to the rest of the boards: When you have an idea, get it on paper as soon as you can.

Huh!

I queried her back in June I think and again in July with another script and nothing nada from her, even though I am also a fellow Canadian.

I know that doesn't mean anything but a 'no thanks not interested' would have been nice.

What was her turnaround time with you guys?

It would appear that the Vintner's luck isn't very good....

Colin is also now looking at a script of mine. It appears that he's going to be doing alot of reading for the next few months.

I'm glad you guys found all that info on Colin and Origin. I usually will try to find out as much as I can about someone who makes open calls like that before I will submit a query. They are certainly the deal and he got back to me within a couple of hours so I'll cross my fingers and toes for myself and everyone on here...

Cheers.

I'm getting deluged with emails from these people, always a different subject heading, always a different angle. They are talking about two of my scripts that are almost two years old.

My co-writer and I deduced that they definitely went on WSN and took the info from there.

It irritates me that they have no option of removing yourself from the list.....I went to their website and just love how it's dotted with those stock footage pictures of people having a good time.

It seems to be the season for the screenwriting consultants and contest posers to come out in full force and hammer us with promises of a sunny tomorrow.....

Sitting back, it's Sunday afternoon, sun is shining and I have a 2 litre bottle of water (I try to not drink coffee on the weekends to justify my drinking it by the gallons during the week). In a Beatles sorta mood today, so I'm playing the cd's in descending order of release (Abbey Road, Let It Be, etc..)

Anyways, I've been pecking away at my latest, completely unmarketable script and I have really noticed something; that my writing times are really specific. I can start usually pecking around 2pm but usually cannot go beyond 9:30 to 10pm.

My question is: Do all you good people have a specific time you like to hunker down and get going or do you just take pen to paper whenever (and anywhere) you can.

Boring question but oh well....

Are you sure that isn't $2400.00 worth of Whoppers? I have close to that in coupons for Burger King.

Seriously, I can actually sympathize with someone trying to start out and doesn't have alot of money to pony up for an epic saga that will put them on the map, in the critic's hearts and constantly in the minds of the adoring public. $2400 is alot of scratch for us workin' stiffs and that's no doubt coming straight out of pocket. I'm preparing to shoot my own little thing in the next two months and couldn't imagine taking anything out of massive shooting budget (itself a whopping $500)but then again, oh yeah.....I write!

We tried that once. See, that's the problem with multiculturalism, everyone has an opinion :).

My reasons for venturing out and giving it go are pretty simple. I've written some stuff, even optioned some of that stuff. I have friends that have been pestering me to write a vehicle for them based on this really funny schtick they have been doing since high school. We decided the best route would be the time-honored, mildly worn-out but potentially hilarious (ugh) 'mockumentary' style presentation. We're pooling our available resources for equipment, many of our friends have been recruited as crew so really, there isn't much to lose. Worst case scenario, the thing gets made, stinks but gives us a good laugh when we're all sitting around with nothing better to do.

I recommend that if anyone wants to release that inner freak of a filmmaker, do it.

I actually replied to their admin email addy asking them to remove me from this and any other list they have past, present and future. I received an email a couple of days later saying they would comply with my request (which, by law if I'm not mistaken, they are obliged to) so I'm apparently off the hook (Until next year)

Tim

Geez, looking over this post, I thought the title of the script rang a bell and then, after a few pistons in my brain fired up I realized--I reviewed this script in Zoetrope just over a year ago.

Let me tell you folks, it's a fine script, a great read.

Congrats Paula, I hope your success continues in the contest.

Tim

Danny--

Thanks man, next week I will throw out the subjects 'favourite dance moves' and 'when do you like to whip out irony?'. I'm glad you liked the thread.

I was curious as to what and when the folks here get down and get scribbling. From a writing perspective, I don't have many deadlines to deal with (off the keyboard or pen, that's a totally different deal). On a writing assignment I had last year for a production company, I blew the deadline by like, 3 weeks. Had it written, took a long look at it, tore it up and started all over again. It was cool though, they still bought it :)

Well, I have what you could consider as unmarketable a script as they come.

A screenplay set in 1966 about the FILMING of a western. Most agents I've spoken to won't touch it with a ten foot pole. I have some smaller production companies taking a look at it but in Canada, I might as well be trying to sell a screenplay for Grease 3 written in Latin.

It's a well written yarn, for sure but man, when most of these guys here the word 'western' the next thing from them is usually 'what else do you have?'

Terry---

The script is called 'Duster' and it's essentially about an aging movie star who comes out of retirement after being laid up for 5 odd years after bypass surgery. He has been asked by the studio to 'strap them on again' to star in a sort of nouveau western that were beginning to surface around that time. The twist however is the fact the flick is being directed by his son, who he hasn't spoken to in almost ten years.

It's comedy that has some nice familial elements to it (our lead also is in charge of another son, a shy 11 year old who has been dumped on his doorstep by a rather eccentric ex-wife), some good action sequences but most of all, my co-writer and I think it's a pretty good time.

The lead we need would be in his late 50's early 60's, tall, handsome, rugged and we had Nick Nolte in mind when we wrote it. I also thought that Harrison Ford would be awesome for the part. Anyone has his phone number?

My rep Terry? How I do wish I had one!

Tim

Terri---

Thanks for all the kind words...

Yup those guys were all names we have bandied about. You've got a great sense for casting.

Like I said, Nolte was the guy we had in mind when we wrote it. Ford is my personal choice just because it's unlike anything he's done in awhile and man, how cool would it be to meet Harrison Ford?

I actually did query Colin and sent him another script but that's a great idea, I'll send him over an email and see if he'd be interested in taking a look. I'll keep you posted.

Tim

Terry---

Thanks again for the great advice but I sent him the query nonetheless (well, actually after you suggested I hold off) I noticed that he accepted some multiple scripts so I thought what the hey. I'll STILL keep you posted :)

Michael---

Thanks. From my understanding, Malpaso rarely look at anything, especially unrepped or anything Eastwood hasn't found himself. Also, not that he necessarily would cast himself, but man, you couldn't have asked for a better swan song for him with Unforgiven. However, if you'd like to send the information, it would be greatly appreciated.

Tim

Paula---

That's great. It was a very solid read then so I imagine the improvements you made really elevated the story.

Again, all the success in the world to you.

Tim

Hi all,

Another question while I was trying to teach my dog the bass line for Radar Love.

The fun, inexpensive and very frustrating process called the e-query, this is my personal weapon of choice when it comes to harassing Hollywood's movers, shakers, quakers, losers, loser wannabes and all around playas into reading one of my low concept but highly refreshing screenplays.

Enough yammering Tim.

My question to you good people out there is this: When you equery, how do you find responds the most and out of agents, managers and producers, who requests your scripts the most?

For me, agents reject my queries the most then production companies, then the managers. Managers(you can include the manager/producer in here as well) request my scripts the most, then production companies then agents (I never enter contests and I am not L.A.-based plus I have heard from more than one person that the email query went out of vogue very quickly with agents due to the traffic).

Anyways...my question.

Tim

Terri,

Well throw one more on the pile, he wants me to send him over Duster.

Number 176, here she comes.....

Tim

Two great stories Terri.

Ok, I'll play.

I have been to Los Angeles twice in the last two years, strictly for recreation. My friends in Los Angeles are all musicians who I have met on various tours while I was road managing another friend's band. My friend was recording an album and asked if I wanted to come down and check out the scene. I said sure, what the hey, so I scraped some cash together and headed out for two weeks. This was in 1998.

At this time I had completed my first full-length screenplay, showed to my friend and he really liked it. Anyways we're sitting down at a restaurant on Melrose and his A&R rep and two friends come walking in. They sit down with us. We make the intros when I realize I'm sitting across the table from this semi-famous actor who was currently starring in a televison program that I simply cannot stand. The other guy is a development guy of the label's film production wing.

Everyone is chatting up and everything is fine when my buddy goes, 'oh yeah, Tim writes screenplays.' and before I know it, I am tripping over my first ever impromptu pitch session. They love the premise and it seems that semi-famous tv guy has been looking for some kind of vehicle for himself to break away from TV (his sorta words) I hand over a copy of the script and before I leave we go clubbin' with these same folks and at the end of the night, they tell me they dig the script but would like some changes. They hand me the script back and the next day, as I'm flying home, I open it up to find more red ink then on my high school finals.

In a nutshell, life got in the way and before I knew it, it was a year later and that script is still collecting dust in my closet....

Terri,

Alive and kicking thanks.

There was nothing to feel bad about. The part I forgot to add is that I did in fact dig up that script not too long and cringed quite a bit reading it. The premise itself was fairly sound but man, I have come some ways in the last couple of years as a writer and just have way too many other things on the go to even consider pounding away at that script. Quite frankly, as irritated as I was at the time at all the 'suggestions', most of them were pretty darned good. Like I said though, upwards and onwards.

Tim

Fun question....

Right now, I am working on a fantasy comedy that will no doubt scare off 80% of the producers out there because it will be expensive to make. Having written 4 'smaller' scripts, I wanted to try my hand at something on a larger scale and let me tell you, it's been alot of fun. Did you hear that major studios? I like writing the big budget sagas!

I'm also working on a concept for a TV series with my co-writing partner. I pitched it last week to a production company up here in Canada and they want to see a couple of episodes. Picture Dawson's Creek on prozac and that's pretty well the series concept.

Now there's a company that is intent on making your dreams a reality; one that can't afford it's own readers.

Dare to dream!

Tim

Hi gang.

Here's a question I came up while rummaging through my sadly large stack of snail and email rejection letters.

What is the funniest rejection excuse on a query or submission you have ever received?

Mine was from an agent at a fairly prestigious signatory who declared (after making me run around and around explaining my opus) that my screenplay had too much of an '80's' feeling to it and rhymed off in his mind 5 of the best comedies in the last 2 years and they were, in my opinion, not.

It's an odd place that Hollywood is....

Tim

I actually got a request for a script well over 12 months after I sent the initial query letter out.

Everybody works at their own pace for sure, sometimes I'm sure producers will delete or throw out queries by the dozens simply because they have no time to develop anything new and sometimes I'm sure they will take almost anything thrown their way to find anything worth developing.

I have also noticed that the 90-day rule of thumb works well too when waiting on a requested script. I have also noticed that in my time sending out queries that if someone doesn't get back to you about a script before you do, it usually isn't going to happen. That is why I rarely send out followups....

Tim

Holy geez gang, relax.

Mr. Hernandez really doesn't have to justify himself to anyone. The fact that he openly comes out looking for scripts is something in itself. He's not a wallflower or sitting on the bench, he's a busy guy and the fact he makes these open calls, knowing full well that he will receive an avalanche of query letters from people like ourselves who think they have the next big thing sitting there in .scw, .rtf format ready to fly it to him in a second's notice, well, I think it's a wee bit crazy myself.

But come on gang, hundreds of queries, hundreds. We can't get upset because he doesn't reply. What we do is move on, keep plugging away. Sure throw the pasta against the fridge, it just might stick but don't get ticked because he doesn't reply. We send out tons of queries and how many reply? Really? 10%? 5%? 2%? Just throw your pitch and move on.

Trust me I know. I've sent Crescendo queries on 4 separate scripts, each unique with both comedy and or action elements. How many replies back? Zero.

Tim

If you're like myself and a bit on the shy side then I would get into a conversation and steer it so somehow your professions come up. Play it all cool and be very casual when you mention that you've written stuff. You might be lucky enough that it will be he that asks to read your stuff.

Hi gang,

I have a question for you all (oh, yes, yet another one.)

What genre do you write in particularly (or feel most comfortable with) and which genre would you like to attempt but for some reason you are holding yourself back?

For me, I enjoy writing action/comedy (ahem, Mr. Hernandez) and I have always wanted to write a gangster movie set anywhere from 50 to 80 years ago (as well written as Road to Perdition but maybe not so heavy, for example). The reason I haven't done anything yet is simply because I have not created a decent plot in my mind----yet.

I look forward to hearing everyone discuss this topic...

Tim

I tried ScriptBlaster last year on what I would eventually learn would be a hard sell script. It was sent to producers, producer/managers only the companies it was sent to was probably around a couple of hundred. The query letter was fairly solid and I was all hopeful and expectant to see all the responses to my offbeat comedy.

I received a total of four replies and 2 requests for the scripts, one of which was automated. I also received several emails from script coverage services mentioning that the query had been sent by so and so production company, guys on the list.

Would I use the service again? I have built a pretty comprehensive contact database myself so I would have to say no but what I have seen from others, it can be worth the dollars and the effort.

Tim

I can see here that many of you have never worked in outbound sales.

Callbacks and followups are a part of the process to any sales-related job. I leave messages, dozens of them, in a single day and I may receive one or two returned calls on these messages. You keep at it and keep at it until the person is on the other line and has the time to hear what you have to say. Hopefully they are interested in what you have to say. Until then, you dial the next number and hope for the same thing. Trying to get a screenplay sold is no different. It is a commodity, a product. Yes, I know it is a piece of one's soul, an opening of their most innermost thoughts but when it comes right down to it, you are trying to sell a product to someone who is basically a salesman themselves (or at least you hope they are) and at best, a broker. Not a fun way to look at it, but it's the truth.

Yes, I've sent Colin a couple of scripts and yes, I would like a response but I am in no rush to hear back from him and obviously, he is in no rush to get back to me.

I agree there Terri, you obviously cannot bombard an agent, manager, production company with a gaggle of phonecalls and if you find yourself being consistently 'blocked' by the front desk or getting voicemail, it is a pretty safe bet that they don't want to talk to you.

I guess what I was trying to say is that until you hear that 'pass' the resolution is never there but you shouldn't get discouraged, company A might not want to talk, but company T might want to. It's a numbers game for sure.

As far as Colin O. is concerned, I feel for everyone who hasn't heard back from him. He has got back to some people here and many of us, he has not. I just don't think we should discouraged so much as we should just keep on keeping on (like we have a choice in the matter!) we must keep moving on.

Whenever I receive a rejection notice, I make it a priority to get the script to at least three other people to offset that rejection.

I have to be perfect honest, they're have been several times over my writing 'career' where I have wanted to hang up the skates, focus on my easy, well-paying but mindless job and one day perhaps, have one of my grandkids either while I was alive or dead, find that hope chest (hope being the operative word) full of dusty unsold scripts. She of course would be an A-List actress and now knowing the dark secret I kept until I was deposited into my grave, she would read one of my epics, just go crazy over it, take it to her agent or package it through her own production company, the film would get made and she would win critical acclaim all the while tearfully saying this was a labour of love because it was a script written by her dearly departed grandfather....her Oscar acceptance speech wouldn't leave a dry eye in the room and....

Jeez, what the Hell was I talking about?

Oh yeah, to anyone on this board who is even remotely thinking of packing it in, I got a contraction for you: don't.

There should be a patron saint for screenwriters, absolutely. I just recently finished a very large, epic-like fantasy/comedy script and knowing that oh boy, these must sell like hotcakes, quickly reached out to all the contacts I have made over the last couple of years, thinking that my bigass script would surely create a frenzy of interest.

All I heard was a loud thump as the 'no thanks', 'you're nuts', 'stupidhead' and best of all, the perennial silence we all deal with came through the wires in response to my opus. It's hard not to feel slapped around, especially when a script you worked on for so long is exactly what nobody wants to read.

As I was giving up hope, some glimmers of light started to materialize. A pretty rockin' sci-fi producer asked for the script pretty enthusiastically via email and a couple of producer friends of mine up here in Canada read it, dug it and are forwarding it directly to some pretty choice counterparts in L.A.

To reiterate my whole point in this diatribe is that to all who doubt themselves, don't give up hope because quite simply, s**t happens when you least expect it and the best things happen when you don't expect them to happen, it's just hard to not want things to happen. As has been said several times on the board, write it, get it out there and move on.....

Geez Ron, wish I would've been there, I have a couple of teen comedies in my arsenal, one of them a potentially good fit for Miss Hillary...

Ron,

Thanks a bunch, I'll throw the Hail Mary and see if it sticks.

Tim

5. Salem's Lot---that kid scraping against the window still gives me the creeps.

4. The Shining---What? Are you kidding? Spooky spooky movie.

3. Dracula(1979) I don't know why, maybe because I saw it as a kid and freaked out when Langella laughed at the cross getting waved in his face. What? Vampires that aren't afraid of crosses? Oh boy!

2. The Wicker Man---not so horrific as it was creepy, you just knew the detective didn't have a chance in Hell in getting away from there in one piece.

1. The Thing (1982) Like was mentioned before the hands coming out of the body, the mutated dogs that creepy bass line not to mention Wilfred Brimley all drunk and fraking out, this movie kept me awake many a nights and was the one thing me and my brothers used to talk about to freak each other out.

Greg,

Mitchell was the executive producer of Dune, the mini-series that came out a couple of years ago.

I checked on him too because he currently a script of mine.

When in doubt, hit the ole' IMDB.

Cheers,

Tim

Hi Robbie,

I have sent out several scripts and in many cases, have never heard from the producer again. I have also spoken to producers and asked them why they request a screenplay and then never reply. The first thing alot of them say is "I try to reply to them all" but mostly it's because they get lost in the pile. They are working heavy on current projects or they get a script from an agent or manager that 'just can't wait'.

In my experiences, persistency pays off. I have sent scripts out as early as last May and I am still hearing back, after I course have sent them a half a dozen friendly 'how are you, read my opus yet?'. If they read the email, then the least it is doing is maybe putting your script back in their mindset. I know their is a thin line between pesistency and harassment but you took the time to send them that query, to package the script and mail it (for me this costs about $15 everytime) so yeah, I think you're entitled to feedback. Just recently I had a producer flat out tell me "I don't want to sound like one of those Hollywood a**holes, but I just plain lost your script, send another if you want but there is no guarantee I won't lose that one either."

Needless to say, I didn't sent another one......

Note to self: Never write anything before 9am....

I had a call very similar to this one and was very excited about it and I started the words 'consulting' and 'minimal fees' to which I politely interceded and found out they were in essence, soliciting services to 'tighten' a script they had never read.

Mind you, they had offered no guarantees but mind you, I offered no money.

Script services are script services, you pay money for someone to work on your script, make it better and hopefully, possibly, make it sexy enough to get some reads. I think any 'producer' that comes a' callin' offering their fee-based expert services is just a waste of your time. Move on.

Anyone actively querying and sending stuff out trying to get it read comes across these responses. Some range from the standard 'liked the read but doesn't fit our current needs' to 'just didn't feel passionate enough about the material.'

Personally, I think anyone who replies even with a pass is being courteous. The ones that irritate me are the ones that DO NOT reply, say nothing. You send out a query, they accept, wonderful. You print or photocopy your script, throw it together, spend the time and money on postage and throw it at them. Within a month or so you start following up and there is no reply, dead damned silence. That's a pain. At least give the writer the satisfaction of being able to check that name off the list and move on. Give me the polite rejection letter any day....

David, I agree with you.

The business is so subjective at the best of times and like you said one person's masterpiece can be another's toilet paper. 'Nobody knows anything' as Mr. Goldman said...

How does that saying go? A watched kettle never boils?

It is tough going during slow periods. Feelings of doubt and fear mixed in with maddening frustration. I think many of the scribes here have gone through these periods, more than we would care to.

This is an endurance test to the bitter end. It takes hard work, alot of persistency and alot of damned luck.

As Gil mentioned, it is the word yes that makes it all worthwhile, the gratification and ultimately the paycheck. Strive for the yes. Bear in mind that if you pack it in, there are five more right behind you ready to take your place in line.

I have worked my ass off for just under three years and things are coming together. Alot of forward momentum and even some money. Alot of good contacts made and emails and phonecalls returned.

Oh yeah, and have some fun! I am having a severe blast with the whole process. It's a game to me with the payoff being the night I walk into a theatre full of people coming to see a movie I wrote.(whether they like it or not is neither here or there)

Tim

That pretty well sums it up. Not worth the time or the phonecall.

I get an email from them every six months or so. The last two have been great, both inquiring about scripts I have already optioned.

Hey Gil,

Don't force the issue. I know alot of writers say forge on but when I get into a rut (and it happens quite often) I don't just throw up stuff to see what sticks because 99% of the time you're going to toss it out anyways. Waste of time.

Take a walk, groom the dog, groom the cat, play Doom 3, go for a swim. Step away from the script for a bit and the juice will come back to you.

Tim

I could enhance your point Paula about how much harder it is to write comedy as opposed to other genres but as a writer of 'the funny', I can say that it is a different type of tough, for sure.

Comedy is so subjective though. What makes one person laugh does not not necessarily do it for another. Comedy is universal for sure but what is considered funny is a matter of opinion. Again, no point in making comparisons because it is safe to say that everyone knows what I mean.

This no doubt holds some truth when it comes to contest screenplay reviewers. They might be aware that is supposed to be funny, it is set up to be funny but they just don't find it funny. I have never entered any of my comedy screenplays in any contests for the simple fact that I know all it takes is one person down the rope not to understand a setup, a situation, a premise or a punchline to want to toss the script in the poubelle.

Hey Gil,

I had a tee-shirt in the '80's that has relevance today.

'I Hate Michael Jackson'