Scriptwriting For Television: Are You Good Enough? (Episode 1)
I've been scriptwriting on and off for nearly 14 years now. In that time I have written two screenplays and one television series. None have been commissioned. To say it's a tough business doesn't come anywhere near. That's even if you have the talent to be a decent scriptwriter capable of writing scripts that will appeal to large audiences.
So how do you crack this profession? How do you get in the door? Well, you first must be absolutely sure what you're writing is good enough to attract producers and development executives to your work. When you finish a script there is always a sense of satisfaction, and you think what you've written is the best thing ever. We all think that about our own work. However, you need to keep things in an objective context. It's important though to get some form of industry feedback from professionals to confirm that you do indeed have the skills to be a good scriptwriter. Depending on where you are and who you approach there are various schemes and organisations that can provide this feedback to you, some may charge and others will not.
So, if you do have what it takes to write intelligent scripts with original stories then what do you do? This is the other half of the challenge. Unless you have family or friends already working in the industry you're going to have your work cut out. Once you have a completed script worthy of production it is then down to you to get that script to the right people. When I say right people I mean producers, directors or development executives who will feel as passionate about your script as you are. And this is a very difficult part of what you have to do.
Nonetheless you must keep knocking on doors. You must keep sending those emails. You must keep phoning. And you must keep preparing for the inevitable rejection. It's all part of the process. Where one door will close and all the disappointment that comes with that closure you will find another door to open.
Writing decent scripts that are deserving of production is only half of the battle. In fact from my experience it may even be less than half. The other part of your role as scriptwriter is the part where your tenacity and conviction will be tested. Remember if you know you are good enough and you can accept the knock backs, then you must keep going. Keep writing. Keep knocking on doors.
I've always been curious about how that works. When a fantastic show gets cancelled after only one season while a 'less fantastic' show goes on and on, it makes me wonder about the great scripts that never get filmed. My tastes in television may be a little odd though.
Believe me you're not alone elementum. Some shows will make it on screen because the scriptwriter managed to get it to someone who had influence and the ability to push it, the show could be utter crap though. Sadly it doesn't matter. Conversely there are amazing scripts out there gathering dust on shelves.
Would there be any way to create a blockchain based version of Netflix where the scripts that should have been made can be crowd-funded to life? I don’t have the tech know-how to decide if that’s feasible or not.
It's an interesting thought. However, in this business reputation is everything and no matter how good your script is if you're an unknown then your script will rarely attract money. However, that said it's not impossible. I know many films that have made it into production with crowdfunding but very few television programmes have been crowdfunded into production.
I see your point. Gatekeepers have a way of killing the creativity in any industry. I'll be monitoring for changes from the sidelines.
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