What does this mean?

[jaffa]

Sent a fax to a production company and received the following email

Dear Mr XXX,

We received your fax dated 13 November 2006 regarding your submission, XXXXX.

Please be advised that we are unable to accept unsolicited material and as such cannot consider your material. If you are represented by an agent, please have them formally submit your project to me at the details below.

Thank you for contacting us.

Best,
XXXXXX


Now What? I take it that the prod co is interested, so will this help me getting an agent if I tell them that XXX production company is interested:confused: :confused:

[jimjimgrande]

Sorry to break this to you, but they are NOT interested and will not accept material from you directly. That is what it means.

[Marine66]

It's a legal issue. Maybe somebody with more expertise can explain in detail.

[jaffa]

So I take it, its a fairly normal blow off??

[Marine66]

So I take it, its a fairly normal blow off??

Yes. Hang around. Somebody will explain.

[BROUGHCUT]

it's not really a legal issue--if they were interested in the script they would ask for it.

If the OP has an agent someone has already filtered the material.

It's a pass, but you could be cheeky and send it via an attorney. Crap shoot. Legally no different than submitting via an agent but an attorney's name on the submission needn't speak to the quality of the script, which is what the prodco is interested in.

[kidcharlemagne]

Last year I submitted my script to over 50 US prod. co's which included most of the major ones out there such as Imagine etc.

I didn't get a sale but I did get a bunch of meetings off the campaign.

Out of these 50 or so prod. co's only about 2 or 3 were hard-nosed and insisted on an agent rather than a lawyer submission.

In fact most of them accepted the script without an agent or lawyer! With a few I had to sign a release form. I pitched via the phone and most people instantly responsed to the tag-line and requested the script as a .pdf.

The email you have received is a standard 'guardian of the threshold' filter. Get yourself an LA lawyer and then pitch the prod. co's by phone. If they are interested tell them your LA-based entertainment attorney will submit the project. Very few will insist on an agent if they like the sound of the project.

[jaffa]

thanks for all the advice.

[iDV8]

I pitched via the phone and most people instantly responsed to the tag-line and requested the script as a .pdf.

kidcharlemagne, now you've even peeked my curiosity. Would you be willing to share the tag-line with us?

[InDeep]

For legal reasons, many companies do not accept unsolicited scripts. This broadly protects them against claims of fraud and copyright infringement (say, they were already developing an idea along the same lines as your screenplay, when your script showed up. Ooops. Legal troubles). Thus, the rule and the form letter that you, we, and countless thousands receive from them about their unwillingness to receive scripts they haven't done a basic "pre-clearance" on. This pre-qualification might be in the form of a request by them for material represented by you (in your query letter) as being unique through your lawyer or agent.


Success,

Dan (InDeep)

[Marine66]

Yes. Hang around. Somebody will explain.

Told ya somebody smart would explain. It was no reflection on your idea.

[earlyman75]

It's a polite blow off that a lot of places use. Trust me- if they liked what they saw, they would be all over it.

I once dropped an email bomb over at ICM (I'm sure they loved me for that). I got back about 15 of those "we can't accept unsolicited material" emails right away from various agents there that I had contacted.

I checked my email later that night and I had three requests from other agents at ICM.

In the end, my logline had appealed to a few of them, and that was it. The others that didn't like it just gave me the most simple rejection letter they had available.

If they like the idea, there's not much that's going to stop them from looking at the script.