What constitutes a referral?

[DaNCin DwARf]

I was wondering... what constitutes a 'referral' to an agent or manager?

Is it supposed to be from a reliable, well-known industry professional? A screenwriting course or instructor? A contest winning script? What?

Thanks-

-Dwarf:p

[DUCPHO]

A telephone call or letter from someone they respect and usually know well!:hat

[KidCharlemagne108]

Funnily enough it doesn't neccessary have to be someone they know that well. I've managed to get script requests for friends from people who I've only met once. In fact I managed to get a lot of script requests for a friend by replying to a bunch of passes from agents with a 'thanks for reading the script would you be interested in reading a script from a friend of mine' and surprisingly a lot of agents/managers (one at the Gersh agency) said 'okay, tell him to send it in'. I don't think the referral is the Holy Grail it's made out ot be.

Of course the higher up the food chain you are and the degree of respect they have for you is proportional to how seriously they will consider the script.

KC