Question about "Sales" in the sales section on DD

[Dock]

Just subscribed to the done deal trades section and noticed today there's a script called "Bad Karma" and Zero Gravity Management is the management company as well as the production company and they have Ray Liotta attached to star.

I thought Zero Gravity was just a talent/management company? Also, being that it's in the "sales section" am I correct in assuming they buy scripts as well? Or being that they are doing the production and managing the writer it's listed in the sales section because they sold the script to some unlisted studio/distributor/buyer?

[Done Deal Pro]

You know, you can always just e-mail me and ask. :)

But yes, Zero Gravity is management AND production.

The SALES section is named such a bit more generically so. We probably should have switched it to DEALS years ago but just stayed with it. In that section deals can be for sales and options. It's not always clearly noted in the releases given out. Since they are the management firm that reps the writer, there most likely wasn't much money being passed around at this time. That would probably take place once financing comes in or a studio comes on board.

Don't take all the listings too literally, of course. There can be different politics, deals, arrangements, plans, and so forth going on behind the scenes. Most info getting released for various deals is really a PR movie to get the agency, management firm or production company name out there.

[Dock]

oh okay cool, that's what I assumed but just wanted to double check.


You know, you can always just e-mail me and ask. :)


Hey remember you said that, and i will remember also for the next 20 questions I have :D

One more question out of curiousity -- is this data coming from some database that the companies themselves are filling out? Or is it being manually input? I just ask because I notice some information is very brief and others have much more detail like dollar amount sold and all that.

[Done Deal Pro]

Most of the info we simply track down from various resources (generally the trades) on the Internet and then distill it down to the most basic info we always list. It's all manually put in by us and we make little tweaks or additions as we can. (We have been around long enough now that writers, reps and producers will contact us directly about deals or even to update details on something we listed they were involved with.)

Prices for deals are not reported as much these days since the amounts aren't always that amazing, thus there is nothing to brag or boast about. As for other details, it really depends on how much the parties involved want to release and/or how much extra we can possibly track down on our own. We don't hold anything back, of course. We try to list all we can and do try to include reps' names even if they weren't listed in the formal announcement or try to "fill out" the loglines for book deals when very little is said about the story and so on.

[catcon]

You know, you can always just e-mail me and ask. :) ...

No, this stuff has always boggled me, too, so this was a good thread.

As you know, I leave all of my direct emailing to you for that other stuff! :)

[bladebeam1]

This is a good thread. I've had a vague feeling that there is sometimes more (or less) than meets the eye.

So thank you!





:)

[Dock]

Thanks Will, this is good to know, because I was taking some of the updates in the sales section literally and assuming all types of wrong stuff.

[Done Deal Pro]

Any time. And while we're here, if you have any other questions or if anyone else does, then fire away. I'll do my best to answer and clarify.

[MontanaHans]

Excellent info, always wondered about this stuff myself.

[night fugue]

It's interesting that more than half the sales reported for Zero Gravity Managment in the sale archive are to themselves as Zero Gravity or their former entity, Pierce/Williams. I realize that ZGM is management and production, but I find that very odd.

[Juno Styles]

Uh......yea...what would be the reason for that? I'm assuming their financing their films through private investors or something and just listing that as a sale?

[abiqua]

I was with ZGM a while back. They went out with a thriller of mine, but only approached financiers...so there's a trend there. After watching some of their recent productions like Shuttle and Canyon, I concluded that having them attached as producers was not that attactive. The same script is now getting traction with some more quality producers.

[Dock]

has any of their movies (ZG) gotten theatrical releases besides Running Scared? I've never heard of any of them.

[abiqua]

The Cooler played the arthouse circuit after premiering at Sundance.