Re: Reps without Queries
I think, and this is just me, but others have hinted to the same, that the discussion over query letters pops up so often around here because it's the one thing everyone can do. All you need is a computer, an e-mail address, and places to send those e-mails (or snail mail, I suppose). That's it.
Networking, building relationships, that all requires going out in the world, being somewhere that relationships can actually be formed, or figuring your way into the business in some other fashion. I get both sides, as I've spent a good amount of time in LA (7+ years) but recently I can't afford to live there, so I see the value of living there. Now, broke and unemployed, I can't be there, and it's damn near impossible to get anyone in LA to give half a **** about what you're doing if you aren't in their face. I'm co-producing a film that has been in post for over a year now, and when I first moved away, I got constant updates. Now, I can barely get them on the phone. The movie is progressing fine, it's just the mental approach they have. "Well, you aren't here, you can't do anything but hear our progress, so we'll call you when we have some." And that devolves into "Oh, we forgot to tell you that last month? Yeah, that happened."
So I'm back to square one, despite my relationships in LA. Which I can easily resume when I'm back there, but it's difficult to get anyone to give a **** unless they will potentially profit from something you can directly put in front of them. Hence, query letters have gotten me further along than any interaction with any of the producers I know out there. So it's the one thing I can do while stuck in Alabama that doesn't require any money, or as you pointed out, any real effort beyond the physical acts of gathering information and clicking send a bunch of times.
Originally posted by FreshShabazz
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Networking, building relationships, that all requires going out in the world, being somewhere that relationships can actually be formed, or figuring your way into the business in some other fashion. I get both sides, as I've spent a good amount of time in LA (7+ years) but recently I can't afford to live there, so I see the value of living there. Now, broke and unemployed, I can't be there, and it's damn near impossible to get anyone in LA to give half a **** about what you're doing if you aren't in their face. I'm co-producing a film that has been in post for over a year now, and when I first moved away, I got constant updates. Now, I can barely get them on the phone. The movie is progressing fine, it's just the mental approach they have. "Well, you aren't here, you can't do anything but hear our progress, so we'll call you when we have some." And that devolves into "Oh, we forgot to tell you that last month? Yeah, that happened."
So I'm back to square one, despite my relationships in LA. Which I can easily resume when I'm back there, but it's difficult to get anyone to give a **** unless they will potentially profit from something you can directly put in front of them. Hence, query letters have gotten me further along than any interaction with any of the producers I know out there. So it's the one thing I can do while stuck in Alabama that doesn't require any money, or as you pointed out, any real effort beyond the physical acts of gathering information and clicking send a bunch of times.
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