Am I being too materialistic?

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  • Am I being too materialistic?

    Note: this is not a debate on the worth of contests so let's not bog it down with the usual pro vs anti contest rhetoric.


    I look at the contests around and I'm only compelled by those with what I consider to be a decent ROI. Page, Nicholl, TrackingB all have esablished reputations for forwarding careers which alone makes them valuable (they also give out decent prizes as well) but I don't see the point of some of the lesser ones. Granted, the odds of winning any competition with thousands of entries is slim but there has to be that incentive, for me at least.

    I won't mention names - and anyone can check them out on the DDP contest page - but for example, I got an email yesterday about a last chance for a small but well known competition. $75 to win $5000 seems nice but the 4 runner up spots weren't even 3x the entry fee (I know it's a late fee but still). Others don't even give out money or anything helpful towards career (software, prod meets, agents) and just hand out trophies.

    I know the real prize is being able to put a win/SF/QF on your CV but I still need more. Especially when you consider winning most comps won't make a jot of difference to your career. Even if the comp didn't generate any leads, 4/5 figures would still make it a worthwhile investment.

    For those of you who do enter contests, what do you look for (reputation apart)? Am I approaching it in the wrong manner?
    M.A.G.A.

  • #2
    Re: Am I being too materialistic?

    Morning, Sundown.

    My take on script comps: Financial compensation doesn't enter into my thinking. I see them as potential avenues for exposure, period. Cash that comes along with it would be nice, of course, but it's not at all on my radar.

    So I don't know that you're being too materialistic, really -- I think it's more "too myopic." Seems to me you're focusing on a foreground return when it's all about the bigger one looming over it.

    Having said that, if the cash/prizes keep you writing, then bring on the cash/prizes, and good luck.

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: Am I being too materialistic?

      Howdy Six,

      I'm cool with the exposure - that's why I like the TrackingB contest: no cash but your script in the hands of people that make sh*t happen! However, beyond the top 3 comps, the rest probably don't mean diddly so who cares if you came 2nd in the 2009 ShangriLa Script Hunt? It's not got the cache of Nicholl.

      So what I'm saying is, for me:

      $50 to win $15k grand prize, several thousand for runner ups, and exposure and kudos from a renowned comp that makes the industry listen - is great!

      $50 to win $7500 grand prize in a lesser comp that doesn't get the agents salivating - is also great.

      But $75 for a lesser comp's grand prize of $1000, a trophy or a magazine subscription isn't so great.


      I don't want to name names and be disrespectful but beyond the top 5 comps, whose names carry weight, I don't see the point in entering unless there's a decent ROI. I admit I could be going about this wrong - maybe a win in even the smallest of competitions is enough to get agent/prod interest - but I don't see the allure in dropping $75 for $5000 1st place and $250 2nd & 3rd. Just like I don't see the incentive in buying a £1 lottery ticket if the main prize is just £250.

      But yeah, myopic and narrow minded may be equally as applicable as materialistic.
      M.A.G.A.

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: Am I being too materialistic?

        We're on the same page with this. I think what I was trying to say is that for me, ROI means exposure, period. Anything else is gravy and I seriously never think about it. When it comes to deciding which competitions to enter the prestige/exposure/notoriety factor is the only evaluating principle I employ. If cash were what I was after my money would be better spent buying stocks.

        So hells yeah, if some comp is asking $75, which is crazy high, then they'd better have a serious track record they can point to that justifies their borderline-larcenous fee.

        If they don't then they're not getting sh*t from me! (he said, as he kicked over the dining room table and shook his fists at the empty room.)

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: Am I being too materialistic?

          some competitions offer a different compensation other than cash.
          ie - location -- set in Philadelphia (or any other city) for local writers
          ie - that 15 pager from my logline (just went huge) and will probably attract a lot more writers
          ie - actual production deals for shorts
          ie - table ready my script at sundance

          if you can't win in the rinky-dink competition then what makes you think you have a shot a winning a Nicholl fellowship? just sayin'

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: Am I being too materialistic?

            I think either a contest is worth entering, because doing well in it can advance your career, or it's not. The cash and other prizes are irrelevant. The fact that a low-profile contest offered big prizes would not persuade me to enter, nor would the fact that a high-profile contest offered relatively small prizes deter me from entering. If getting a few thousand bucks is your goal, there are better ways to achieve it.

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: Am I being too materialistic?

              Originally posted by NikeeGoddess View Post

              if you can't win in the rinky-dink competition then what makes you think you have a shot a winning a Nicholl fellowship? just sayin'


              And doing well in a rinky-dink competition leads some DDers to think maybe, just maybe, you're not a hack and they might actually give you some respect around here... respect that can (and has for me) translate into a referral.

              How much is that worth?
              "Do just once what others say you can't do, and you will never pay attention to their limitations again." -[/SIZE] James R. Cook

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: Am I being too materialistic?

                Originally posted by Aspirant View Post
                I think either a contest is worth entering, because doing well in it can advance your career, or it's not. The cash and other prizes are irrelevant. The fact that a low-profile contest offered big prizes would not persuade me to enter, nor would the fact that a high-profile contest offered relatively small prizes deter me from entering. If getting a few thousand bucks is your goal, there are better ways to achieve it.
                One of my goals is name/title exposure. I'm hoping the Hollywood types start to notice my name/title on a lot of contest lists, big and small.

                Placing in many contests, big and small, means a great many readers found my script worthy of advancement, which should indicate to the Hollywood types potential for mass appeal.

                But, hey, I'm still hoping for some prize money (at least enough to pay for a trip to the Austin FF).
                "Do just once what others say you can't do, and you will never pay attention to their limitations again." -[/SIZE] James R. Cook

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: Am I being too materialistic?

                  Placing in a contest, no matter how small and or low-profile, can do wonders on the encouragement front -- there's absolutely no question about that. If you're like me you'll take any sign, no matter how picayune, that you're not tragically deluded. So that's another factor in the equation, for sure (until it comes up against certain walls).

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Re: Am I being too materialistic?

                    entering the contests for money is just as valid a reason as trying to get repped or produced. Scott the Reader won $40,000 from Amazon Studios (in addition to getting the script set up with Denise DiNovi for development). money buys a writer time to write when they might otherwise have to be working. as long as the entrant understands that the cash prize is likely all they'll get out of the "lesser" contests if they win, there is nothing to be lost besides the entry fee.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: Am I being too materialistic?

                      Originally posted by SundownInRetreat View Post
                      Granted, the odds of winning any competition with thousands of entries is slim but there has to be that incentive, for me at least.
                      I know the real prize is being able to put a win/SF/QF on your CV but I still need more. Especially when you consider winning most comps won't make a jot of difference to your career. Even if the comp didn't generate any leads, 4/5 figures would still make it a worthwhile investment.
                      Am I approaching it in the wrong manner?
                      Personally, I never enter a contest with the expectation of winning. There's no such thing as guaranteed money in a contest... even more so when the contest is judged subjectively. To me, it doesn't make a lot of sense to spend the money entering a competition if you expect/need a financial return on your investment. You have, depending on entries of course, at best maybe a 1-in-100 or 1-in-1000 chance of actually placing high enough to get a financial reward. You'd have better odds trying to make money by gambling in Vegas.

                      I think you have to approach contests like any other wager. Set aside an amount of money you're willing to play with. It's fun money and you're okay losing it. Like buying a lottery ticket, or participating in a raffle, or a gambling in a casino, you hope for the best, but you're okay walking away with nothing. If a contest (or contests) fall within that budget and appeal to you, go for it. If they don't, pass on them.

                      But I think choosing and entering contests based on the financial rewards - or even career prospects - is a mistake, because the likelihood of it panning out only occasionally justify the expense, IMO.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: Am I being too materialistic?

                        Originally posted by SundownInRetreat View Post
                        Note: this is not a debate on the worth of contests so let's not bog it down with the usual pro vs anti contest rhetoric.


                        I look at the contests around and I'm only compelled by those with what I consider to be a decent ROI. Page, Nicholl, TrackingB all have esablished reputations for forwarding careers which alone makes them valuable (they also give out decent prizes as well) but I don't see the point of some of the lesser ones. Granted, the odds of winning any competition with thousands of entries is slim but there has to be that incentive, for me at least.

                        I won't mention names - and anyone can check them out on the DDP contest page - but for example, I got an email yesterday about a last chance for a small but well known competition. $75 to win $5000 seems nice but the 4 runner up spots weren't even 3x the entry fee (I know it's a late fee but still). Others don't even give out money or anything helpful towards career (software, prod meets, agents) and just hand out trophies.

                        I know the real prize is being able to put a win/SF/QF on your CV but I still need more. Especially when you consider winning most comps won't make a jot of difference to your career. Even if the comp didn't generate any leads, 4/5 figures would still make it a worthwhile investment.

                        For those of you who do enter contests, what do you look for (reputation apart)? Am I approaching it in the wrong manner?
                        Use your entry fee money to buy lottery tickets.

                        If you're entering contests for the prize money, it's not worth the time and effort. Not just because the prizes tend to be very light (and virtually non-existent if you don't win first place), but judging can be very subjective. A quality script is going to get you easily into the top ten percent, but then you could easily get runner up just because the reader isn't a fan of your genre or likes someone else's setting better.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: Am I being too materialistic?

                          Some smaller contests offer notes at no extra cost. I'm currently re-writing both my feature and pilot based on the spot-on feedback I got from CWA.

                          Should I do well in the big contests, and get read requests, then the scripts I'll be sending out will be all the more improved because of the feedback I got in the smaller contests.

                          And waiting on the small contests to announce results helps to pass the time - gives me something to focus on - while I'm waiting for PAGE/Nicholl/Austin to announce.
                          "Do just once what others say you can't do, and you will never pay attention to their limitations again." -[/SIZE] James R. Cook

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Re: Am I being too materialistic?

                            Doesn't BlueCat offer notes as well as a decent wedge?
                            M.A.G.A.

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Re: Am I being too materialistic?

                              Originally posted by UnequalProductions View Post
                              Use your entry fee money to buy lottery tickets. If you're entering contests for the prize money, it's not worth the time and effort. Not just because the prizes tend to be very light (and virtually non-existent if you don't win first place), but judging can be very subjective. A quality script is going to get you easily into the top ten percent, but then you could easily get runner up just because the reader isn't a fan of your genre or likes someone else's setting better.
                              Yes.

                              Comment

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