New Black List Thread - Franklin Leonard answers your questions

[graybooks]

Originally Posted by WaitForIt

I bet it's a Nicholl overload. Which would figure.

Austin's reading now, too.

General question: Does anyone here have a sense of how much overlap there is among the hired readers for BL, Nicholl, Austin, etc.?

[CrissCross]

Sounds like Franklin should get more readers than the 80 he currently has.

[CColoredClown]

Originally Posted by CrissCross

Sounds like Franklin should get more readers than the 80 he currently has.

But if the BL rushes to hire readers and they're not great, imagine all the writers complaining about the terrible quality of the readers.

[FranklinLeonard]

Originally Posted by CColoredClown

But if the BL rushes to hire readers and they're not great, imagine all the writers complaining about the terrible quality of the readers.

Yeah, suffice it to say demand for evaluations has grown quite a bit over the last few months.

We'll always opt to give away free months of hosting instead of hiring substandard readers.

There is very little (I dare say no) overlap between our readers and those for Austin, Nicholl, etc. Many of our readers, however, do read for some of the major agencies, production companies, and studios.

[jariax]

Originally Posted by CColoredClown

But if the BL rushes to hire readers and they're not great, imagine all the writers complaining about the terrible quality of the readers.

Trust me. Writers will find ways to complain regardless.

[graybooks]

Originally Posted by FranklinLeonard

There is very little (I dare say no) overlap between our readers and those for Austin, Nicholl, etc. Many of our readers, however, do read for some of the major agencies, production companies, and studios.

Thanks, Franklin, for that direct answer. That's good to hear.

[GhostWhite]

Originally Posted by Bods

I'm curious as to what other peoples' experiences have been like with uploading television pilots -- I know many have found representation or optioned work with the aid of the site from putting up a feature, but wondering if anyone out there has had such good fortune with putting up a good pilot. I put up a television script, got a couple good scores, a few downloads -- but aside from the cool opportunities with networks, I wonder if people are using the site for television in the same way that they are for features. Thanks in advance for any thoughts.

I received an 8 for a pilot shortly before midnight on a Sunday two weeks ago, and subsequently got 7 downloads on 7 pro views over the next couple of days after the Monday email circulated. While perusing the list for top unrepresented pilots, it seemed the majority of ratings were the result of BL reader evaluations; however, the only conclusions I can draw from that would be speculative, at best. I haven't received any ratings or responses from those downloads, something that could be attributed to any number of things ranging from bad writing/subjectivity to reps being busy, etc.

I can say this for sure: I can't get seven reads from cold queries. Period. My loglines are simply not high-concept, so having the option of going to the Black List to validate the quality of my work is very important, as it gives me an opportunity to query elsewhere with a good score. I've stopped apologizing for the type of writer I am, for better or worse, instead focusing on becoming a better version of me. I'm happier that way, and it shows in the writing. So ... if the BL can assist me in that pursuit, I'll keep doing business there, even if additional ratings and/or responses never arrive.

I wish I had more insight, but that was my first pilot, so I'm fairly ignorant as to how the TV side operates. I know a lot of reps were very busy recently with staffing season, and I imagine it's difficult to get excited about reading new pilots from unknown writers while serving the immediate needs of clients.

[bmcthomas]

I hosted a television pilot that had an overall score of 7 with component scores of 9 for character and 8 for concept. I thought the component scores would qualify me for one of the weekly emails, but I saw no traffic of any kind in the weeks following my rating. Of course it's possible my logline just wasn't appealing, or that I was mistaken about inclusion in the email.

[Bods]

Originally Posted by GhostWhite

I received an 8 for a pilot shortly before midnight on a Sunday two weeks ago, and subsequently got 7 downloads on 7 pro views over the next couple of days after the Monday email circulated. While perusing the list for top unrepresented pilots, it seemed the majority of ratings were the result of BL reader evaluations; however, the only conclusions I can draw from that would be speculative, at best. I haven't received any ratings or responses from those downloads, something that could be attributed to any number of things ranging from bad writing/subjectivity to reps being busy, etc.

I can say this for sure: I can't get seven reads from cold queries. Period. My loglines are simply not high-concept, so having the option of going to the Black List to validate the quality of my work is very important, as it gives me an opportunity to query elsewhere with a good score. I've stopped apologizing for the type of writer I am, for better or worse, instead focusing on becoming a better version of me. I'm happier that way, and it shows in the writing. So ... if the BL can assist me in that pursuit, I'll keep doing business there, even if additional ratings and/or responses never arrive.

I wish I had more insight, but that was my first pilot, so I'm fairly ignorant as to how the TV side operates. I know a lot of reps were very busy recently with staffing season, and I imagine it's difficult to get excited about reading new pilots from unknown writers while serving the immediate needs of clients.

Thanks for sharing your experience, man. I would think that 7 downloads off of 7 views is pretty good. I got an 8, and only got 2 downloads off of it. Though, my project is probably not the most commercial thing in the world. Regardless, I agree with you -- I think it's worth it -- maybe for just the evaluation alone... quite insightful much to my surprise. I'm with ya -- I think I will keep using it. Despite the fact that, (which I also agree with you on), that it's probably easier to get excited about reading a cool feature from an unknown writer, rather than reading a cool pilot from an unknown writer. Anyways, thanks for the post.

[AP Oz]

I thought the new Blacklist percentage indicator on the progress of pending evaluations was pretty cool-- until I just hit 95% tonight! Argh!

Apparently my script has been reviewed by the reader and is now "Pending Manager Approval."

Which I'm guessing means it won't go through until tomorrow during the work day-- hence the "Argh!"

Has anyone ever gotten a Blacklist review at night? I just noticed that all of my previous ones have come between 8:55 AM and 5:30 PM.