Sold script, movie in post-prod., can't get agent...

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  • #16
    Re: Sold script, movie in post-prod., can't get agent...

    Originally posted by JeffLowell View Post
    Chuck:

    First, congrats on getting the film made.

    I checked on imdb, and I think you're running into a problem finding an agent for a few reasons, the biggest of which is that it's a low budget movie which is unlikely to see a theatrical release. There are thousands of movies made in this price range every year - just being a co-writer on a 1.5 million dollar movie isn't going to open any doors in and of itself.

    If this were an indie that was going the festival route, and it gathered a lot of important awards, you'd get some attention. But this looks more like a genre pic than that.

    I'd say much less in your query letter. When you list the cast, any agent you'd want knows immediately what level of movie it is. Just say you just had a movie produced and you have a book coming out, and leave it at that.

    Again, it's a huge accomplishment getting it shot - congrats. But the truth is that there's so little money for writers on movies like this that agents aren't really going to be incentivized to rep you off the movie alone.
    HUGE response here and absolutely spot-on.

    I didn't want to be the bubble burster as you seem like a swell enough guy with the right passion and a head on straight, but, these movies are made all the time in this town and I know quite a few writers of those films who can't find reps. I made one of these actually some time back and it did nothing for me. When I started leaving that film and other accomplishments including novellas, etc. out of my queries and strictly stuck to a logline and being a screenwriter, agents began to reply.

    This may sound strange but reps want focused screenwriters who want to do nothing else but write scripts. I mean, when you start throwing in that you're making low-budget movies and writing novels, well, they begin to think you're uncertain of your goals or at minimum will not be 100% into writing scripts and taking writing assignments because you may be busy or interested in these other fields.

    Also, would that film have made the agent any money? Probably not much, if any, right? So why are you selling them on something they wouldn't have beeen interested in representing in the first place? That cast screams pass, man. Many of those actors travel this town's low budget circuit and will sign on anything. It tells the agent you're willing to give your work up for pennies and maybe that's what it's worth? I'm not trying to be insulting, just trying to shed light on what you might not be seeing. Again, I've been down that road, I get it.

    Good luck!

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    • #17
      Re: Sold script, movie in post-prod., can't get agent...

      Originally posted by Landis26 View Post
      Try and ask your publisher for a lead/referral to an agent or manager
      Howdy from a fellow Dorch & Pocket author

      I love the folks at Dorchester, but I'd be surprised if they have any great leads there for getting your foot in the door with either a screenplay agent or a producer.


      My book agent referred me to a very successful script agent, but he's had my book six months and hasn't read it.
      Is he looking only at selling the film rights to that book, or repping you as a screenwriter? (my book agent got one of the big 5 agencies involved in repping my book option, but there was never any suggestion that the agent or agency would rep me as either a screenwriter or for all of my books; I've got a manager now, in addition to my book agent, but no film agent. From your posts it sounds like you may need to clarify the expectations re the script agent who has your book).

      If the film agent is only looking at the one book, then I'd suggest querying managers, basing your query on the strength of your career as a whole (law enforcement, books, scripts already optioned/produced), and on whatever pitches and/or upcoming book proposals you have in the works.

      Also, it looks like your agent works with a former Endeavor agent. If that's not where the book is currently sitting, I'd definitely talk to your agent about asking Eric to make a few suggestions on your behalf.
      If you have someone on the set for the hair, why would you not have someone for the words?
      Louis Malle

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      • #18
        Re: Sold script, movie in post-prod., can't get agent...

        Telly's probably right about not mentioning the movie.

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        • #19
          Re: Sold script, movie in post-prod., can't get agent...

          Jeff and Telly,

          I appreciate the insight. It's sad, but much appreciated.

          Chuck
          www.chuckhustmyre.com

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          • #20
            Re: Sold script, movie in post-prod., can't get agent...

            Maybe it's all those Fox News appearances listed in your bio?

            I kid. Best of luck with the movie. RE an agent: just hunt one down the same way you'd hunt down a drug dealer.
            "People spend so much time focusing on rescuing the princess, they forget how much fun it is to fight the dragon."
            - Simon Pegg & Nick Frost, DAVE

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            • #21
              Re: Sold script, movie in post-prod., can't get agent...

              Originally posted by chuckhustmyre
              ...The insights are great, and from what I'm hearing I just don't have enough juice yet to interest an L.A. script agent. If that's the case, I'll just keep writing my little scripts and books, getting them produced and published...
              I'm with you. I'm on script #13 and not sweating the non-agent/manager status. When one or two sales come, there'll be a line-up at my door. Then, if I feel like it, I'll offer them 5% and let them ride my coat-tails.

              As for your cast, I agree with you there, too. They're excellent! Their "agents" must have thought highly enough of it to have put the opportunity in front of them.

              As for the story itself, it's certainly not the kind of script I write, but I'll give you my personal thumbs-up, thumbs-down reviewer's metric.

              And how does it go?

              "I'd watch that movie!"

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              • #22
                Re: Sold script, movie in post-prod., can't get agent...

                Originally posted by emily blake View Post
                You're right of course, but I do see people use Bill's situation to prove that life without an agent is great. But I know Bill would love to have a top notch rep work for him. Just because you don't HAVE to have an agent doesn't mean you don't want one.
                yep - i was just pointing out the difference between "need" and "want".

                RE an agent: just hunt one down the same way you'd hunt down a drug dealer.
                give em a taste and hook em for life?!

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                • #23
                  Re: Sold script, movie in post-prod., can't get agent...

                  Originally posted by chuckhustmyre
                  I appreciate the replies, but I disagree on the cast. Danny Trejo was in Predators; Dominic Purcell was the star of Prison Break; Amy Smart was in Mirrors and Crank. They're not exactly nobodies. I'm shocked we got them for the budget.
                  you should definitely take this on the film festival circuit. any time you have known actors they want your movie. they're not a-list but they are recognizable and this is important to the success of film festivals. and hopefully you can find a distributor at one of them.

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                  • #24
                    Re: Sold script, movie in post-prod., can't get agent...

                    When I landed in LA now what seems like a long time ago - sh*t it was! I snagged an agent two months after I got there. She was a small timer, sold a few scripts and was the book agent for Robert Kosberg, so I signed with her. Then nothing. But as they say "any agent is better than no agent." I left her when I got another at a mid-level agency. Then ... nothing. just kept writing. I moved back home - missed my girlfriend. Somehow I knew this was going to probably take a long time. The saying goes either it takes 10 minutes or 10 years. My 10 minutes were up. Then I wrote a big action spec that was getting some notice and got it to an agent and he flew me out to LA to sign with him and be there when they "auctioned" it. Remember those days? Then .... nothing. Got a bunch of meetings thou. In my "career" I have landed assignments and paid options, one was a low budget film that got made - the kind Jeff is talking about. No big agent cared. But almost every time I have been paid as a writer ... I got the job. My agent would do the paperwork for ME pressing money in his/her hand.

                    Don't sweat an agent. Somewhere in there is that point. lol

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                    • #25
                      Re: Sold script, movie in post-prod., can't get agent...

                      The film already has a distributor, per his query letter a few posts back.

                      And Chuck, I'm certainly not making a judgement about the talent of your cast, just that they brand the movie as not a theatrical release.

                      I think you just need to pare down and focus your letter. Are you trying to find an agent to sell your novel's film rights? Are you trying to be a screenwriter? Do you have a new spec? The kitchen sink approach can hurt, IMO.

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                      • #26
                        Re: Sold script, movie in post-prod., can't get agent...

                        Jeff,

                        I have a new script under option to the same EP. What I'm trying to do now is sell the film rights to my upcoming novel (A KILLER LIKE ME/Aug. 2011). I would also like to write the script.

                        If I can't interest an agent in trying to sell the film rights, I'm going to write the script on spec and try again to get an agent. Perhaps with a script in hand and a book coming out, I can get one.

                        The reason I'm trying to get an agent now is time. I have two upcoming books to do a quick polish on (KILLER and the novel of HOUSE) plus a new new novel I just finished (AXMAN). At 100,000-plus words each, polishing a book isn't quite as easy as a script. They take three or four weeks each.

                        So I was hoping to get an agent to find a deal where I could get PAID to write the script for my novel KILLER.

                        That no longer looks likely, but it was my dream.

                        The good news is when I get through the books sometime this spring, I can concentrate on writing the script for KILLER.



                        Originally posted by JeffLowell View Post
                        The film already has a distributor, per his query letter a few posts back.

                        And Chuck, I'm certainly not making a judgement about the talent of your cast, just that they brand the movie as not a theatrical release.

                        I think you just need to pare down and focus your letter. Are you trying to find an agent to sell your novel's film rights? Are you trying to be a screenwriter? Do you have a new spec? The kitchen sink approach can hurt, IMO.
                        www.chuckhustmyre.com

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                        • #27
                          Re: Sold script, movie in post-prod., can't get agent...

                          Originally posted by NikeeGoddess View Post
                          bmartell has several produced scripts. i think 18 now and he doesn't have an agent either. if you can negotiate, sell and option without one then why give them 10%?

                          martell is da bomb but none of his flicks have had theatrical releases and most have been low budge...Someone like Lowell makes more money and bigger career strides with one movie than martell can do with five or probably all...the agent is the difference.

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                          • #28
                            Re: Sold script, movie in post-prod., can't get agent...

                            I think the main problem with your queries, at least in my opinion was touched on earlier.

                            Agents are very much a "what can we do together right now" group of people, and your not offering them that. In all reality, your not offering them anything to work with, your just asking them to work with you. You're tellign them what you've done so far and asking what they can do for you.

                            If you had another script geared up and ready to go I think you might get more responses from them. But since you don't I think the people you should be targeting are managers, not agents.

                            Agents and producers generally dont want to hear what you might have ready for them in 3 to 6 months, they want to know what you have ready for them to work with right now.

                            Again that is just my opinion...

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                            • #29
                              Re: Sold script, movie in post-prod., can't get agent...

                              Originally posted by chuckhustmyre
                              I appreciate the replies, but I disagree on the cast. Danny Trejo was in Predators; Dominic Purcell was the star of Prison Break; Amy Smart was in Mirrors and Crank. They're not exactly nobodies. I'm shocked we got them for the budget.

                              As far as focus. I'm certainly not going to stop writing novels. I just spent 15 months working on a historical crime novel that my agent is about to start shopping around New York. Not to mention, I have the novel "House of the Rising Sun" coming out, which is what I adapted the script from.

                              The insights are great, and from what I'm hearing I just don't have enough juice yet to interest an L.A. script agent. If that's the case, I'll just keep writing my little scripts and books, getting them produced and published.

                              Fortunately, the same EP wants to make several more movies with me, so I'll keep at it. Maybe he'll soon be able to step up the budgets to the $5 million range.

                              This sure is a tough business, but I got one script produced and I got paid decent money for it. Were I boxing, I'd figure I was ahead on points

                              Thanks to everyone for taking the time to reply.

                              Chuck
                              The question, IMO, from a representative's perspective is, are you consistently writing commercial specs? If so, then this is going to be more interesting than having a couple of small novels under your belt. It's good background information which tells people that you have some chops and are committed to the writing life, so I think it should help you get reads, but it's more about what you have available to sell now and in the next six months that could break you out.

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                              • #30
                                Re: Sold script, movie in post-prod., can't get agent...

                                Originally posted by chuckhustmyre
                                true illusion,

                                I have the film rights I'm trying to get an agent to sell. My new book, A KILLER LIKE ME, will be out nationally in August as trade paper and ebook.

                                That is the point of my query. I'm looking for an agent to sell the film rights.

                                Maybe I'm not clear enough.
                                Maybe you are being too limited, particularly if you are trying to find someone to sell the rights to something that looks a bit too small and dark. People want big, commercial specs. Are you writing anything like that?

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