CoWriting to direct

Collapse

Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • CoWriting to direct

    Hey all-

    How would one go about cowriting a script and ensuring that one of the two writers is attached to direct?

    I am assuming the first step is to discuss with the cowriter and clarify that this will be the case. Preferably prior to the first sit down meeting so everyone is on the same page.

    Anything else? Any legal docs?

  • #2
    Re: CoWriting to direct

    Yes you need to layout terms and get them in writing. There are some example docs right here on this website:

    http://www.donedealpro.com/members/l...&section_id=13

    You need to make sure rights and credit and payment, etc. are all laid out and that you are protected. Such things as writing credit, story credit etc. at least in the screenplay phase and also what happens if there is another writer brought in, etc.

    IMHO if you can it's better to architect the writing and directing rights separately as that gives the project more flexibility (if that's what you want) in finding success. ie. You'd hate to have someone interested in in producing your work with a different director only to find out legally a director is already attached that can't be divested.

    IMHO you want to make it as easy as possible to market your project and the more strings, the more either have to be cut later or just end up being too many strings to make the project appealing.
    You know Jill you remind me of my mother. She was the biggest whore in Alameda and the finest woman that ever lived. Whoever my father was, for an hour or for a month, he must have been a happy man.

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: CoWriting to direct

      This is a really tricky one. I assume you're the directing writer?

      I just want to start by saying that this is a bad idea unless you have some criteria in place:

      e.g., the budget is low, you have an impressive directing reel, etc. Otherwise, this seems like a terrible deal for the non-directing writer.

      Yes, your first meeting should be, "I'm looking for a co-writer on something I'm going to direct."

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: CoWriting to direct

        Thank you. I am indeed the director, but I am also a seasoned screenwriter so I would be doing much of the heavy lifting myself in terms of writing. Most likely the idea would be my own.

        I understand the reluctance to enter a collaboration like this one from the non-directing writer. However many first films have writing teams. How different are those projects from what I am suggesting? I am not going to argue the case for or against cowriting because frankly I have always avoided it myself. But there is strength in numbers, specifically in terms of how many active directorial projects one is trying to pursue.

        I should probably have mentioned that the budget would be small. Not tiny but quite small. Under $2 million.

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: CoWriting to direct

          It depends on the type and scale of project, but as a general rule the person/company/studio who is putting up the budget and carrying the risk will decide who gets to be director and who doesn't. If you have a bond guarantor you may discover they will have final say on which director(s) will be approved. There's not enough information in your question to be much more specific than that, but you should definitely have a very clear contract with the other writer from the outset.
          "Friends make the worst enemies." Frank Underwood

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: CoWriting to direct

            well...
            It might be a rarity, but a friend of mine got her script bought by the financiers and it clearly stated in the contract that she is the only person who can direct that script. She had a great package to go with the script which obviously helped.

            If you have a script and you, first time director, shop it around town with yourself attached to direct the odds of it getting picked up are obviously slimmer. But it absolutely happens.

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: CoWriting to direct

              Originally posted by TravisPickle View Post
              well...
              It might be a rarity, but a friend of mine got her script bought by the financiers and it clearly stated in the contract that she is the only person who can direct that script. She had a great package to go with the script which obviously helped.
              No it's not a rarity. Like I said, the people carrying the financial risk usually determine who is acceptable and the deal usually only goes ahead with one person nominated as director. If that person becomes unavailable for any reason then the same process usually applies to the replacement.
              "Friends make the worst enemies." Frank Underwood

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: CoWriting to direct

                Fund it yourself.
                Free Script Tips:
                http://www.scriptsecrets.net

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: CoWriting to direct



                  Originally posted by wcmartell View Post
                  Fund it yourself.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Re: CoWriting to direct

                    Originally posted by DavidK View Post
                    No it's not a rarity. Like I said, the people carrying the financial risk usually determine who is acceptable and the deal usually only goes ahead with one person nominated as director. If that person becomes unavailable for any reason then the same process usually applies to the replacement.
                    The problem comes with other investors who don't like financing films from directors with no track record. Or actors who don't want to work with untested directors. If you want to direct, you'd better have a handful of film fest shorts you can show them. I know a lot of great actors who won't touch a first time director with a 10 foot pole no matter how good the script is.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: CoWriting to direct

                      Originally posted by EdFury View Post
                      The problem comes with other investors who don't like financing films from directors with no track record. Or actors who don't want to work with untested directors. If you want to direct, you'd better have a handful of film fest shorts you can show them. I know a lot of great actors who won't touch a first time director with a 10 foot pole no matter how good the script is.
                      Exactly. The investors will decide what is and what isn't acceptable risk and their investment is usually contingent on the appointment of certain key positions which include primarily director and cast but can also include first AD and DoP among others. This is the minefield that distinguishes a real producer from an aspiring producer.
                      "Friends make the worst enemies." Frank Underwood

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: CoWriting to direct

                        I appreciate everybody's replies. It seems like we have veered a little bit off
                        course from the initial questions, which were mostly about the logistics involved in cowriting when one of the people plans on directing the material. Most of the thoughts have been very interesting regardless.

                        I will throw in my two cents on the difficulties associated with directing your own script. Because I am currently in the process of doing exactly that with a script I wrote. It is definitely not easy, but I don't agree that the ball is completely in the court of those who option the material and thus want the easiest option: to attach a bankable director. That sounds like a spec sale more than an attempt by a writer/director to direct his own project.

                        Obviously the assumption is that the script will be great, but I strongly believe that ultimately who controls the material is the most important person in the equation. And if that person is hell-bent on directing it he or she has quite a bit of leverage. The best case scenario is that with a strong reel, or a very convincing presentation complete with look book, and storyboards, a financier will believe enough in the package to go forth. Of course we are talking small budgets here - anything above a couple of million dollars would be unrealistic. If the financier does not believe in it? They just pass on the whole thing. But if you find that one person that is going to buy your script and also give you a shot at directing it, it is a very strong position to be in and well worth the wait and the frustrations. It is definitely an option - just much harder than throwing a script at execs and letting them get on with finding a director. Directors who, by the way, could very well suck and have no better or worse ideas then the writer himself.

                        But all of this implies that the writer wishing to direct is in fact a director. Somebody who has studied directing or has shorts. Or somebody who can shoot something in support of the project to prove that they have the chops. That goes without saying.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: CoWriting to direct

                          On one of my shorts, the exec told me he'd give me the money but only if I use his choice of a first time director even though I had my own experienced director I wanted to use. I thought about it for 48 hours, then accepted because I came up with a solution.

                          I hired a really experienced cinematographer with a strong personality who would be able "cover" should the director make poor decisions.

                          Project was a success and the director did an outstanding job.

                          What I'm saying is this: the money people absolutely have control over who they want on the project. If I didn't agree, I wouldn't have got the money. And it was a short film and the budget was only 35k.

                          Yours is a feature and your budget is 2 million...

                          I would think you'd have a better chance without attaching yourself to direct.
                          il faut d'abord durer

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Re: CoWriting to direct

                            If a writer/director absolutely wants to direct his or her own project, it depends on the track record of the writer/director. A beginning writer/director will have to fund the project himself/herself.

                            There are a number of writer/directors with track records like Spike Jonze, Spike Lee, Tyler Perry, Quentin Tarantino who have no trouble attracted executive producers or outside financiers because of their track records.

                            I think the majority of the people on this forum just wish to sell screenplays as opposed to being filmmakers (writer/director and/or writer/producer). So consider that when getting the comments.
                            Check out my videos at http://www.youtube.com/user/NyFilmmaker32/videos

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Re: CoWriting to direct

                              I know a writer who entered into this kind of relationship with a director. Many producers were interested in the script, but without the director. They felt his reel just wasn't strong enough. The director dug in his heels and refused to step off as director (he was offered a courtesy producer credit, and would have had a share of the writer credit). The project is now dead.

                              If you want to be fair to the writer, you'd put in a time limit for how long you have to be attached to direct.

                              Comment

                              Working...
                              X