Are people in LA really this bad?

[Braincramp]

I have met several people out here that have the balls to ask me to write a screenplay for them for NO MONEY!! All because of who they know, as if that really means anything.
Non-writers really have no clue, or do they? As a warning to the naive or kind hearted, avoid any and all situations where people ask you to waste you time by writing for them. If you're going to be a writer, write for yourself only.

[frontburner]

Never, ever underestimate us Angelenos. We're rude, unreasonable, and we never settle until we get our way.

[gravitas]

Not just LA. Last month, I was approached by two different people in New York that wanted me to spec for free. One was an actor, the other a producer. Both touting potential attachments with no credible in-writing letter of intent from anyone. Every person I meet and even people who meet my wife have an idea they want to talk to me about writing, but never for an industry standard rate. Unless you are a writer, or a writer's spouse, HARDLY ANYONE has a clue about how much work it takes to write a production ready script.

[frontburner]

NY is worse. In every way.

Except for maybe baseball.

[CColoredClown]

Originally Posted by frontburner

NY is worse. In every way.

Except for maybe baseball.

You watch the Mets lately? I'd rather watch poop melt into the sidewalk.

[Telly]

Originally Posted by CColoredClown

You watch the Mets lately? I'd rather watch poop melt into the sidewalk.

Um, do you mean the same Mets that have won 6 in a row and are only a half game back in the east?

That's my kind of poop.

[frontburner]

Originally Posted by CColoredClown

You watch the Mets lately? I'd rather watch poop melt into the sidewalk.

I was talking about the Yankees. The Mets aren't a real baseball team to me.

(And I'm a Boston fan.)

[Ronaldinho]

For better or worse, this seems to be how a lot of people are going on with specs these days:

The spec is developed in conjunction with a producer, who may attach talent, and then the whole package is shopped. This way you're not just selling the script, but rather "a Taylor Lautner project."

You're giving up a free attachment (which can be a problem if its the wrong attachment) but getting the producer's ability to put together a package. You also may find yourself waiting long periods of time on a producer who sees you as his lowest-priority project.

The upside to the writer is that the compensation is potentially much greater than if the producer hired you to write the script. (You then become the lynchpin not on a highly speculative project, but on Taylor Lautner's next film!). But, of course, said compensation is less certain.

My agent and manager (both with major companies - we're not talking about random outsiders here) arrange this sort of agreement with some regularity.

[tucsonray]

I think the key would be to 1. write something you will enjoy writing anyway and 2. make sure you retain the rights to the script as much as possible in the event this deal falls through.

For unrepped writers who are writing specs for nothing anyway, this arrangement is closer to the holy grail than starting at ground zero each time.

My guess is that if someone writes a script and sends out the obligatory 1000 queires, leading to a response from a producer 'I love your idea and I want to try to attach X to the project' that would be a pretty good day... here it's just that the order is kinda backwards.

[CColoredClown]

Originally Posted by Telly

Um, do you mean the same Mets that have won 6 in a row and are only a half game back in the east?

That's my kind of poop.

Beating the Indians and Orioles shouldn't count as being hot. One win against the Padres, that's ok (especially since I'm a Dodger's fan), but the other five don't mean much. If they can sweep the Yanks, then it might be impressive.

But as far as people who will ask for the most insane things in the entertianment industry, yeah, it's not just an LA thing.