Trackinb Contest

[AlexNoa]

Originally Posted by Mintclub

Really? Top 40 out of 4000/ top 8 out of 1000. Hmm, I'm no mathematician but they seem statistically pretty close to me...

It may seem close to you but which placement is more impressive to a rep, top 40 or 8?

[Mintclub]

Originally Posted by AlexNoa

It may seem close to you but which placement is more impressive to a rep, top 40 or 8?

Maybe that depends on the contest...

[iggy]

Originally Posted by AlexNoa

By your logic, every one of the 1000+ entrants last year thought their script was great. Some probably were. What makes you think yours is without knowing if it meets the nonspecific judging criteria?

Not sure what you mean. You think "nonspecific judging criteria" determines whether a script is great?

[AlexNoa]

Originally Posted by Mintclub

Maybe that depends on the contest...

My contention is TrackingB should not be in the very top tier of contests without transparency into their judging process and background of their readers. Do you agree that it should be?

[AlexNoa]

Originally Posted by iggy

Not sure what you mean. You think "nonspecific judging criteria" determines whether a script is great?

Nonspecific as in what is the policy for the reads (e.g. who's matched up with what, minimum page reads), backgrounds of the readers, their number. Without a policy, evaluation criteria may be inconsistent allowing for quality scripts to be passed over more often than they would if there was an expressly stated policy. Knowing so little, how can you have such confidence your script will successfully navigate these unclear waters?

[jsay]

Originally Posted by AlexNoa

Nonspecific as in what is the policy for the reads (e.g. who's matched up with what, minimum page reads), backgrounds of the readers, their number. Without a policy, evaluation criteria may be inconsistent allowing for quality scripts to be passed over more often than they would if there was an expressly stated policy. Knowing so little, how can you have such confidence your script will successfully navigate these unclear waters?

I know the process for Nicholl, but have never navigated through the contest successfully...

[iggy]

Originally Posted by AlexNoa

Knowing so little, how can you have such confidence your script will successfully navigate these unclear waters?

You can't. All you can do is write the very best script you're capable of writing. Then rewrite it and make it even better. You can't control the tastes of any readers anywhere.

But, you know, it's not like my kid is walking alone to school for the first time. I don't really need such confidence that the script will be able to navigate these unclear waters. I'm submitting a pdf to a contest. If it lands with its reader - great! If it doesn't, so what? I'll enter it someplace else or query it or put it aside and write the next one.

The fact that so many DDP regulars have had terrific success with trackingb makes it worth my $2.50 a week.

[ATB]

Originally Posted by SundownInRetreat

It doesn't matter where the money goes. It's none of your business... When you go for a mortgage or buy a train ticket or whatever, you have no right to demand where that money goes or how it's spent or how much is taken as profit. It's none of your business, simple.

Every customer of any "trusted" business has the right to ask where their money goes.

If I take out a mortgage loan from Bank of America, I will abso-fvcking-lutely make sure that I'm not being ripped off. I want to know what they're charging me and why. I'm not just going to grin and bear it if I think there's a possibility that I'm being fvcked over.

Nicholl is cheaper, sure, but winning, and with an artistic script rather than a commerical one, doesn't mean you're going to get snapped up.

Nicholl's winning scripts, finalists, semifinalists, and even quarterfinalists get numerous calls and emails from reps every year. I don't know what you're getting at there.

And does anyone really thinks some turgid 120 page script is going to be read to the end by readers in any competition? As soon as they realise it's not getting their vote for the next round, it's dropped, so questioning how much is read is also absurd IMO.

Not questioning how much is read is absurb. The whole reason for asking for transparency is so the entrants know their scripts are actually read. They're paying $65 to get what they don't get when they query prodco's and reps: a full read.

If a reader a TB only reads 5 pages or 3 pages or 1 page or just the logline and chucks a script, that's horrible. I don't care how terrible it is, the entrant paid you $65-$95 to read it. So fvcking read it.

But we don't know if that's happening or not. Transparency can fix that.

And here's the thing that seems to have been missed - whatever their judging critieria, it works. They may ditch scripts after 5 pages, they may vote titles to the next round based solely on the writing and not the story, or the story and not so much the writing behind it, it may be based on instinct and nothing regimented. But whatever the process - it works - and those still standing at the end are being snapped up by Hollywood.

Dude, are you listening to yourself? This is exactly why people are asking for transparency! Because they want to be certain that the TB "staff" isn't playing pin the tail on the donkey to find winners or semis or even to advance entrants beyond the first round.

There is absolutely no reason to not show your process if you're doing things the right way.

As Emily and Paradis have said, people quibbling over this are not ready to go pro.

I don't think anyone really believes that if you have a problem with the TB process then you're not ready for the show.

Sure, many people who would question the process are just hoping to get around it. But some are ready and want to make sure they're getting as fair a shot as possible.

As I've said before, I've never entered TB. But I know I'm ready. I can write and I know WTF I'm doing when I put pen to paper.

But if I question TB's lack of transparency it means I'm not?

Where is the logic in that?

Originally Posted by SundownInRetreat

Crazy. Sheer crazy. The guy has connections and is legit. So yeah, he can charge whatever he wants, for whatever he wants, just for the privelige. As others have said - and as you know - he gets you to the top level people - so even if he said, "guys, this is gold, rare as rocking horse s**t, you know it, so it's gonna cost you. It's gonna cost $65 a pop 'cause I reckon my time, rep and contacts are worth thousands and I reckon $65 is low enough to get the money I deserve. I'll pass on the top 10 that are truly quality enough. But be warned, I'm not passing on any crud, that s**t will kill my rep", then that would be fair enough.

I'm not saying the $65 entry fee is too high, though. I'm saying you need to justify it. Show me why. If you can't, then your business will be called into question.

Why can't the process be opened up? Is there some secret formula they're using that they can't possible give away like it's the Colonel's secret recipe? I don't think so. So, then, why?

Answer me that, riddler. Because when someone won't show you how they do something, it usually means they don't fvcking know.

Again, it's irrelevant. And IMO crazy. So what if it's pocketed? For a measly $65 - not even the cost of a meal for 2 at a restaurant, you're getting the chance to bypass the gatekeepers and filters.

By your logic, it shouldn't matter if a criminal hacks a banking server and steals .02 cents from every account holder. I mean, what's the 2 cents worth to them? They'd probably leave two pennies on the sidewalk if they glistened in the sunlight.

So what. Money matters, no matter how small. And where it goes matters even more.

[thrill14]

This is just absurd.

TrackingB does NOT have to justify its entry fee. It is a business. It has overhead. Maybe it makes a profit, maybe it doesn't. Who cares how many readers it employs, how many pages get read, or if it has quarterfinalists. My mom doesn't need to know that I finished 294th.

I was a finalist in the first year and I got repped right away. I'm in a screenwriting group with about ten other finalists and they're all repped too. With sales to tout. And its largely due to TrackingB.

When you buy crap on Ebay, how do you know the seller is reliable. You look at their rating for validation. Well, we're all validating that TrackingB is legit and awesome. And all of our reps have validated that TrackingB chose viable scripts, regardless of its methods.

As it was stated earlier in the thread, entry is not mandatory. And there are hundreds of script consulting services and fully transparent contests with zero clout. But trust me in that you would be missing a golden opportunity.

[Mintclub]

All these concerns about the validity of a contest, its transparency, where the money goes etc etc seem to me to be seen from two sides of the fence. Those that have benefited from a contest and can offer an insight into its process after winning, placing etc and those that haven't yet found success in a particular competition and seek additional assurances to justify entering.

Personally, I'm of the simple belief that if writers/ managers on sites such as this, speak highly of a contest, then it's worth a shot. Just submit and get on with writing your next script. It's a contest, there's lots of them. Pick the one you like the look of and move on. It's not life and death...