Originally posted by Jules
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The New Black List
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Re: The New Black List
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Re: The New Black List
Will it be known to us if a writer sells/gets repped due to a read on BL 3?
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Re: The New Black List
Originally posted by Deion22 View PostWhat if you have a script that is already posted on your site, and has a chance of making the OFFICIAL BLACK LIST at the end of the year. Do you think a writer is well served paying to have the script evaluated so it can get more eyes on it, so it has a better chance of making the OFFICIAL BLACK LIST at the end of the year?
What I'm asking basically, do you think this new service can also help enhance writers chances of making the official black list at the end of the year?
I imagine ultimately it would depend on how risk-seeking you are, and it's entirely your decision.
Honestly, I'm inclined to say no as it just feels wrong to me to tell someone to spend more money on the site in order to chase getting on the Black List.
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Re: The New Black List
Originally posted by RobWriter View PostSorry if I missed this earlier in the thread Franklin, but when you're talking about what a screenwriter can view on the site, I've seen mention made of member ratings - is that something that happens for free on the site once you've uploaded a script? Basically a "like" button for the scripts? Or are the ratings actually quantifiable based on a numeric scale (1 - 10)? So even if you don't pay for the $50 coverage, there is some method for the screenwriter to receive "feedback" on their script?
Hope my question makes sense.
Had another question - but just read through the comments and see it was answered.
Those ratings are quantifiable on a 1-10 scale. It is the writer's sole decision whether to make that average rating public or keep it private.
Yes, it's theoretically possible that someone will read your script if it has not had one of our readers review it, but it is admittedly less (probably far less) likely. I think it's important to mention again that the Black List is NOT a coverage service. It is a platform for movie makers to find good material and for good material to find movie makers to make it.
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Re: The New Black List
At the very least a writer should have the option of suspending their listing (and with holding its fee) until after they've received their coverage, to avoid a period of script blindness on the site.
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Re: The New Black List
Originally posted by Jules View PostSo if it's a waste of time paying the $25 listing fee if you don't/didn't intend on paying the $50 fee for a reader, wouldn't it make sense to include the reading fee into the initial listing fee (total $75) to avoid any confusion on a writer's part who thinks they may be getting something for their $25 alone.
And wouldn't it be even better to allow a writer to pay their $50 evaluation fee before choosing to list it or not, so they don't lose their $25 if their evaluation is poor, which in many cases could go either way with some scripts depending on the reader (I've seen this in coverages before, scriptshark multireader deals that had passes and recommends on the same script)
I think in many cases a writer is going to get a poor evaluation and feel they have to buy more reads to try level it out, and maybe they will, or they'll get more poor reviews and in desperation buy more read credits.
If you wanted to make the $25 listing fee without the $50 evaluation a more viable option then you could increase your search criteria in the way inktip (god bless them) do. For example giving the writer many boxes to tick be it budget, age skew, sex of the protag, story themes, setting, time period, various other content, etc. There's a huge amount of boxes to tick.
Which in turn allows a producer to search for exactly what they want, and if that's your script then at least you have a chance of getting your logline seen among the masses.
What I see happening is a lot of writers uploading because $25 seems viable, and not understanding that they're going to be wasting the money if they don't put down the other $50 for an evaluation, which for most will be a gamble anyway.
I think there needs to be more transparency in regards to this issue, I could not find a faq on your website which went into the dynamics of this.
I think our core ethic remains the same, however. We've creating a platform. It's up to writers and industry professionals to use their judgment about how they want to utilize it. You're right, however, that we need to be ultra transparent about how the platform functions, which is part of why I'm answer these questions here and will duplicate these answers on the Black list site, in the blog, and elsewhere.
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Re: The New Black List
What if you have a script that is already posted on your site, and has a chance of making the OFFICIAL BLACK LIST at the end of the year. Do you think a writer is well served paying to have the script evaluated so it can get more eyes on it, so it has a better chance of making the OFFICIAL BLACK LIST at the end of the year?
What I'm asking basically, do you think this new service can also help enhance writers chances of making the official black list at the end of the year?
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Re: The New Black List
Originally posted by Geoff Alexander View PostTo be honest, you might want to look at putting a limit on the number of reads that someone can purchase. Considering the way that you are going about launching this, i.e., doing the planning and information gathering necessary to be certain that this is a reasonably ethically driven venture, I think you may owe it to the writers to protect them from themselves. Maybe three reads would be a good limit? If someone is spending a lot of money that they don't have because they are unrealistic about their material but are trying to incrementally improve their standing, well, I think that would be really unfortunate, and not in line with your mandate.
That said, we see our role as empowering writers, not limiting their decisions for their own sake. So while we encourage responsible behavior, we won't be taking that decision out of users' hands.
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Re: The New Black List
Originally posted by lordmanji View PostSo do you have to list every script each month at 25, or is it just the first script that must be listed and every script after that if you pay for the read then it will automatically be listed?
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Re: The New Black List
Originally posted by CColoredClown View PostSorry about getting those numbers wrong, Franklin.
And thank you for answering all of these questions. I kept thinking up of questions to ask, but most have been addressed in this thread alone. After reading up on the topic, I decided to pony up the $50 for the read too.
Glad you decided "to pony up." Here's hoping your script is brilliant and that the site provides the access that allows you to continue to pursue screenwriting.
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Re: The New Black List
Originally posted by figment View PostThank you for continuing to answer our questions, Franklin.
This new info is interesting, as it gives the writer a bit of control as s/he is able to see how many people are downloading/viewing and rating their script. That would definitely help one decide to keep a script up or pull it.
And I'll keep answering your questions as long as you have them. Given the history of people doing work in this realm, a healthy skepticism is a rational response, and it's our obligation to allay people's fears about our intentions. We'll continue to do that until people realize that this is indeed something unlike anything that has existed before.
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Re: The New Black List
Sorry if I missed this earlier in the thread Franklin, but when you're talking about what a screenwriter can view on the site, I've seen mention made of member ratings - is that something that happens for free on the site once you've uploaded a script? Basically a "like" button for the scripts? Or are the ratings actually quantifiable based on a numeric scale (1 - 10)? So even if you don't pay for the $50 coverage, there is some method for the screenwriter to receive "feedback" on their script?
Hope my question makes sense.
Had another question - but just read through the comments and see it was answered.
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Re: The New Black List
Originally posted by Manchester View PostYes - But only if you do get that read/feedback soon. That was why I raised that question, above.
As much as this seems like an interesting venture, and as much as the $50 read seems like a reasonable thing (with all of the details as to how it's handled), here's where I run into a wall with the concept:
If someone is going to do this, the $50 read makes sense. For starters.
Then... Since all of the potential buyers know about the $50 read deal, if there are any scripts posted without one - seems reasonable to assume the person (a) could not do the math, or (b) got a bad review. And if it is (b) - which would be a reasonable assumption (especially after the first month a script is posted), how many potential buyers want to check scripts that they presume received a bad review?
And so from a writer's perspective, this seems to be the proposition (assuming you can get the read results back within a week or so): $75 for a read and posting for one month - plus, if you get a positive read, maybe another $25-$50 to have it posted for 1-2 more months. But if the read results are bad, then $75 - and that's it.
As someone else mentioned above, this is kinda like a contest, from a cost perspective. OTOH, you don't have to wait 6 months or more to find out what happens.
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Re: The New Black List
Originally posted by cshel View PostSo, you could pay $50.00 to get however many of your reader evaluations that you want, but can you choose only to post the evaluations you like?
Also, though, you're saying that every time somebody in your HW database reads it, they give it an evaluation, too - and does that stay with it forever, or can the writer choose not to have those on there, if they are bad? Or is that one of the basic points of this? So others in your database can avoid your script?
Obviously, if all of your evaluations from either source were bad, you should probably just take your script down altogether.
An extreme example, I buy 100 reads. 2 of them, miraculously, are good. 8s out of 10. The other 98 are terrible. 2s out of 10. I could choose to only publish the 2 positive reviews, but there'd be considerably less traffic drawn to my script by the Black List algorithm than there would be to a script that, say, had only 2 paid reads that were 8s out of 10.
As a matter of policy, we "do no harm." The attention of industry professional members is only drawn to a script if either 1. one of our readers likes it. 2. many of our industry pros like it and rate it highly or 3. our recommendation algorithm things that individual industry pro will like the script based on their taste.
If the script's getting bad ratings, you should probably take it down, but the site isn't going to spoil your reputation because you've written a bad script. It's going to inform you that the ratings are bad and that no one particularly wants to read it, but it's not going to inform anyone else of that fact.
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Re: The New Black List
So if it's a waste of time paying the $25 listing fee if you don't/didn't intend on paying the $50 fee for a reader, wouldn't it make sense to include the reading fee into the initial listing fee (total $75) to avoid any confusion on a writer's part who thinks they may be getting something for their $25 alone.
And wouldn't it be even better to allow a writer to pay their $50 evaluation fee before choosing to list it or not, so they don't lose their $25 if their evaluation is poor, which in many cases could go either way with some scripts depending on the reader (I've seen this in coverages before, scriptshark multireader deals that had passes and recommends on the same script)
I think in many cases a writer is going to get a poor evaluation and feel they have to buy more reads to try level it out, and maybe they will, or they'll get more poor reviews and in desperation buy more read credits.
If you wanted to make the $25 listing fee without the $50 evaluation a more viable option then you could increase your search criteria in the way inktip (god bless them) do. For example giving the writer many boxes to tick be it budget, age skew, sex of the protag, story themes, setting, time period, various other content, etc. There's a huge amount of boxes to tick.
Which in turn allows a producer to search for exactly what they want, and if that's your script then at least you have a chance of getting your logline seen among the masses.
What I see happening is a lot of writers uploading because $25 seems viable, and not understanding that they're going to be wasting the money if they don't put down the other $50 for an evaluation, which for most will be a gamble anyway.
I think there needs to be more transparency in regards to this issue, I could not find a faq on your website which went into the dynamics of this.
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