Trackinb Contest

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  • Re: Trackinb Contest

    Originally posted by Eleanor_of_Aquitaine View Post
    You're entitled to your opinion.

    Contests (the legitimate ones) are another way of getting your work into the hands of industry professionals. As a struggling screenwriter, I can only see it as a good thing.

    If you are deterred by the odds, you should chase a different dream.
    I'm already repped and working, thanks.

    The focus on contests is disproportionate to the number of writers for whom this has been a springboard.

    If you survey WGA members, I'm sure you'll find that only a very small number of them attribute their success to a contest win. So, your focus on contests should realistically also be very small. That's what I'm trying to get at here.

    But the focus here is all consuming. It's warped. It's seen as the only way to get read, but that's not true to reality. Maybe for foreigners there could be an element of truth, that would have to be a seperate survey.

    The viral aspect is most likely only serving as a distraction, or another obstacle, for a lot of new writers.

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    • Re: Trackinb Contest

      How did you get repped? Tell us your story. That might actually be helpful.
      Chicks Who Script podcast

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      • Re: Trackinb Contest

        Originally posted by nojustice View Post

        If you survey WGA members, I'm sure you'll find that only a very small number of them attribute their success to a contest win. So, your focus on contests should realistically also be very small. That's what I'm trying to get at here.

        But the focus here is all consuming. It's warped. It's seen as the only way to get read, but that's not true to reality. Maybe for foreigners there could be an element of truth, that would have to be a seperate survey.
        Dude, there are VOLUMES of threads and posts on this site on querying, loglines and marketing yourself. Open your eye, man. VOLUMES. So what in the FLYING **** are you talking about??????
        "I hate to break it to you but there is no big lie. There is no system. The universe is indifferent.- - Don Draper

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        • Re: Trackinb Contest

          Ask David Steinberg:

          Hollywhooped response : 11/2011

          "Therefore, you should definitely pursue each and every avenue you mentioned (except perhaps contests). "

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          • Re: Trackinb Contest

            Originally posted by nojustice View Post
            Ask David Steinberg:

            Hollywhooped response : 11/2011

            "Therefore, you should definitely pursue each and every avenue you mentioned (except perhaps contests). "
            Well, he's an uninformed idiot then.
            Introduce a little anarchy.

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            • Re: Trackinb Contest

              I think he just can't handle the odds, and should chase another dream:

              Hollywhooped response 1/2012:

              "There's no magic bullet or secret handshake. I can’t tell you anything you don’t already know about trying to break in. It's a lot easier if you can move to L.A. and make relationships with people who can get your script into the hands of someone who can do something with it. I moved here to go to film school and it was well worth the money. But I get that that’s not possible for most people. So then you’re left with contests, queries, etc., none of which offer much promise, just a lot of false hope."


              ETA: I'm surprised you don't read David's Q and A. It's the best thing on this site.

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              • Re: Trackinb Contest

                Originally posted by nojustice View Post
                I think he just can't handle the odds, and should chase another dream:

                Hollywhooped response 1/2012:

                "There's no magic bullet or secret handshake. I can't tell you anything you don't already know about trying to break in. It's a lot easier if you can move to L.A. and make relationships with people who can get your script into the hands of someone who can do something with it. I moved here to go to film school and it was well worth the money. But I get that that's not possible for most people. So then you're left with contests, queries, etc., none of which offer much promise, just a lot of false hope."


                ETA: I'm surprised you don't read David's Q and A. It's the best thing on this site.
                False hope? I know over 50 writers who have gotten repped through blind queries. Probably even more. A great logline can get you in anywhere.
                Introduce a little anarchy.

                Comment


                • Re: Trackinb Contest

                  But have they sold? Reps will often toy with a new writer for a while, to see how they get along, what the response is to their work, see if they're capable of communicating, developing, etc.

                  But they drop new writers pretty quickly too, or more commonly, stop responding to their emails after a while.

                  Finding a rep isn't the hard part. Not if you're a good writer. But it isn't the rep that sells the work. The work has to sell itself.

                  Your focus should always be on your writing. The rest just sort of eventually falls into place. Just start by finding people to talk to, and to collaborate with.

                  I might be wrong, but I also think it suddenly became a lot easier to get repped after the GFC. I think it was a panic response, they propped up their slates with new writers to make themselves look busy, or to appear "new", or on the pulse or something. I might be wrong about that though. That's just my own observation. (Not David Steinberg's)

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                  • Re: Trackinb Contest

                    I agree that there's an over-emphasis on reps with regards to this contest (and this whole forum in general). Several of the writers who got reps via TB ended up dropping them anyway despite initial enthusiasm.

                    I don't think gaining representation should be the measure of success. Ultimately, the only thing that matters is a sale or option. What I most shockingly realized reading these threads over the years was that:

                    -many have reps, few have sales.
                    -many have moved from rep to rep to rep before finding the right fit.
                    -many have dumped reps from top agencies for not doing their jobs.
                    -many are treated like students asked to hand in homework assignments to their rep every week.
                    -many develop a script for months or even years with their reps only to learn it won't actually go out.

                    I would wish for people in this thread to be capable of having more than one thought in their head at the same time. For instance:

                    -on the one hand, TB produces results, at least in terms of representation.
                    -on the other hand, only 3 scripts are actually read by the pros and there is major lack of transparency.
                    -on the one hand, TB has major names to boast.
                    -on the other hand, posting the same pics of the same pros having drinks year after year sends the wrong message: emphasis on fraternity type clique and name-dropping rather than on recognizing the achievements of writers.
                    -on the one hand winners get a lot of personal push from the Insider (hopefully not to just the members of the inner circle)
                    -on the other hand, way fewer writers get exposure compared to other contests, where a larger list of writers is made public and garners industry attention for said writers.
                    -blah blah blah.
                    -Recognize that there are valuable but opposing arguments. Decide what is best for you.
                    -Not exactly brain surgery?

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                    • Re: Trackinb Contest

                      meh, viral hype.

                      But we're going to have a barbeque for the losers over by the cesspool when it's all done, entry is free, and we'll be taking photos for the TB website to publish. David Steinberg's going to be there wearing his "I told you so" T-Shirt, and anyone who also bombed out of the AS crap fest will get a complimentary pair of 3D sunglasses, to shield them from the star-striking glow of future contests. It promises to be a real page-burner, I mean, turner.

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                      • Re: Trackinb Contest

                        The aim for all of us is to get read. And placing in a prestigious screenwriting contest is one way of netting a bunch.

                        Though there are lots of other avenues to explore and a writer shouldn't put all their eggs into that one basket, it doesn't make contests any less valuable.

                        But how many of those scripts ended up selling?

                        Well, I think you're looking at the wrong statistic.

                        Spec sales are so rare anyway. Who's to say there aren't writers with professional careers thanks to a read from a contest placement?

                        For example, Ryan Condal landed a read from Energy Entertainment after a Nicholl QF placement. They ended up repping him. They then sold a different script (GALAHAD) to The Film Department.

                        There are probably countless similar stories that you just don't know about.

                        We're all in the same place. We just want to get our work out there and get read.

                        Comment


                        • Re: Trackinb Contest

                          Originally posted by Why One View Post
                          The aim for all of us is to get read. And placing in a prestigious screenwriting contest is one way of netting a bunch.

                          Though there are lots of other avenues to explore and a writer shouldn't put all their eggs into that one basket, it doesn't make contests any less valuable.

                          But how many of those scripts ended up selling?

                          Well, I think you're looking at the wrong statistic.

                          Spec sales are so rare anyway. Who's to say there aren't writers with professional careers thanks to a read from a contest placement?
                          Exactly! I don't understand the disdain here. A win in a legit competition pushes you to the front of the queue. It's not guaranteed to sell your script and it doesn't guarantee your rep won't drop you a year later but getting a rep through querying and hustling doesn't guarantee a sale or that your rep will stand by you forever, either - so there's no legitimacy about nojustice's comments.

                          Winning/placing in a prestigious competition is simply generating heat for you and delivering you on a silver platter to the people who matter. How that is a bad thing is beyond me. It cuts out having to query and the high risk of being overlooked by a busy rep who's inundated with requests. Anyone who would prefer to forgo that in preference to slog it out in the trenches, hoping to catch attention when there's nothing about you to make you stand out from every other query is baffling.
                          Last edited by SundownInRetreat; 02-24-2012, 05:29 AM.
                          M.A.G.A.

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                          • Re: Trackinb Contest

                            Originally posted by SundownInRetreat View Post
                            Exactly! I don't understand the disdain here. A win in a legit competition pushes you to the front of the queue. It's not guaranteed to sell your script and it doesn't guarantee your rep won't drop you a year later but getting a rep through querying and hustling doesn't guarantee a sale or that your rep will stand by you forever, either - so there's no legitimacy about nojustice's comments.

                            Winning/placing in a prestigious competition is simply generating heat for you and delivering you on a silver platter to the people who matter. How that is a bad thing is beyond me. It cuts out having to query and the high risk of being overlooked by a busy rep who's inundated with requests. Anyone who would prefer to forgo that in preference to slog it out in the trenches, hoping to catch attention when there's nothing about you to make you stand out from every other query is baffling.

                            I have no problem with contests -- especially those respected within the industry. But this argument seems silly to me.

                            You don't need a contest to push yourself to the front of the queue ... you can stand out from other queries ... with a compelling logline that shows commercial promise. I queried my first comedy and got a read request from Brooklyn Weaver -- back in the days when he was more readily taking blind queries. He read it. He passed. And I know why ...

                            I. Was. Not. Ready.

                            My concept had commercial viability but my execution was green as green can be. My bad. But the point is I got the read from an email and I live a couple thousand miles from LA.

                            The contest success stories mentioned here -- people like XL or Han Shot First -- I read those scripts (back in the days before I realized it was illegal)... those guys would have gotten repped and eventually achieved success based on their skills and quality of their scripts. BOTH of them were writing at pro level, in my opinion, when they entered contests. You can't get around that.

                            If you're not writing at pro level, my opinion is -- save your money on contest entry fees and don't prematurely query people like Weaver (which was my mistake) and burn bridges.

                            A commercially viable concept executed with pro level skills = magic bullet.
                            Advice from writer, Kelly Sue DeConnick. "Try this: if you can replace your female character with a sexy lamp and the story still basically works, maybe you need another draft.-

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                            • Re: Trackinb Contest

                              Originally posted by nojustice View Post
                              Your focus should always be on your writing.
                              Let's see, it took me less than five minutes to enter the Nicholl. And about five months -- off and on -- to write that script. Hey, I pass!

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                              • Re: Trackinb Contest

                                OT, probably, but Sundown, your ire seems odd, since you previously mentioned you've never entered a contest of any kind.

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