New Black List Thread - Franklin Leonard answers your questions

[Murraypalooza]

Re: New Black List Thread - Franklin Leonard answers your questions

or it could just be that he's really busy in the post-holiday, post-Sundance season, when everyone gets back to business for the year

He's been active over on Reddit. Doesn't really say much more than he's been active on the Screenwriting reddit.

[JoeBanks]

Re: New Black List Thread - Franklin Leonard answers your questions

or it could just be that he's really busy in the post-holiday, post-Sundance season, when everyone gets back to business for the year

[ChickenScratch]

Re: New Black List Thread - Franklin Leonard answers your questions

Maybe Franklin blacklisted Done Deal.

[CColoredClown]

Re: New Black List Thread - Franklin Leonard answers your questions

Can't say I blame him. He was either dealing with crazy allegations or just answering the same questions over and over again.

[DangoForth]

Re: New Black List Thread - Franklin Leonard answers your questions

He probably got sick of hearing "I paid $20 to use your site and it's been a week and my script isn't in production yet."

I certainly would never do that...


"Hey, I paid $25 bucks and no one's bought my script yet!!!"

[slupo]

Re: New Black List Thread - Franklin Leonard answers your questions

Franklin hasn't been here in like 4 months...

Did someone say something jerky, or use his name in a query letter?

He probably got sick of hearing "I paid $20 to use your site and it's been a week and my script isn't in production yet."

[kintnerboy]

Re: New Black List Thread - Franklin Leonard answers your questions

Franklin hasn't been here in like 4 months...

Did someone say something jerky, or use his name in a query letter?

[docgonzo]

Re: New Black List Thread - Franklin Leonard answers your questions

Franklin,

Is the Black List planning on doing another round of submission calls for TV this year? Thanks!

[TheLastShoggoth]

Re: New Black List Thread - Franklin Leonard answers your questions

I uploaded my script on the 29th/30th Jan and got my evaluation back last night.

Was my first serious attempt at a script and I got a 6, something I'm rather pleased with.

[omovie]

Re: New Black List Thread - Franklin Leonard answers your questions

I waited a little more than three weeks for the first one, and nearly a month for the second. In my opinion, it was too long.

If it goes up to a month, I would either ask for a refund or ask them to comp you for a free review.

[Kilg]

Re: New Black List Thread - Franklin Leonard answers your questions

Any ideas on current wait times for paid reviews? When I did it last summer it was around 10 days, now it's nearly 3 weeks and still waiting...

[nearmint]

Re: New Black List Thread - Franklin Leonard answers your questions

Franklin, how is the "weighted average" determined? I received a score of 6 on two reviews, so I figured my average would be 6. Wouldn't be a big deal, but the script is missing out on being included in the Top List by a mere .16.

[nearmint]

Re: New Black List Thread - Franklin Leonard answers your questions

Well, I uploaded 3 scripts to BL in mid-December, and the reviews have been coming in over the last week. I took them up on their two reviews and 1 month of hosting for $100 on each script.

My first script, The Slimies, received an 8, which was very encouraging. BL offered two more free reviews based on the 8, so I have three more reviews coming. One pro download so far.

My second script, Monster City, received a 6 on the first review, and a 7 on the second. Those scores put it among the "Top Scripts" in a few categories, but in all honesty I'd hoped for higher scores. No pro downloads yet.

My third script, Legal Alien, received a 6 from two different reviewers. This is a script that I developed with two producing partners, a frustrating experience as each of them wanted something different from the script. At one meeting, one of the producers described the concept as a family film, while the other said "no, it's a hard PG-13". That's when I knew I was in trouble. After multiple drafts, each of which one producer liked but the other one didn't, I wrote a draft for me that they eventually passed on. So, I'm not surprised by the scores, but I should add that there was a stark difference in the quality of the reviews, one was detailed, insightful, and constructive, while the other was rushed, lazy, and lacking any helpful comments. One pro download so far.

Now to wait and see if anything comes from the experience. Trying to ignore my email and cell phone and dig into the next script...

[AP Oz]

Re: New Black List Thread - Franklin Leonard answers your questions

Franklin,

Is there a "live action" tag on the BlackList? If not, would it be possible to add one?

I write outlandish genre sitcoms that some readers assume are meant to be animated but are in fact intended to be live-action.

My workaround is to put the phrase "live-action sitcom" in the logline, but aside from being clunky, IIUC paid readers don't even see the logline-- is that right?

Anyway, it would be nice if there were some more elegant way to convey that I didn't forget to check the "Animation" genre tag.

[carcar]

Re: New Black List Thread - Franklin Leonard answers your questions

Do readers know how a script has been scored previously? Can they look it up themselves? I ask because if a script got a 9 and then another reader was assigned it and was expecting a masterpiece, and ended up thinking, "it's good but not THAT good," he might rate it lower than he would have otherwise. Of course the opposite could happen as well.

The FAQ states this:

No, readers will not look at previous reviews or ratings of the script before reading and evaluating.

So does that mean that readers are unable to see previous reviews, or they're just told not to look at them?

I have to say: why does it matter? I don't read for the Blacklist and haven't at this point submitted anything to it. But I did recently read for a big contest, occasionally as a tiebreaker when two prior readers disagreed with each other. I could have read their coverage before the script. I didn't, and I think most readers doing this sort of job wouldn't. Why? Because we want to make up our own minds and trust our own judgment about a script, and we're reading scripts under these circumstances to sharpen those skills.

And here's another thing. I DID read their coverage AFTER I finished my own. In one instance, first reader gave a fairly positive review, but passed on the script. Second reader gave a scathing review, but moved the script forward.

So you can never tell. How many different opinions do you read here in these pages? There's probably that same range of opinions and taste that you'll find in any group of anonymous readers. You really can't game it. Hopefully, a good script rises to the top.

Me, I didn't like it and didn't move it forward.