SAFE HOUSE (39 million dollar opening)

**Pendagger** · 03-10-2012, 02:45 PM

Re: SAFE HOUSE (39 million dollar opening)

Huh...? Why would that be? I share scripts all the time.

**wcmartell** · 03-10-2012, 03:06 PM

Re: SAFE HOUSE (39 million dollar opening)

Because the copyright police are tearing down all of the script websites and suing people for $15 million bucks and arresting people in Michigan for felonies.

- Bill

**Pendagger** · 03-10-2012, 03:26 PM

Re: SAFE HOUSE (39 million dollar opening)

What's the deal Bill?...I must be missing something.

**wcmartell** · 03-10-2012, 03:46 PM

Re: SAFE HOUSE (39 million dollar opening)

The studios are out to stop script trading and any unautorized possession of copyrighted material.

It's stupid, because they are killing future screenwriters and that means killing the business. But, these moron bean counting dickwads who run studios now are all about today at the expense of tomorrow.

The fear isn't as much us, as bloggers who will read the developed-to-crap script for a new blockbuster and say how bad it is - with *examples*. Now, the real way to solve this is not to turn the screenplay into crap on the way to the screen, but that would take some knowledge of film - and these are lawyers. Which makes you think that Shakespeare was probably right.

So no one ever trades screenplays anymore....

SAFE HOUSE was on the 2010 Black List. Sometimes that can be a clue.

- Bill

**WriteHandMan** · 03-10-2012, 03:58 PM

Re: SAFE HOUSE (39 million dollar opening)

Bill, wouldn't be best if more if not all screenplays were given legit publishing (book or e-book) by the studios though? Wouldn't it be a win win for all?

**Pendagger** · 03-10-2012, 04:08 PM

Re: SAFE HOUSE (39 million dollar opening)

Wow, where the fu*k have I been? I wasn't aware. I have reps that will get me any script I want...I just prefer asking writers for scripts and agents for jobs (and parking validation...and free drinks, etc).

**wcmartell** · 03-10-2012, 04:15 PM

Re: SAFE HOUSE (39 million dollar opening)

Yes. But they don't seem to be doing that.

If they were smart, they'd hire a couple of people to do a PDF download business once the film was released - and I'll bet they'd make "civilian money" from people who loved the film and wanted to see how it started.

But some of the issues become - which version of the script goes out? We want to read the sales draft, the studio only wants us to see the produced version. The scripts in books usually screw up the pagination, which doesn't help us. Also, the version that sells may be completely different than the version that is made. So this weekend's major flop - A THOUSAND WORDS - may have been a completely different screenplay when it sold. It's from a SEINFELD writer, and the film was shelved for 4 years. But if the original screenplay was brilliant, would the studio want it to be released to the public so that people can compare it to the released version?

See, we run into the same problem as with script trading - the studio wants to keep the knowledge from spilling out on AIN'T IT COOL.

But, even if the studio just sold PDFs of the filmed versions, it would be a win-win and even an additional win because it would bring more attention to those of us who make up the danged stories in the first place.

- Bill

**Biohazard** · 03-10-2012, 04:24 PM