Stephanie Palmer runs an LA-based coaching service for writers, and her regular email newsletter is chock-full of great information about the business of screenwriting. I've reprinted her latest email with her permission & encourage you to sign up for her newsletter.
Welcome to the [Inside the Room] Mailroom.
COVERING ALL THE BASES.
"How much weight does a story analyst's script coverage have? Does it affect a studio's decision as to whether they will buy a script or not?"
Mitch, New York City
A: Coverage carries a lot of weight when an executive is deciding what to script to choose from a large stack of scripts, but it has very little influence (if any) once the executive has read the script themselves. Glowing coverage can encourage an executive to read a script more quickly and if it's completely slammed, the script will likely remain at the very bottom of the "to read" pile.
When I worked at Jerry Bruckheimer Films and MGM, we purchased many scripts that had received "pass" coverage and passed on many scripts where the reader gave the script a "consider."
THE RIGHT OPTION.
"I've got a question about book options. There's a book I love and believe would make an incredible movie, but here's the problem, the author is dead, the publisher doesn't
have anything to do with their work anymore and I'm at a dead end on where to look. Do you have any alternative solutions?"
-Ethan, Hollywood
A: I'm assuming that you have already done some online searching and haven't been able to track down the information you need. There are a number of companies that will search for you. I have not used the following services personally, but I have had clients who have used each of these services successfully. Rightscenter, which is run by the Film Rights Directory, will research whether the rights are available to your book and with whom you should contact regarding obtaining them for $100. Studiosystem, another subscription service, provides option data and may have the information you're seeking. While Studio System costs $3,000.00 for an annual subscription (WGA/PGA discounts are available), the company also runs a service called Film Tracker/Info Source that will list the option info if it it's an active project in development. This service is $59.95 per month.
MINIMUM MONEY.
"I've written a script that a production company is interested in buying. What's the base salary/price a screenwriter gets for an "independent" type script?" -Julie, Pasadena
A: The Writer's Guild of America lists the minimum payment requirements on their website.
Here are the current guild minimums for film and television:
Film - WGA Minimum Contracts
Original Screenplay:
Low budget (less than 5million) original: $36,856.00
More than 5 Million: $75,443.00
Adaptation:
Low Budget: $29,993.00
More than five Million: $61,725.00
Television- WGA Minimum Contracts
Pilot:
Network 30 Minutes: $20,495.00
Network 60 Minutes: $30,145.00
Cable 30 Minutes: $11,258.00
Cable 60 Minutes: $20,464.00
Staff Writers:
Week-to-Week: $3,581.00 per week
Up to 19 Weeks: $3328.00 per week
Up to 39 Weeks: $3069.00 per week
If you have a question that you'd like me to address in a future issue, email me at
mailroom@goodinaroom.com.
Stephanie Palmer is the founder of Good in a Room, a consulting firm which
helps creative professionals present their ideas in a compelling, marketable
way so that they get purchased and produced. To receive the free article
"Ten Tips for Being Good in a Room", go to http://www.goodinaroom.com.
