SimplyScripts Discussion Board
Blog Home - Produced Movie Script Library - TV Scripts - Unproduced Scripts - Contact - Site Map
ScriptSearch
Welcome, Guest.
It is March 29th, 2024, 3:53am
Please login or register.
Was Portal Recent Posts Home Help Calendar Search Register Login
Please do read the guidelines that govern behavior on the discussion board. It will make for a much more pleasant experience for everyone. A word about SimplyScripts and Censorship


Produced Script Database (Updated!)
One Week Challenge - Who Wrote What and Writers' Choice.


Scripts studios are posting for award consideration

Short Script of the Day | Featured Script of the Month | Featured Short Scripts Available for Production
Submit Your Script

How do I get my film's link and banner here?
All screenplays on the simplyscripts.com and simplyscripts.net domain are copyrighted to their respective authors. All rights reserved. This screenplaymay not be used or reproduced for any purpose including educational purposes without the expressed written permission of the author.
Forum Login
Username: Create a new Account
Password:     Forgot Password

SimplyScripts Screenwriting Discussion Board    Discussion of...     General Chat  ›  Lessons Learned After a Recent Option Moderators: bert
Users Browsing Forum
No Members and 11 Guests

 Pages: 1, 2 : All
Recommend Print
  Author    Lessons Learned After a Recent Option  (currently 1315 views)
Steven
Posted: July 10th, 2017, 8:57am Report to Moderator
New



Location
Southern California
Posts
466
Posts Per Day
0.16
I've frequented this place for a while, posted a lot, shared a lot, tried to give advice, etc. But I wanted to share something that's happened to me over the past month or so regarding a short that I optioned, and was filmed, but will not be released.

Long story short, I wrote something, it was picked up by a producer/director, shot, and then that's when shit hit the fan. My simple script was riddled with changes, both in dialogue and story. You know, I don't mind some dialogue changes, but when the change to said dialogue adds a layer of subtext I never intended on being there, I have a problem.

My concerns were heard, but after the filming, so there was nothing to be done. After some back and forth, and some expression of dislike on my part, the director said that he is scrapping the project and all festival entries.

It's fine, but I did take away some things from this. The first being GET THE PHONE NUMBER OF THE FILMMAKER. Initially, our contact was frequent via email. Then those messages spaced themselves out weeks at a time. Simple things like having a line of communication is very important, especially if you're involved with a small team. There is literally no excuse to not contact your partners in 2017.

That's all, just a rant I guess. But maybe some of you can relate.
Logged Offline
Site Private Message
LC
Posted: July 10th, 2017, 9:17am Report to Moderator
Administrator



Location
The Great Southern Land
Posts
7582
Posts Per Day
1.34
I don't mean to add insult to injury but a phone number guarantees nothing imh.

I can definitely relate a funny story re Scooter. Guy wanted to change the sex of the main character, change the setting, and use something else in place of a scooter. I was polite and tried to be accommodating but it got a bit silly.

A few Options came my way  this year so far, none of them have come to fruition. In fact my recent courteous emails have drawn a big blank. I'm getting used to the lack of manners from people. Tis the nature of the game unfortunately. I'm glad I give three month Options (with extension granted upon request) only.

Put in your Agreement that all changes need to be run by you, that you require consultation re dialogue, plot points specifically. Even then you can only hope they will respect the lowly writer.


Logged
Private Message Reply: 1 - 20
Steven
Posted: July 10th, 2017, 9:22am Report to Moderator
New



Location
Southern California
Posts
466
Posts Per Day
0.16
Thanks for the words. Yea I know a phone number doesn't really mean anything, but it adds a bit of  reassurance, I guess.

The strange thing here is that it's filmed. People put in work on this, and it's done, but the plug is now pulled? Just seems weird to me. Our option was for 90 days, staring Feb. 28th 2017, but it was slated to be released July 15th. The original release date was to be April 25th. Mind you this is only a 7 page script.

The level of professionalism reared it's ugly head almost immediately, so I at least know what to look out for now.
Logged Offline
Site Private Message Reply: 2 - 20
Don
Posted: July 10th, 2017, 9:41am Report to Moderator
Administrator
Administrator


So, what are you writing?

Location
Virginia
Posts
16381
Posts Per Day
1.94
Steven,

What were the terms of the agreement? Did you sell the work outright?

- Don


Visit SimplyScripts.com for what is new on the site.

-------------
You will miss 100% of the shots you don't take.
- Wayne Gretzky
Logged Offline
Site Private Message Reply: 3 - 20
Steven
Posted: July 10th, 2017, 9:55am Report to Moderator
New



Location
Southern California
Posts
466
Posts Per Day
0.16

Quoted from Don
Steven,

What were the terms of the agreement? Did you sell the work outright?

- Don


The only form of initial payment was a writing credit. Everything else broke down like this:

-50% of festival earnings to writer. Or if a writing only award, 100% to writer.
-50% of net profit from feature adaptation to writer.

EDIT: Also, 50% of all profit to writer, not just feature adaptation profit.
Logged Offline
Site Private Message Reply: 4 - 20
eldave1
Posted: July 10th, 2017, 10:19am Report to Moderator
January Project Group



Location
Southern California
Posts
6874
Posts Per Day
1.95
The lack of business professionalism in this industry can be shocking - I spent a career dealing with every business/vendor imaginable and if they ever neglected correspondence like this industry does (at least based on my experience) it would be game over.  


My Scripts can all be seen here:

http://dlambertson.wix.com/scripts
Logged Offline
Private Message Reply: 5 - 20
Steven
Posted: July 10th, 2017, 10:24am Report to Moderator
New



Location
Southern California
Posts
466
Posts Per Day
0.16

Quoted from eldave1
The lack of business professionalism in this industry can be shocking - I spent a career dealing with every business/vendor imaginable and if they ever neglected correspondence like this industry does (at least based on my experience) it would be game over.  


This is a learning experience, for sure.
Logged Offline
Site Private Message Reply: 6 - 20
Grandma Bear
Posted: July 10th, 2017, 12:36pm Report to Moderator
Administrator



Location
The Swamp...
Posts
7961
Posts Per Day
1.36
As far as filmmakers not making films exactly like the scripts goes, I have quite a bit of experience there. Most of my shorts that have been made have been altered in one way or another from the scripts. Sometimes for the better, sometimes not. NONE of the features made (4) have followed the scripts at all. In fact the very first one was so far from the script, I thought I was watching the wrong movie. Seriously, I didn't even recognize it. I was in shock, to be honest.

I have become wiser since though. I have come to realize that the scripts weren't that great to begin with, so instead of blaming the filmmakers, I put the blame on my scripts. I have also made a few short films myself and I can tell you from a director/producer's point that following a script exactly, is pretty freaking hard. You have to use the cast you can find, the locations you're able to secure and on and on. They might be completely different from what the script called for. Ask Bert...  Also, sometimes a director/producer reads a script and loves it and wants to produce it. They can see the film in their head. However, that does not mean that they see the story as you the writer intended it. Therefore, they will make the film the way they see it.

There is really only one way to make sure that your script will be produced the way you the writer see the story and that is to produce it yourself. And, even then, you'll most likely find out that making the story exactly as written into a film is much harder than you probably thought.

As far as the crappy communications go, all I can think is that it's because most people fire off messages from their phone while driving or such, and people are used to texting nowadays, so messages are often short clipped and come off as rude. No one but writers sit down and type at computers these days.  

Also, I never bug the filmmakers. I don't expect to be part of the process and know everything that's going on. I usually drop an email every couple of months or so and I keep them very short so they can respond from their phones with simple texts or messages.  


Logged
Private Message Reply: 7 - 20
Steven
Posted: July 10th, 2017, 12:47pm Report to Moderator
New



Location
Southern California
Posts
466
Posts Per Day
0.16
Thanks for the response, and I understand where you're coming from. My issue isn't with the dialogue change itself, it's with the inserted social commentary that the new dialogue brought with it.

I'll summarize real quick.

Jacob's girlfriend Sherri locked herself in Jacob's bedroom for an unknown reason. The story picks up after she's been in there for about an hour, and hasn't communicated with Jacob whatsoever. Jacob calls Ammon, his long time friend, and they talk about what caused Sherri to act the way she's acting. Ammon, a bit of a dick, runs up to the door and bangs on it.

Here's what was supposed to happen:

Jacob says that they were at a bar, and he was caught looking at another woman. Ammon bangs on the door and tells Sherri to loosen up, get over it, etc. He's a playful dick about the situation.

The change was this:

For some reason, Jacob said that Sherri looked pale. So Ammon (a Hispanic actor portrayed him) goes to the door bangs on it, says "Yo Casper, must be nice being that white huh?"

It's such a tiny change, but it caught me off guard so I brought it up to the director, who stated the actors improvised some of that dialogue.

I probably looked into it a bit too far, but I see a brown-skinned person asking a white person if it's nice to be white, but in a really mean way. It's a bit of social commentary I didn't want included and never thought it would have been in the first place.

In the end, they break down the door, Sherri turned into a zombie, she attacks them, game over. It was a stupid little story that I half-assed but somehow got picked up mainly due to my dialogue.

By the way, my main dislike was with the acting and how it felt rushed. All of the concerns were brought to the director's attention.
Logged Offline
Site Private Message Reply: 8 - 20
Grandma Bear
Posted: July 10th, 2017, 1:18pm Report to Moderator
Administrator



Location
The Swamp...
Posts
7961
Posts Per Day
1.36

Quoted from Steven

By the way, my main dislike was with the acting and how it felt rushed. All of the concerns were brought to the director's attention.


Often on shoots, things don't go quite as planned. When we shot Pumpkin nightmare 2 for example, we had a LOT of shots still planned and needed, but by the time it got to be around 2:30am (we started at 9 am the previous day...) everyone just wanted to go home. We were going to start again at 9 am. So, a lot of things got rushed and we missed a lot of media. Most indie films are shot on weekends because actors and crew usually have regular jobs during the work week. My guess is that something similar happened with your actors. Maybe they just ran out of time and things got rushed. Also, if the actors were there for free, there's a good chance they weren't that experienced to begin with.

I'm not trying to defend the producers. Just trying to give you a glimpse into how getting a film made is more complicated than many writers think.

And, like I said earlier, sometimes the way the director sees the script compared to the writer can vary widely. Unless you have in the contract that no changes can be made to the script, they most likely will change it to something they feel works better.  



Logged
Private Message Reply: 9 - 20
Steven
Posted: July 10th, 2017, 1:22pm Report to Moderator
New



Location
Southern California
Posts
466
Posts Per Day
0.16
Live and learn.

I have something else coming down the pipe that begins filming this coming weekend. The actors involved are SAG and the crew is experienced, so here's to hoping for a good shoot!
Logged Offline
Site Private Message Reply: 10 - 20
leitskev
Posted: July 10th, 2017, 1:24pm Report to Moderator
Of The Ancients


Posts
3113
Posts Per Day
0.64
I suspect that Steven's attachment to his story is one of the reasons that in big studio projects, once they buy the script, they usually keep the original writer out of the process(at least that is my understanding anyway, and there are many exceptions).

The writer doesn't want to see important things changed. That's understandable. But it's also understandable that the people making the film, who are investing much in time and other resources, want to do what they think is best.

So once you option it, it's out of your hands. Like a child, I think you have to let it go and hope for the best. If you don't like the result, well, that's the chance we all take. The alternatives are to get into making the films yourself, as Pia has done, or develop a working relationship with a director where your vision will come through.

I recently watched an interview where David Lynch talks about his film Lost Highway. It was amazing, because it seemed like Lynch had absolutely no idea what the film was about! He really had no clue. Not that he said that, he blamed it on memory, but I wonder if he ever really knew. He had a close working relationship with the writer. Lynch's brilliance was in the way he filmed scenes. I think maybe that was a rare example where the writer got his vision through because of his relationship with the director.
Logged
Private Message Reply: 11 - 20
Steven
Posted: July 10th, 2017, 2:32pm Report to Moderator
New



Location
Southern California
Posts
466
Posts Per Day
0.16
I can't disagree. I do tell a filmmaker to go ahead and change what he feels necessary, but it's all said and done with now.
Logged Offline
Site Private Message Reply: 12 - 20
Pale Yellow
Posted: July 10th, 2017, 4:07pm Report to Moderator
January Project Group



Posts
2083
Posts Per Day
1.40
I have had a LOT of experience with this. I have one guy that likes to "cowrite" but he changes so much of my script and it ends up with weird scenes. The last short I wrote him... was 22 pages...he stretched into a 70 minute feature!!! I just declined doing another script for him. Sad because he does beautiful work but he refuses to let me be the sole screenwriter. Some directors try to write and mess things up but once you have optioned your script UNLESS you have some stipulations set in the contract, they can improvise it any way they want I believe.

Several of my shorts have been changed. Most I do not mind...some I do. But I never say anything. If you are not making any money, then hopefully you can have a little more say in it or get credits ...but my suggestion to EVERY writer would be to go make a movie. Write a short and go shoot it on your iPhone. And then edit it. It is so much harder than most writers realize. I've been lucky to work on some shorts and I've done a few with Pia... with every one of them I learn a tremendous amount. I think it helps in writing too.
Logged Offline
Private Message Reply: 13 - 20
Steven
Posted: July 10th, 2017, 4:26pm Report to Moderator
New



Location
Southern California
Posts
466
Posts Per Day
0.16
I'm sure I'll run into a ton of different personalities while writing. Not all of my interactions have been negative.
Logged Offline
Site Private Message Reply: 14 - 20
MarkRenshaw
Posted: July 11th, 2017, 7:28am Report to Moderator
January Project Group



Location
UK
Posts
2335
Posts Per Day
0.59
So far I've produced three of my own scripts, been executive producer and fully financed the projects. The contract says I have final say on everything. All changes have to go through me. I Skype with the Director and we work together until we both love the script, it has both our ideas in there and it's locked!

Unfortunately I can't be on set as I live in the UK and everything is shot in the US. The budget is tiny, it would cost me more to fly over there than to produce these.

Things happen during a shoot, lots of things. The director and any creatives on set have to make changes on the fly. Some of these changes are unavoidable, some are changes the Director wanted to make but I said no to weeks earlier but then goes ahead and does it anyway because I'm not there and they have three days to shoot everything.

It's soul destroying seeing the first rough cut. Some changes are pretty good actually, some not so good and some just truly terrible. I then go on a several month salvage operation, trying to edit together something that is (in my mind anyway) decent. So far I've managed it, thinking releasing something to enter into festivals and for my portfolio is better than just scrapping the whole thing.

And you know what? Sometimes I've been wrong. Sometimes I've thought a change was appalling but it's been my ego getting in the way, I've been too close to the script and the change has actually worked out for the best when the reviews and awards start coming in. Sometimes I've been proven right and the change has cost us, but believe me it's never a good feeling to know that change you said was a bad idea, is proven to be a bad idea.  The thing is, you never know unless you learn to let go and allow others to collaborate.

So you see, even producing and financing your script doesn't stop change. You just have to learn to work with it. I've been told the ONLY way to produce your script with as little change as possible is to also direct. Not something I'm up to doing at the moment, but maybe one day.  


For more of my scripts, stories, produced movies and the ocassional blog, check out my new website. CLICK

Revision History (1 edits)
MarkRenshaw  -  July 11th, 2017, 7:33am
spellung mistaks
Logged Offline
Site Private Message Reply: 15 - 20
Steven
Posted: July 11th, 2017, 8:17am Report to Moderator
New



Location
Southern California
Posts
466
Posts Per Day
0.16
After this next short, I'm done with shorts.
Logged Offline
Site Private Message Reply: 16 - 20
MarkRenshaw
Posted: July 11th, 2017, 10:18am Report to Moderator
January Project Group



Location
UK
Posts
2335
Posts Per Day
0.59
Lol - I've said that after my last two shorts. Something keeps dragging me back though.


For more of my scripts, stories, produced movies and the ocassional blog, check out my new website. CLICK
Logged Offline
Site Private Message Reply: 17 - 20
Steven
Posted: July 11th, 2017, 10:23am Report to Moderator
New



Location
Southern California
Posts
466
Posts Per Day
0.16

Quoted from MarkRenshaw
Lol - I've said that after my last two shorts. Something keeps dragging me back though.


Haha yea, they're easy to write and require little planning. I'm working on another one, actually, but I'm still done!

http://www.simplyscripts.net/cgi-bin/Blah/Blah.pl?b-workinprogress/m-1499695553/
Logged Offline
Site Private Message Reply: 18 - 20
eldave1
Posted: July 11th, 2017, 6:44pm Report to Moderator
January Project Group



Location
Southern California
Posts
6874
Posts Per Day
1.95

Quoted from MarkRenshaw
So far I've produced three of my own scripts, been executive producer and fully financed the projects. The contract says I have final say on everything. All changes have to go through me. I Skype with the Director and we work together until we both love the script, it has both our ideas in there and it's locked!

Unfortunately I can't be on set as I live in the UK and everything is shot in the US. The budget is tiny, it would cost me more to fly over there than to produce these.

Things happen during a shoot, lots of things. The director and any creatives on set have to make changes on the fly. Some of these changes are unavoidable, some are changes the Director wanted to make but I said no to weeks earlier but then goes ahead and does it anyway because I'm not there and they have three days to shoot everything.

It's soul destroying seeing the first rough cut. Some changes are pretty good actually, some not so good and some just truly terrible. I then go on a several month salvage operation, trying to edit together something that is (in my mind anyway) decent. So far I've managed it, thinking releasing something to enter into festivals and for my portfolio is better than just scrapping the whole thing.

And you know what? Sometimes I've been wrong. Sometimes I've thought a change was appalling but it's been my ego getting in the way, I've been too close to the script and the change has actually worked out for the best when the reviews and awards start coming in. Sometimes I've been proven right and the change has cost us, but believe me it's never a good feeling to know that change you said was a bad idea, is proven to be a bad idea.  The thing is, you never know unless you learn to let go and allow others to collaborate.

So you see, even producing and financing your script doesn't stop change. You just have to learn to work with it. I've been told the ONLY way to produce your script with as little change as possible is to also direct. Not something I'm up to doing at the moment, but maybe one day.  


All this makes sense - PLUS - often changes that seem silly to a writer can be simply financially based for a producer (e.g., eliminate a street scene so that we don't have to get costly permits. etc.).


My Scripts can all be seen here:

http://dlambertson.wix.com/scripts
Logged Offline
Private Message Reply: 19 - 20
Equinox
Posted: July 21st, 2017, 4:56am Report to Moderator
January Project Group



Location
Germany
Posts
345
Posts Per Day
0.10
I think it comes down to the degree of change to the script. I don't mind some additional scenes or dialogue changes, as long as the story stays intact. But if they completely change the story and the result has nothing much to do with the story from the script in the end, I wouldn't be happy either. Like for The Wall, the director also added a scene with improvised dialogue but it fit in with the story, so it was fine.

I think it's a good thing if you have a good communication with the filmmaker. In my case we were corresponding frequently, exchanged ideas for changes, modified the script here and there, so in the end we were both happy with it. I guess it depends, though - the filmmaker of another short I optioned a few weeks ago hasn't tried to communicate with me since the signed contract was exchanged and the money transfer was completed, so I'm curious to see where he takes my script on his own.


Logged Offline
Private Message Reply: 20 - 20
 Pages: 1, 2 : All
Recommend Print

Locked Board Board Index    General Chat  [ previous | next ] Switch to:
Was Portal Recent Posts Home Help Calendar Search Register Login

Forum Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post polls
You may not post attachments
HTML is on
Blah Code is on
Smilies are on


Powered by E-Blah Platinum 9.71B © 2001-2006