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Hey writers, many of you are several years into your writing career. You've written several TV pilots, feature scripts, and books, and you’re looking to sell your first script or land representation.
Many in this situation have hit a ceiling in their writing career. They send our query letters and emails that don’t get a response, they ask people to pass along their scripts to contacts, and they try to get promoted in the writer’s room but don’t have any success. Many writers don’t have professional contacts and are stuck in the situation of not having anyone to show their work to. It’s a situation that many writers face with few solutions.
How can screenwriters promote their scripts?
One suggestion we have to help generate interest in your project is to produce a two-minute trailer or a 12-minute sequence that can be converted into a short film. That’s right, a promotional trailer to market your story or an actual sequence of scenes that captures the tone, essence, and style of your script.
Should I shoot a trailer or several scenes from my script?
The first question is why? Why should I produce a section of my script? Well, right now your story exists only as text on 120 pages of paper. More than likely, it sits in a development office under a pile of hundreds of other scripts. An intern or assistant will read 10 pages and if they don’t like it will probably give up on the story and just finish it to write their coverage.It’s almost impossible not to get lost in the shuffle.
The odds of ever getting noticed are slim. Out of the tens of thousands of scripts written every year, only a few thousand will ever be purchased and a few hundred produced.
Most people in LA don’t read. It’s a horrible stereotype, but it exists because of the element of truth. Imagine being able to take a script that requires 60-minutes of focused attention to read and summarize it in 120-seconds in a slick presentation.
You need to realize your script is no longer a story. You need to start thinking like an entrepreneur and realize that screenplay is a business plan for a $40 million dollar start-up (depending on the budget of your project).
Think about what most entrepreneurs must do to raise capital for their ventures. They usually present investors and equity financiers with proof of concept, a demo of their product that helps them understand what they are trying to create.
Imagine being one of the first investors in Coca Cola. They were given a tasting of the new carbonated drink. When Roy Kotch wanted to expand McDonald’s into a national franchise, he tasted the burger, saw a demo of the fast-food assembly line and knew it had potential.
That’s how you need to look at your trailer or short sequence. Something that a producer, agent or investor can look at, get a feel for the story, and determine if the project has a future.
To become a produced writer in the film industry you need to think like an entrepreneur who’s starting a business. Trying to get people interested in your project is the business of show, not the art of show. Many who fail never grasp this concept. Trust me, I know lots of them in NY and LA.
Think of it from the reader's point of view. If you’re spending all day looking for potential scripts to invest in, would you rather spend an hour reading through something you’ll most likely will say “no” to or watch a two-minute promo for the story?
What’s the difference between shooting a trailer and sequence from my script?
The quickest and easiest way of the two choices is a trailer. A quick two-minutes that captures the tone and style of the story. This is also a good personal test for the filmmaker. If you can’t make a good 120-second trailer of your movie, you’re probably not ready to make a 120-minute feature film. Food for thought.
One of the most famous fundraising trailers is “Blood Simple” by the Coen Brothers.
Remember, the point of making a trailer is the same as making a television commercial. It’s a call to action. You want a producer or agent to see the trailer, get excited about the story, and want to read the script. You've won the battle if you can accomplish that with a trailer.
The next idea is to try to shoot a 12-page (3 scenes) sequence of your script. This is a lot more complicated and much bigger in scope and size. I would recommend this for someone who wants to direct their script, not necessarily sell it. A trailer you can shoot in one or two days. A sequence might be looking at three to four days.
Shooting an actual 12-page sequence is a much larger commitment of time and money. You need to be honest with yourself if you’re ready to take this kind of project.
As a writer/director, you need to display three things:
You understand the characters and storyline of the script.
You understand the technical aspects of filmmaking required to produce the script.
This is the most important. You need to show producers and investors that you know how to work with actors and can get a performance out of them.
I can’t emphasize enough the importance that aspiring directors constantly work on their understanding of working with actors. If you truly aspire to direct you should always be taking scene study, script analysis, and improv comedy courses. If you really want to know what you’re doing, get private training for voice and movement. Trust me, this is knowledge you absolutely need when you’re working with talent.
Take the perspective of a “name actor” in Hollywood who has some commercial appeal and talent. Do you think a “name actor” really wants to work with someone who’s never rehearsed and directed actors? Think about the amount of risk they’re taking with an unproven director. Think about the number of indie movies by inexperienced directors that have damaged the careers of the actors. That’s what’s going through a star's head when they’re considering acting in your project. The talent needs to be confident you won’t make them look bad.
What if I don’t have the money to film a trailer or sequence from the script?
If producing a trailer or short sequence feels like too big of an endeavor, then consider making an audio production of your script, like these TikTok videos we’ve recorded, you can do the same with your script.
The only equipment we needed to make these audio recordings was a microphone, a laptop computer, and editing software.
Find three scenes that capture the tone of your script. Cast the actors who sound like the characters you’ve written. Hire a recording engineer to record the actors. You might want to consider renting out a recording studio for a day. Otherwise, find someone who can record the actors.
Record the actors performing your script. Then, find an editor who can add sound FX and music. This will be much cheaper and faster than filming a trailer.
What you should have at the end is an audio file that’s 8-12 minutes long of three scenes from your script with sound FX and music. That’s something you could upload online and email to agents and producers. If they like what they hear, they might call you to read the rest of the script.
I’ll explore audio productions for your script in a later blog.
Conclusion
I can’t promise that filming a trailer or short sequence of your script will result in getting your script sold or feature financed. At best, it will get your material seen by an agent or producer. How they react to your work is beyond anyone’s control.
If anyone has any ideas on how to promote their scripts, please leave them in the comments section of this video.