Want a NOOK? Explore Now
The lessons to be learned from this helpful guide show aspiring screenwriters, television writers, and novelists how to catch an agent’s eye and develop a successful scriptwriting career. Step-by-step instructions reveal how to get around the “Catch 22” of the trade—that you can’t get an agent until you’ve sold a script. Interviews with prominent agents and managers disclose how the power brokers choose material, what kinds of writers command their attention, and what they expect from the writers they sign on. Tips on how to write a winning spec script, how to word an effective query letter, how to forge a sound relationship with reps, and other invaluable advice fill this insider’s guide.
| Acknowledgments | ix | |
| About the Author | xi | |
| Introduction: The 10 Percent Solution | xiii | |
| Chapter 1 | Agents and Managers at Work | 1 |
| The Dark Mantra: No Unsolicited Manuscripts | ||
| Alex Sanger, Director of Development, Trimark Pictures | ||
| Ann Zald, Cofounder and Owner, The Screenwriters' Room | ||
| Bonus Section: Agent/Writer Speak | ||
| Chapter Review | ||
| Chapter 2 | Motion Picture Agents | 23 |
| Mary Kimmel, Preferred Artists Agent | ||
| Steven Fisher, APA Agent | ||
| Bonus Section: Ageism | ||
| Chapter Review | ||
| Chapter 3 | Television Agents | 31 |
| Tammy Stockfish, Agent with Broder, Kurland, Webb, and Uffner | ||
| Beth Bohn, APA | ||
| Bonus Section: Writer's Assistant | ||
| Bonus Section: Television Series Contact List | ||
| Chapter Review | ||
| Chapter 4 | The Big House Agency | 51 |
| Andy Patman, Paradigm | ||
| Chapter Review | ||
| Chapter 5 | The Mid-Size Agencies | 55 |
| Angela Cheng, Writer's & Artists | ||
| Susan Shapiro, Shapiro-Lichtman | ||
| Bonus Section: The Agent's Assistant | ||
| Chapter Review | ||
| Chapter 6 | The Boutique Agency | 69 |
| Marcie Wright, The Wright Concept | ||
| Susan Grant, Soloway, Grant & Kopaloff | ||
| Chapter Review | ||
| Chapter 7 | From Book to Box Office | 77 |
| Lisa Callamaro, The Callamaro Agency | ||
| Chapter Review | ||
| Chapter 8 | The Manager | 87 |
| Michele Wallerstein, Wallerstein Management | ||
| Glenn Sobel, Glenn Sobel Management | ||
| Richard Berman, Berman Management | ||
| Bonus Section: The Agent/Manager Wars: Mike Ovitz Versus CAA | ||
| Bonus Section: Screenwriting Conferences | ||
| Chapter Review | ||
| Chapter 9 | The Entertainment Attorney | 109 |
| Dinah Perez | ||
| Bonus Section: The Legal Perspective | ||
| Bonus Section: Standard Contracts | ||
| Chapter Review | ||
| Chapter 10 | The New Media Agent | 143 |
| Stefanie Henning, ICM | ||
| Chapter Review | ||
| Chapter 11 | In the Meantime... | 149 |
| Steven E. de Souza: Bulletproof the Script | ||
| Larry DiTillio: Analyze First | ||
| Richard Krevolin: Checkpoints for Revision | ||
| Is Your Script Ripe Yet? | ||
| More Tips and Tricks for Revision | ||
| Registering Your Work | ||
| Rethinking Your Approach | ||
| Do's and Don'ts of Query Letters | ||
| Chapter Review | ||
| Conclusion | 169 | |
| Appendix A | Contacting Production Companies Directly | 171 |
| Appendix B | WGA Agent List | 181 |
| Appendix C | Online Resources | 213 |
| Glossary | 215 | |
| Index | 227 |
Overview
The lessons to be learned from this helpful guide show aspiring screenwriters, television writers, and novelists how to catch an agent’s eye and develop a successful scriptwriting career. Step-by-step instructions reveal how to get around the “Catch 22” of the trade—that you can’t get an agent until you’ve sold a script. Interviews with prominent agents and managers disclose how the power brokers choose material, what kinds of writers command their attention, and what they expect from the writers they sign on. ...