“Unlocking Hollywood: Secrets to Thriving as an Unrepresented Screenwriter”

"Unlocking Hollywood: Secrets to Thriving as an Unrepresented Screenwriter"

A man sitting in front of a computer chatting with a woman through video chat; How to Be a Pro Screenwriter Without RepresentationA man sitting in front of a computer chatting with a woman through video chat; How to Be a Pro Screenwriter Without RepresentationHow to Be a Pro Screenwriter Without Representation

Before I pull the curtain away and offer some tips, please know that screenwriters like me are aplenty. However, that doesn’t mean it’s an easy type of career to attain. It’s really about hard work, great networking, being a desirable and fun collaborator, and a little bit of luck.

OK, how did I do it? Where to start?

Build Your Screenplay Portfolio

Whatever you can do to add to your portfolio will make all the difference:

  • I worked as a movie extra after moving to Los Angeles from Wisconsin in 1999, just to get on set. This allowed me to say that I’ve been on Hollywood sets. I also got to meet a lot of the crew and learned how Hollywood sets are run. This experience worked as a great anecdote for later discussions with Hollywood insiders.
  • I wrote for an entertainment website where I did interviews, movie reviews, and DVD reviews. This allowed me to work directly with major studio and network marketing divisions. I could then add that to my resume.
  • I interned for Grease and Flight of the Navigator director Randal Kleiser where I learned how to write screenplay coverage.
  • I became a security guard for Sony Studios for the sole purpose of getting onto a studio lot. This led to amazing networking opportunities I eventually leveraged to move into a studio liaison position working with incoming film/TV productions. I leveraged that position to move into a then-dream position of working in Sony Pictures development as a script reader/story analyst.
  • As I mentioned above, I eventually had multiple meetings at almost all of the major studios. This is something that legitimized me as a writer in the eyes of Hollywood, even though no script sales came from those meetings.

When I say you need to build a Hollywood resume, I’m primarily talking about doing whatever you can that connect with a potential Hollywood contact down the road. All of these things I had done were talking points in my eventual studio meetings once I had a screenplay that was released. After those meetings, all of these things were pitching points in my cold query emails.

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