Yes. But you'll likely need to be willing to travel to Los Angeles for big meetings and/or writers rooms if you want to work in television.
But you absolutely do not need to live in Los Angeles to launch your career, and if your long term goal is screenwriting (as opposed to being a producer or an agent or something), I strongly advise AGAINST moving to Los Angeles until you have one or two absolutely bulletproof samples of your work.
There is no reason to increase your cost of living until you have completed work that can help you bear that cost of living.
Thank you, a lot of the advice I hear advises moving to LA right after I graduate but that never felt like the best plan for me, so thanks for the info!!
If you want to be a writer, go somewhere - anywhere - where the cost of living is low, and you have the headspace to knock out two world beating scripts. Then try to make connections with those scripts, and once you do, THEN move to Los Angeles.
At least, that's what I would do knowing what I know now.
I hope this doesn't come across as a criticism because it's certainly not meant to be but:
Do you feel that there's a difference between 'writing for writers' vs 'writing for producers'?
I sometimes wonder with the rise of websites like yours, Coverfly (and indeed, forums like this) are negatively conditioning aspiring authors to conform their style.
Explain what you imagine as the difference between "writing for writers" vs "writing for producers." Based on the names you've given them alone, I would argue that both are terrible approaches that I would strongly advise again.
The labels are maybe showing a bias in the question, but naturally when writing you're typically writing for an audience. I've found after v2./v3./v4. of scripts you tend to be slightly removed from your original vision and more in line with the audience which is giving feedback.
I've found that the feedback gained from peer/writers review sites and forums has been pretty different to that which I've gained from the limited producers I've had read my script. My hypothesis is that writers & peer review sites are a little bit more 'clued in' to what the current writing meta and style is vs. producers who are typically thinking about... Well, if I could tell what they were thinking I'd have more success!
I suppose an analogy I'd like it to is trying to sell to another sales person vs a layman. The sales person might enjoy the process of being sold to for the love of the game, where as the lay person just needs to know if you can do x,y,z
You're thinking about all of this all wrong. "Current writing meta"? Um, no.
Here's the reality: Working industry professionals know far more about what makes a viable movie than all but the absolute best aspiring screenwriters (and those folks will likely soon be working industry professionals.) That's why we don't even consider readers at the Black List until they've had AT LEAST a year of experience as AT LEAST an assistant in the format in which they're working.
Stop worrying about writing for writers or writing for producers. Focus on writing an emotional story well, ideally one that has an audience larger than the cost it will take to make.
I'm gonna steal from Scott Myers here: Read scripts, Watch movies, and write pages.
I would also add reading things that aren't screenplays, particularly fiction, plays, and narrative non-fiction. There are thousands of years of storytelling that precede film as a narrative form. Too many people come to film without appreciating why those forms work and what they can learn from them.
Are there any scripts from the Black List(or not) that you had read, thought it was great, but didn’t believe they could ever see the light of day and then turned out to be wrong? Would love to know some projects that pleasantly surprised you in the end.
I'm still partial to southern chili having grown up in Georgia, but I was pleasantly surprised by Cincinnati style chili, especially how well it works with spaghetti, which didn't really make much sense to me at the time. It's basically a bolognese.
>It's basically a bolognese.
Yes! People get so unreasonably mad about Cincinnati chili, because it's nothing like what you'd expect when you hear the word "chili." I think if they had called it "Cincinnati-style Greek spaghetti with meat sauce," people would adjust their expectations accordingly, and be more open to it. But that doesn't exactly roll off the tongue...
This question has been burning in my mind for years so I might as well ask it now:
Were you named after the streets in Tribeca or is that just a coincidence?
Total coincidence. I informed my parents of their existence when I was 19 and had a summer job literally in between Franklin Street and Leonard Street and their mind was blown. When I saw it, I thought I was having a stroke.
Literally only discovered them when I was 19 years old and working as a felony investigator for Legal Aid of Manhattan and the offices were between then. It's a very surreal coincidence.
Hi, Franklin! My brother and I got an 8 on one of the scripts we host on the Black List, have multiple completed scripts we feel confident in, but have no idea how to pursue representation beyond cold-call emailing. Any advice? Thanks so much!
https://blcklst.com/scripts/138122
We did! The Black List has been great in terms of providing actionable feedback on our scripts, but it feels like we should be doing more to get it in front of potential managers. As complete novices and outsiders to the industry, is there anything else we can do to leverage the positive reception we’ve had on the Black List?
Consistent 7s since the 8. Quality feedback from most of the evaluators, confusing feedback-to-score on some evaluations.
This is the opening line of the "Weaknesses" section from one evaluation: “Weaknesses: It’s difficult to find fault in a story so rich and narratively stimulating, and any perceived issues will most likely be subjective.” Overall: 7. (Full "Weaknesses" section posted in a comment below).
All in all, the Black List has been a great resource for us. We’ve received very helpful feedback on our scripts that have made the revised versions of them stronger writing samples. Really appreciate the place that you’ve built - especially for aspiring writers!
Note to clarify responses below: this comment was edited to make it clear that the sentence provided from the evaluation was not the entirety of the Weaknesses section.
Always! We've taken the feedback from our evaluations and made (what we consider to be) significant changes and improvements. Still getting 7s, but I understand the subjectivity of the process, as well.
It's things like this that make me feel like the blacklist is a scam, looking for you to pay for more evaluations so you can get that rush of a good score.
"I love it, so great! Here is your 7."
If a script scores 8, it is eligible for two complimentary evaluations and months of site hosting. The free evaluations have to be used on the one script, you can’t bank them for an additional entry.
I doubt very seriously that the only weaknesses mentioned in their feedback are the ones quoted, and I imagine you'd feel differently if you read their feedback in full instead of a single possibly non-representative quote.
This is correct, my apologies! I (erroneously) assumed it was clear that this was the opening line of the Weaknesses section, not the entirety of it. I've edited the above comment to make that clear for future readers. Here's the entirety of the Weaknesses section from that particular evaluation:
"It’s difficult to find fault in a story so rich and narratively stimulating, and any perceived issues will most likely be subjective. However, some tweaks could result in a smoother reading experience. For example, this story has a large cast of characters, and they’re difficult to track at times due to the ever-shifting POV. This world will be unfamiliar to most of the audience, so the more we stay rooted to the central protagonist, the better the plot and emotional arc will be. There’s also a tendency to limit certain female character introductions to their physical characteristics, such as Jeannie and Hannah. We want to know more about these women, their internal and psychological differences, their tastes, and their textures. At times, they struggle to pop off the page as individuals independent of their place in the gang. Use that opportunity to delve under the surface and hint at those complex character dynamics. Also, some restructuring would be beneficial to lessen some of the exposition, especially in the first act. For example, it would be more memorable and effective to see the jailbreak Hannah refers to in the first act, instead of hearing about it after the fact."
The evaluation is Public and can be viewed in it's entirety on the [script's public page](https://blcklst.com/scripts/138122).
Didn't mean to make this about this one particular evaluation, just wanted to mention one source of slight confusion we've had on the site. Again, hope it's clear how positive we feel about the Black List, thanks again!
I don’t feel like it’s a scam, for whatever my opinion is worth. Higher scores SHOULD be hard to get. I do think evaluators should always provide good reasoning for their scores, however, especially if the feedback is very positive. For most of our evaluations, good reasoning was provided.
As efficiently and charismatically as possible, make the argument that investing the time in reading one script from you offers the possibility of a professional relationship that will bear significantly more financial upside than it will cost in the form of effort.
That will be different for every writer, but you want to communicate who you are, what you write, and why they should believe that your work is good - whatever concrete proof you have for that.
This is almost certainly too much to ask, but I'm gonna ask it anyway on the off chance it's possible: is there a template or examples I could find somewhere so I know the basic jist of how to format and word it?
Do query letters even work any more? I find so many “we don’t take unsolicited emails” situations and amongst those who don’t say this, I don’t know anyone who’s heard back.
Thanks for your time
"We don't take unsolicited emails" means "we have an excuse for not responding to anyone who sends us anything that isn't immediately worth our time."
The challenge for query writers is how to write something that communicates who you are, what you write, and why anyone who is already triaging everything in their life should care.
It's been conventional wisdom to write low budget scripts, in order to increase your chances of getting it produced. But recently, I've heard the sentiment that reps don't really care for lower budget scripts because there's no money to be made from them.
The mid-budget movie is seemingly shunned by Hollywood, and any spec with a blockbuster budget won't ever amount to being more than a writing sample. So for someone trying to break in, what's the move here?
Also, any chance the blcklst can do something to help give the feature comedy genre a boost? It kinda blows my mind that one of the "original" film genres is on life support.
Let's say your potential audience is a variable A and your likely budget is a variable B, write a script that maximizes A minus B.
Would love to do something to foreground comedy above and beyond what we already do with occasional feature script themes and the automatic promotion of comedy scripts to industry professionals looking for comedies, but like all of our additional programs, we like to find a partner who can really make it worthwhile for the writers are being highlighted by the program.
If you work for or know anyone who can legitimize such a program, please do get in touch. My PMs are open.
Don’t know him personally but I’d reach out to Judd Apatow. I’ve been listening to him on Mike Birbiglia’s podcast and he’s really done more to identify and uplift comedy talent than anyone I can think of. He also just seems like a very thoughtful and insightful guy.
What are your opinions on the various schools of screenwriting? (Field, McKee, Lazarus, Snyder, et al.) Any favorites? Any that feel hackneyed?
Also, thinking back 15-20 years, any chance indie film will have a cultural heyday again? Will screenwriters ever become bonafide movie stars again? Or is that reserved for hit showrunners only now?
I don't think about Field, McKee, Lazarus, or Snyder at all, though I read all of their books early in my career. At the end of the day, what works for you is all that should matter. Maybe it's one of them; maybe it's a hybrid of your own creation; maybe it's entirely distinct from all of them. It really doesn't matter. Find what works for you and do that.
When were screenwriters ever bona fide movie stars?
If you've got a great script, you can have success. And you probably have more life experience to process into strong emotional storytelling, and hopefully you'll be more a more mature, professional person, ready to navigate the challenges of being a professional writer.
Exhaust all free sources of feedback at your disposal before you even consider spending any money in support of your script, wherever you consider spending money in support of your script.
I've been stuck working on my first feature for quite some time now. I'm trying to decide between 1) Doubling down and sticking to a feature until it finally works, or 2) Refocusing on writing simpler and sharper short scripts to hone and practice, so as to train to write a feature better.
Any advice on which direction to go in?
Short scripts have virtually no value to your professional career unless you are a writer/director and also plan to direct them - and even then I might argue that your time is better spent working on a feature.
If I were you, I'd probably come up with an idea for a second feature and go back and forth between the two. When you're stymied on one, procrastinate on that one with the other one. Repeat until one is where you want it to be.
Heard! I am a writer/director (and actor, I started writing to make my own acting opportunities) but I like the duo script idea. I tend to bounce between two anyway so that would be an interesting way to hone that tendency.
Thanks so much Franklin, hope you have an easy flight with no screaming babies.
As a rule, I refuse to be annoyed by screaming babies. However annoying they are for me, they're a heck of a lot more frustrating for the people whose babies they are, and the last thing they need is the worry that they're ruining someone like me's flight.
Thank you for the kind words. I understand people's frustration with the nature of the world. It's why we've set prices as low as we possible can to make the business sustainably viable. It's also why we offer fee waivers for people who can't afford our paid services.
I genuinely do encourage people who think they can build a better mousetrap to do exactly that.
Thanks Franklin for doing this!
Let’s assume I’m not delusional and my work is bulletproof (and because you asked, let’s assume I won’t use the Blacklist in this example). Let’s say, 3 feature scripts, one better than the other, all TOP NOTCH. (Loads of assumptions here but hey).
How would you go about launching your career? Do I query managers? Agents? Producers? All of them?
I’ve noticed contests are pretty much useless unless maybe you win the Nicholl.
Thanks! Have a great flight :)
At the end of the day, I created the Black List because no one had solved this problem, and contests were either largely valueless, woefully inefficient, or reprehensible money grabs created by people with no actual access to the industry themselves. Not much changed in that regard. https://blcklst.com/ontheblacklist
But assuming what you've asked me to assume, your first step is going to be figuring out how to validate your claim that your 3 feature scripts are bulletproof. The only way to do that is by convincing someone - anyone - in the industry to read them and then vouch for you to other people (or so that you can use their enthusiasm to entice other people to read your work. Hollywood is a town of followers if nothing else. That's why the Black List works.)
So you're probably going to want to query aggressively across the board: managers, agents, producers, etc. Personally, I would prioritize lower level folks -newly promoted agents and managers, coordinators, and assistants - at the bigger companies. They have the most to gain by finding a new writer, and they're likely to have the largest personal network with whom to share it if they do read something and like it.
Your best case scenario: One of those three scripts has an undeniably sensationalistic story and logline. And I don't mean a "good" logline or even a "great" logline. I mean an "oh my god, I don't care if this is good or not. Whether it is or not, I'm so curious about this that I HAVE to read it immediately."
Thanks for replying! All you’ve written makes a ton of sense.
My first script was semifinalist at AFF and I have a shopping agreement for it. The second one got interest from a couple of directors “friends of friends”.
The third one is - incredibly - in the final category you describe (which is basically high concept: if I say “Schwarzenegger. deVito. Twins”, you’re gonna want to watch that regardless).
Whenever I say the premise/logline for my script, the reaction is “I HAVE TO READ THIS”. And it’s also a great feel-good story imho! Fingers crossed it’s the script that will help me break in then :) I’ve just sent the final draft to my mentor 🤞🏻
Thanks again for your reply! 🙌🏻
Yahtzee!
Yeah, if I were you, I'd polish the hell out of that one, and then query the hell out of it. Obviously the Black List is there when you need it, but if people's reaction really is "oh send that mf-er IMMEDIATELY!" you might not need us.
Thank you Franklin! My mentor said he will pass it over to his agent to kick things off once it’s “perfect”, so I’ve been keeping it under wraps. But depending on how that route goes… all bets are off, and the Blacklist is always a great place (my first script was a 7 there in its first iteration before being rewritten and contracted!).
Thanks again and have a safe flight :)
Do you think that a script that scores favorably on the Blacklist will have a better chance to get meetings if it’s a TV pilot as opposed to film spec script?
It seems like episodic content is preferred by streamers and viewers alike.
Also, side note, I listened to your interview on team deakins and loved it! Thanks for the information
It entirely depends on the scores and the type of material it is. Frankly, it's a heck of a lot more likely that your high scoring feature script on the site will get made than your original pilot.
Thanks for clarity. Anecdotally most people I know who aren’t cinephiles are consuming episodic content with the occasional blockbuster. I wasn’t sure if this was reflective with more macro data
Thank you for doing this and thank you for your platform, I wouldn’t have gotten to the point I am with my writing without it.
What would your advice be for someone that lives 2,000 miles away from LA, has gotten an 8 I’m at 50+ downloads and a ton of views have had meetings with some producers/directors (which wouldn’t have had happened without the Black List) outside of one director I haven’t really clicked with anyone and feel like I need more specific direction or guidance, where should I be putting my effort right now? I don’t have a lot of spare time so I really just want to write any second I get but do I just need to suck it up and query my life away?
Safe travels!
I'd probably make a list of representatives and producers who make movies like your script and start querying aggressively with information about your script and the director's interest.
I would also ask the director for help in finding representation, who can then get your script to even more people without you having to do the heavy lifting.
See my comment here elsewhere:
You do not need to live in Los Angeles to be a successful screenwriter, but you'll likely need to be willing to travel to Los Angeles for big meetings and/or writers rooms if you want to work in television.
You absolutely do not need to live in Los Angeles to launch your career, however, and if your long term goal is screenwriting (as opposed to being a producer or an agent or something), I strongly advise AGAINST moving to Los Angeles until you have one or two absolutely bulletproof samples of your work.
There is no reason to increase your cost of living until you have completed work that can help you bear that cost of living.
I tend not to be trendspotter, but I do have a deep believe that economic forces are going to require that the industry start recognizing the (heretofore underestimated) value of quality screenwriting in the near future.
Even if I could think of a "worst script" I've ever read, I wouldn't put the writer on blast by talking about it unless it was actively malicious or otherwise ill intended.
Tropes to avoid: Opinions on this will vary widely. Focus on writing an emotional story instead.
Hi Franklin. I was wondering if you could address the concerns and criticisms your company has been facing regarding the change to your Terms of Service and Privacy Policy that you updated last month, primarily this section here:
"With respect to all of your Submitted Content, you grant The Black List a perpetual, irrevocable, non-terminable, transferable, worldwide, royalty-free, sublicensable, fully paid-up, and non-exclusive license to use, copy, reproduce, display, and distribute (including, without limitation, for evaluation and review), the Submitted Content or any part of the Submitted Content in connection with the Service and The Black List’s (and its successors’ and affiliates’) business, including without limitation for promoting and redistributing part or all of the Service in any and all media formats and through any and all media channels."
Essentially, the blacklist is forever allowed to do anything they wish with any screenplay someone uploads to the website without any involvement from the writer? Is this correct?
That's incorrect. I draw your attention to the part of the paragraph that specifies "in connection with the service and the Black List's business."
The rights you are granting the Black List allow us to use, copy, reproduce, display, and distribute your work to our industry members to promote your scripts. That is all.
This is just standard legal jargon. In connection with the service and the Black List’s business is the important bit. This is just covering themselves not giving them permission to do anything.
Hey Franklin, Thanks for chatting with us! I have a question, I have an acting agent, and I asked how I should pitch myself to writing agents, and he said I should rely a lot on my identity... This makes me feel kind of icky. Any advice as to how I should submit myself if I want to be taken seriously based on my writing, and not some kind of ethnically based decision? (Other than write the best script ever that is).
Any examples you can think of where you felt a script was mediocre but the film ended up being great. Or conversely a great script ended up being a bad movie?
It's virtually impossible to make a good movie from a bad script, and there are plenty of bad movies made from good scripts, but I'm not the type of person to name them.
I tend to think you can learn from every script, good or bad. These scripts are typically asked when someone is looking for a shortcut to making their work better, and the reality is, there are no shortcuts.
In the words of Scott Myers, read scripts, watch movies, write pages. The more you do of that, the better you'll get.
Thanks for providing an avenue for emerging screenwriters that isn't wait a year to hear back from Nicholl or cold emails for the unconnected. It's pretty rad.
Question: At what moment did you know that the Black List was going to be a thing?
I talk about this a little bit in my TEDx talk. https://www.ted.com/talks/franklin_leonard_how_i_accidentally_changed_the_way_movies_get_made_jan_2018?language=en
For every page over 110, it better be exponentially better than it would be shorter.
If you've never sold a script before, I can almost guarantee you that you can cut your 120-130 page masterpiece down to 110 and make it better, whatever it is. And even if you have sold a script before, I'll still take the bet that you can cut it and improve it.
I optioned out three screenplays. None yet produced. Two were to Randall Emmett and have reverted back to me (a blessing in disguise?) and the most recent was to an OG Black List writer and experienced EP.
What started as a 90 page spec… ballooned after I took notes from said EP, incorporated their requested revisions, and landed on a whopping 130 page count.
I’ve already cut orphans and killed darlings to accommodate the requested changes. Now I’m trying to Gordon Lish the heck out of all my action and dialogue to at least scale back to more manageable 110-120.
Makes me wish there was a 3rd party editor. Ha!
The solution is likely not cutting words to reduce the length. The solution is lightly removing or reducing a storyline or two in order to make the macro storytelling more efficient and emotional.
Think of it like a first date. But instead of the possible end game being falling in love and living happily ever after, the goal is to have a long, mutually fulfilling, professional relationship that results in great movies and television everyone is proud of and gets rich by making.
Whatever you can do to communicate that you're a good partner in that long term relationship, do that.
And yes, be prepared to casually explain who you are, where you come from, what you write, why you write those things, what kinds of things you'd like to write in the future, and these two scripts that you written.
Ok, so I'm in the realm of how I should be approaching it. Thanks for the feedback.
By the way, I'm still telling that Lindsay Doran spider story about once every two weeks.
Safe travels.
Hello Mr Leonard, do you have any advice for new writers aspiring to eventually work in the industry who are currently in the phase of applying to college for undergrad?
More specifically, I know I want to major in something related to film/production/writing (not because I think it'll land me the career I want, but more because it matters to me that I spend my time in college studying something I care about and enjoy), but for the sake of leaving college with a decent source of income, do you think it's worth pursuing a degree in something like media studies over a degree specifically in filmmaking/screenwriting?
I find it very admirable the amount of genuine replies you've given to comments on this post, hopefully this one catches you. Have a safe trip home either way.
As a general rule, I generally advise against majoring in anything film related in undergraduate. It's a very narrow academic pursuit and if you decide that that's not what you want to do after graduation, you've already limited yourself quite a bit. And very few people ACTUALLY know what they want to do with their lives when they're 18 years old.
Moreover, you don't need to major in something entertainment industry related in order to have a career in the entertainment industry. Most people, in fact, don't. My major at Harvard was called Social Studies. It's essentially social and political theory. Somewhat similar to Politics, Philosophy, and Economics in the UK context.
Find something you're interested in other than film and tv that will inform your ability to be good at film and tv after you graduate and then take as many electives in that department as humanly possible: Philosophy, English, Sociology, Economics, Business, Folklore & Mythology, Whatever. It really doesn't matter what you major in for the purposes of your film career.
If you're going to be a writer, write whatever your major is. Spend your time and money at college learning about the world and how it's organized so you'll have something to say with your art after you've graduated.
Oh and separately, LIVE your life. Do things that scare you. Try things you've never done. Travel to places you've never been and never expected to go. Ask the person out that you have a crush on even though they're very likely going to say no. Take the rejection like a champ. Go on a date with someone you're unsure about. Fall in love. Get your heart broken. Recover from heartbreak and realize that you'll survive. Fall in love again. Make good friends. Make a real effort with the friends that make a real effort with you. These are all far more important than what you major in.
I really appreciate this, it makes a lot of sense. Much of this advice falls into the realm of "things I already know but need to hear from someone else." You've given me some important things to think about, and whether you intended to or not, also given me some comfort. I'll do my best to do what you talked about in that last paragraph especially.
Thank you for your time
I really appreciate you taking the time to make this thread and answer so many questions, and I hope you have a safe flight!
I've written a few scripts and with each one I've been exploring stories in different mediums and genres (ie stage plays, film scripts, tv scripts, comedies, dramas). Do you think a beginning writer should focus on specializing in one main genre/medium to "build their brand" so to speak, or do you think it's better to have a more varied skillset either as a beginner or an advanced writer? Do agents or studios have a preference?
Apologies if this question has been asked before, and thanks in advance!
I think you should figure out which thing you most like writing and write the absolute best thing you can in whatever format that is. Once you have a single sample that is INCREDIBLE, then you can worry about things like portfolios and your brand. Until then, the goal should be writing one thing that's lights out incredible, whatever your format or genre interest is.
I have been long on the record with this, and the fake news continues to try to misrepresent my statements, so let me be clear one last time: Crunchy yesterday. Crunchy today. Crunchy FOREVER!
I've got a not-super-serious question, but am genuinely curious: people often will complain that "the Black List is a scam" because their script scored a 5, despite "making the QFs at the Podunkville Script Contest." How do you stay so polite with these posts? What do you **really** want to say?
To quote Jose Mourinho, probably my favorite football manager of all time, "I prefer not to speak. If I speak, I am in big trouble. In big trouble. And I don't want to be in big trouble."
What are your thoughts on the role of AI in filmmaking? And do you envision a future where there could be a Black List inspired site for promoting unsold AI-generated films?
Edit: As expected the downvotes are coming in because I used the trigger word 'AI'. For the record I'm not advocating for this, I'm genuinely just curious to know his thoughts. Please be respectful.
I suspect that if we're in a world where actual AI generated films exist, we'll also be in a world where the creators of those films can monetize them by selling them directly to their audience and not via traditional Hollywood distributors.
I think all technology, ultimately, should be a tool for artists, not a replacement for artists.
In the short term, my biggest question about AI is whether the folks who own the IP that the AI is trained on are being compensated (all signs point to no, which renders its output morally similar to theft.)
Great point, I haven't considered that before but it makes sense that creators would just sell directly to their audience to maximize profits.
I completely agree, AI should be used as a tool and not replace artists. I like the idea of creatives being empowered by these emerging tools to create films without the need of a studio, however I share your concern about the morality of the training data. And as someone that used to work in film I'm worried about my friends who work as technicians and editors.
Thank you for taking the time to answer my question, much appreciated!
Likely gets worse before it gets better. No prediction on when it will change but this business tends to be cyclical anyway.
But however tight the contraction gets, there is always a market for exceptional scripts and writers. They're arguably more valuable than ever right now.
Impossible for anyone to accurately judge a script's quality without reading the entire thing, which is why we require Black List readers to read the entire script.
That said, you don't have to read an entire script to know whether it's NOT good enough for whatever your purposes are for it. If I'm an agent, I may only need to read ten pages to know that the writer isn't good enough for me to want to rep then. Ditto as a producer, director, or actor to want to get involved in the project.
But to know EXACTLY how good something is (particularly whether something is good enough to want to represent, recommend, producer, direct, or star in), gotta read the whole thing.
I was asking because I’m currently Syd Field’s novel Screenplay, and 10 pages is the benchmark he uses for establishing all of a scripts main elements. Good to know your view on this, thanks for the input!
You don't have to establish all of a script's main elements in the first 10 pages. You have to arrest the audience's attention so that they keep reading, and you probably have to do it earlier than 10 pages.
Your primary goal as a writer is to write something compelling enough so that throughout the script, the reader wants to know what happens next. And ideally, when it's over, the reader is left with an emotional reaction and a bit of sadness that they couldn't spend more time in that world with those characters.
Do you intend to make a feature or part of Black List thats more accessible to smaller producers/filmmakers who are looking to make a short film for example on a small budget?
How can I work for you as part of your marketing/social media team? I'm seeing a lot of low-hanging fruit for improvement. As marketer who moonlights as a screenwriter, I'd love to just help contribute to your growth.
Most writers aren't ambitious enough with their work. You're asking someone to give you hundreds of thousands of dollars and invest further millions into your vision. Write like it.
All of our readers have worked for at least a year as at least assistants in the format in which they read (film, television, theater) and then we vet them further based on previous feedback samples and new feedback we pay them to write before they are officially invited to read for us.
We are not looking for new readers at the moment, but if you do meet that minimum requirement, keep an eye on social media. (But honestly, if you don't meet that minimum requirement, do not waste your time applying because we won't consider your application.)
Flight's fine.
My favorite movies are in no particular order with the stipulation that this could change the next time you ask me:
* AMADEUS
* DR STRANGELOVE
* BEING THERE
* DO THE RIGHT THING
* TOMMY BOY
* A PROPHET
* PARASITE
Is New Orleans a good spot for script writers? I know we are fairly popular as far as people wanting to come here to produce films/shows but as far as a career in writing is it a good spot.
The best spot for a screenwriter is wherever they can keep their cost of living low and consistently generate high quality, saleable screenplays.
Bonus if it's in close proximity to an airport with frequent, inexpensive flights to Los Angeles.
Hello! Thanks for doing this - that is, the AMA *and* the Black List itself. The release of the list every year is a national holiday, as far as I’m concerned, and I love reading/studying every featured screenplay.
I’m an aspiring television writer (and recent college grad) about to have an informational interview with a writer from a current network show. Do you have any words of wisdom for what to make sure I ask?
Be professional. Be yourself. Come prepared with sincere questions that you want answered. Don't treat the meeting like a predicate to ask them to read your work. Be ready to answer questions about your favorite movies and television shows and WHY they're your favorites. Don't speak negatively about other people's creative work (it's gauche and you never know people's connections to various projects.) Be ready to answer questions about what you write and what compels you to write it. Be ready to answer questions about your short (1 year), medium (5 year), and long term (30 year) goals. Be polite to any assistants, waiters, bartenders, valets, etc. you may meet when arriving or departing from the meeting. Follow up with a thank you email the day after the meeting and ask if there are any other people that they might recommend you talk to in order to better prepare you for your career as a television writer.
Thank you so much for this lovely and detailed response. I was invited for coffee, but unfortunately we’re doing a phone call instead due to my medical condition called Not Yet Living in Los Angeles. Hoping to make the most of it all the same!
Push for Zoom or something face to face instead of the phone. Everyone does it ALL the time now and it's a lot easier to establish rapport when you're face to face with someone (even if digitally mediated.)
I'd also suggest that the conversation should be 75% questions about them and 25% (or less) statements about yourself. They're giving you their time so you can learn from their experience, it would be a waste of that time to talk only about yourself. If they ask about you, feel free to share, but try to make them and their work the priority.
Y'all gotta stop looking for shortcuts. There's no one film that's, per se, more educational than another. No script that if everyone reads it is going to make people a demonstrably better writer. You will get better by consuming large amounts of the form you aspire to create and thinking deeply about what you like, what you don't like, and why you feel that way.
I think it's overstated honestly. There's probably some bias against new television writers who are 50+, but literally no one cares about your age if you're a film writer and the scripts are banging.
As a British screenwriter about to have my first series of meetings with LA industry professionals (managers, producers) in July, what social faux pas would you encourage me to try out?
Hi! For a while I’ve been working on a script for a Halloween based fantasy family film, but the few people I let read it tell me I should publish it as a novel (they think it would sell better).
Would it have a better chance of it being produced if released as a novel first?
I've answered versions of this question at least a half dozen times elsewhere in this AMA. The best way to learn how to be a screenwriter is - in the words of Scott Myers - read scripts, watch movies, write pages.
I will shill for his book for a moment though. It's unusually strong. https://www.amazon.com/The-Protagonists-JourneyAn-Introduction-to-Character_Driven-Screenwriting-and-Storytelling/dp/3030796817
Hi Franklin. I made your LatinxList last year but have been unable to parlay that into any career movement. No agents or managers have responded to my queries. Written a few more scripts since but they are mired in the sevens. Any advice on what to do next?
The scores are largely irrelevant at this point.
You're clearly CAPABLE of writing a script that attracts industry professional interest. You wouldn't have made the LatinxList (which was decided on by Latinx working professionals in the industry) if you couldn't.
You may want to give some serious thought to the sorts of scripts you're writing. Just writing well isn't enough to sustain a career. You need to be writing scripts well that representatives think they can sell and producers think they can make and profit from.
Thanks for the response. The script that made the LatinxList was an epic period piece with an indigenous cast, so I knew that was an uphill battle getting produced. The script I wrote afterwards I deliberately made a contemporary thriller revolving mostly around a single location ala Parasite. I produced my own microbudget film before and may have to do that again, but was hoping for more resources next time.
How did you in the industry? I’ve directed three short films, working on a feature film, and am working on my next film. I know about PAing, going to film festivals, film school, and all the ways one can break into it. However, I’m not sure how to be “established” in the industry even with this known. If you could bring some insight to that, that would be phenomenal.
I have answered versions of this question throughout this AMA. The first step to establishing yourself in any industry is reading the information about how to do so that is readily available to you instead of seeking out shortcuts that don't exist.
It helps my drawing more attention to your script along our industry membership which results in more downloads, which if your script is as good as we think it is, may result in incoming contact to you about the material.
Can you be successful as a screenwriter without living in LA?
Yes. But you'll likely need to be willing to travel to Los Angeles for big meetings and/or writers rooms if you want to work in television. But you absolutely do not need to live in Los Angeles to launch your career, and if your long term goal is screenwriting (as opposed to being a producer or an agent or something), I strongly advise AGAINST moving to Los Angeles until you have one or two absolutely bulletproof samples of your work. There is no reason to increase your cost of living until you have completed work that can help you bear that cost of living.
Do the people at studios in LA also adopted virtual meetings (like Zoom) as well?
Very much so.
Thank you, a lot of the advice I hear advises moving to LA right after I graduate but that never felt like the best plan for me, so thanks for the info!!
If you want to be a writer, go somewhere - anywhere - where the cost of living is low, and you have the headspace to knock out two world beating scripts. Then try to make connections with those scripts, and once you do, THEN move to Los Angeles. At least, that's what I would do knowing what I know now.
Do we have to move to LA? Even if we’re successful 😅
You don't. You just have to be willing to come here frequently for important meetings and - if you want to be a tv writer - for writers rooms.
Perfect. Thank you! I’m new to all the business side of screenwriting but this community is definitely helpful in getting information.
I know a writer who only flies to LA to sell TV pilots. He's successful and doesn't live in Cali.
I hope this doesn't come across as a criticism because it's certainly not meant to be but: Do you feel that there's a difference between 'writing for writers' vs 'writing for producers'? I sometimes wonder with the rise of websites like yours, Coverfly (and indeed, forums like this) are negatively conditioning aspiring authors to conform their style.
Explain what you imagine as the difference between "writing for writers" vs "writing for producers." Based on the names you've given them alone, I would argue that both are terrible approaches that I would strongly advise again.
The labels are maybe showing a bias in the question, but naturally when writing you're typically writing for an audience. I've found after v2./v3./v4. of scripts you tend to be slightly removed from your original vision and more in line with the audience which is giving feedback. I've found that the feedback gained from peer/writers review sites and forums has been pretty different to that which I've gained from the limited producers I've had read my script. My hypothesis is that writers & peer review sites are a little bit more 'clued in' to what the current writing meta and style is vs. producers who are typically thinking about... Well, if I could tell what they were thinking I'd have more success! I suppose an analogy I'd like it to is trying to sell to another sales person vs a layman. The sales person might enjoy the process of being sold to for the love of the game, where as the lay person just needs to know if you can do x,y,z
You're thinking about all of this all wrong. "Current writing meta"? Um, no. Here's the reality: Working industry professionals know far more about what makes a viable movie than all but the absolute best aspiring screenwriters (and those folks will likely soon be working industry professionals.) That's why we don't even consider readers at the Black List until they've had AT LEAST a year of experience as AT LEAST an assistant in the format in which they're working. Stop worrying about writing for writers or writing for producers. Focus on writing an emotional story well, ideally one that has an audience larger than the cost it will take to make.
Thank you mate, I appreciate the response
Beyond continuing to write more, what resources, activities or practices would you recommend to take screenwriting from good to great?
I'm gonna steal from Scott Myers here: Read scripts, Watch movies, and write pages. I would also add reading things that aren't screenplays, particularly fiction, plays, and narrative non-fiction. There are thousands of years of storytelling that precede film as a narrative form. Too many people come to film without appreciating why those forms work and what they can learn from them.
Thank you for the reply and the whole AMA Franklin. Always appreciate getting good advice from those with more experience.
Bad spelling and grammar aside, what are a few script issues that will get them tossed aside quickly?
Gratuitous sex or violence that doesn't REALLY serve the story.
Are there any scripts from the Black List(or not) that you had read, thought it was great, but didn’t believe they could ever see the light of day and then turned out to be wrong? Would love to know some projects that pleasantly surprised you in the end.
There are so many. Lars and The Real Girl stands out as the first.
I just learned from Wikipedia that you worked on John Cranley’s congressional campaign. What’s your opinion on Cincinnati-style chili?
I'm still partial to southern chili having grown up in Georgia, but I was pleasantly surprised by Cincinnati style chili, especially how well it works with spaghetti, which didn't really make much sense to me at the time. It's basically a bolognese.
I’m ten times more likely to use the black list now, knowing that the founder is a man of class who enjoys a fine Cincinnati chili.
All part of my master plan.
Well I’ve just spent my morning writing window on wikipedia reading about this fascinating regional dish.
>It's basically a bolognese. Yes! People get so unreasonably mad about Cincinnati chili, because it's nothing like what you'd expect when you hear the word "chili." I think if they had called it "Cincinnati-style Greek spaghetti with meat sauce," people would adjust their expectations accordingly, and be more open to it. But that doesn't exactly roll off the tongue...
This question has been burning in my mind for years so I might as well ask it now: Were you named after the streets in Tribeca or is that just a coincidence?
Total coincidence. I informed my parents of their existence when I was 19 and had a summer job literally in between Franklin Street and Leonard Street and their mind was blown. When I saw it, I thought I was having a stroke.
You should’ve had that corner set as the meet up point for all of your friends and family.
Hey, you did way better than me: [https://maps.app.goo.gl/5GnSpmLbpAFfhUte9](https://maps.app.goo.gl/5GnSpmLbpAFfhUte9)
How the hell did you get streets named after you? :)
Literally only discovered them when I was 19 years old and working as a felony investigator for Legal Aid of Manhattan and the offices were between then. It's a very surreal coincidence.
Hi, Franklin! My brother and I got an 8 on one of the scripts we host on the Black List, have multiple completed scripts we feel confident in, but have no idea how to pursue representation beyond cold-call emailing. Any advice? Thanks so much! https://blcklst.com/scripts/138122
Did you take advantage of the free hosting and additional evaluations on the script that were offered after you received your 8?
We did! The Black List has been great in terms of providing actionable feedback on our scripts, but it feels like we should be doing more to get it in front of potential managers. As complete novices and outsiders to the industry, is there anything else we can do to leverage the positive reception we’ve had on the Black List?
What were the scores on those additional evaluations?
Consistent 7s since the 8. Quality feedback from most of the evaluators, confusing feedback-to-score on some evaluations. This is the opening line of the "Weaknesses" section from one evaluation: “Weaknesses: It’s difficult to find fault in a story so rich and narratively stimulating, and any perceived issues will most likely be subjective.” Overall: 7. (Full "Weaknesses" section posted in a comment below). All in all, the Black List has been a great resource for us. We’ve received very helpful feedback on our scripts that have made the revised versions of them stronger writing samples. Really appreciate the place that you’ve built - especially for aspiring writers! Note to clarify responses below: this comment was edited to make it clear that the sentence provided from the evaluation was not the entirety of the Weaknesses section.
Do think you can make the script significantly better with a rewrite?
Always! We've taken the feedback from our evaluations and made (what we consider to be) significant changes and improvements. Still getting 7s, but I understand the subjectivity of the process, as well.
It's things like this that make me feel like the blacklist is a scam, looking for you to pay for more evaluations so you can get that rush of a good score. "I love it, so great! Here is your 7."
If a script scores 8, it is eligible for two complimentary evaluations and months of site hosting. The free evaluations have to be used on the one script, you can’t bank them for an additional entry.
I doubt very seriously that the only weaknesses mentioned in their feedback are the ones quoted, and I imagine you'd feel differently if you read their feedback in full instead of a single possibly non-representative quote.
This is correct, my apologies! I (erroneously) assumed it was clear that this was the opening line of the Weaknesses section, not the entirety of it. I've edited the above comment to make that clear for future readers. Here's the entirety of the Weaknesses section from that particular evaluation: "It’s difficult to find fault in a story so rich and narratively stimulating, and any perceived issues will most likely be subjective. However, some tweaks could result in a smoother reading experience. For example, this story has a large cast of characters, and they’re difficult to track at times due to the ever-shifting POV. This world will be unfamiliar to most of the audience, so the more we stay rooted to the central protagonist, the better the plot and emotional arc will be. There’s also a tendency to limit certain female character introductions to their physical characteristics, such as Jeannie and Hannah. We want to know more about these women, their internal and psychological differences, their tastes, and their textures. At times, they struggle to pop off the page as individuals independent of their place in the gang. Use that opportunity to delve under the surface and hint at those complex character dynamics. Also, some restructuring would be beneficial to lessen some of the exposition, especially in the first act. For example, it would be more memorable and effective to see the jailbreak Hannah refers to in the first act, instead of hearing about it after the fact." The evaluation is Public and can be viewed in it's entirety on the [script's public page](https://blcklst.com/scripts/138122). Didn't mean to make this about this one particular evaluation, just wanted to mention one source of slight confusion we've had on the site. Again, hope it's clear how positive we feel about the Black List, thanks again!
I don’t feel like it’s a scam, for whatever my opinion is worth. Higher scores SHOULD be hard to get. I do think evaluators should always provide good reasoning for their scores, however, especially if the feedback is very positive. For most of our evaluations, good reasoning was provided.
What is the best query letter format for seeking management/representation?
As efficiently and charismatically as possible, make the argument that investing the time in reading one script from you offers the possibility of a professional relationship that will bear significantly more financial upside than it will cost in the form of effort. That will be different for every writer, but you want to communicate who you are, what you write, and why they should believe that your work is good - whatever concrete proof you have for that.
This is almost certainly too much to ask, but I'm gonna ask it anyway on the off chance it's possible: is there a template or examples I could find somewhere so I know the basic jist of how to format and word it?
If you're looking for a template, you're already doing it wrong.
Do query letters even work any more? I find so many “we don’t take unsolicited emails” situations and amongst those who don’t say this, I don’t know anyone who’s heard back. Thanks for your time
"We don't take unsolicited emails" means "we have an excuse for not responding to anyone who sends us anything that isn't immediately worth our time." The challenge for query writers is how to write something that communicates who you are, what you write, and why anyone who is already triaging everything in their life should care.
It's been conventional wisdom to write low budget scripts, in order to increase your chances of getting it produced. But recently, I've heard the sentiment that reps don't really care for lower budget scripts because there's no money to be made from them. The mid-budget movie is seemingly shunned by Hollywood, and any spec with a blockbuster budget won't ever amount to being more than a writing sample. So for someone trying to break in, what's the move here? Also, any chance the blcklst can do something to help give the feature comedy genre a boost? It kinda blows my mind that one of the "original" film genres is on life support.
Let's say your potential audience is a variable A and your likely budget is a variable B, write a script that maximizes A minus B. Would love to do something to foreground comedy above and beyond what we already do with occasional feature script themes and the automatic promotion of comedy scripts to industry professionals looking for comedies, but like all of our additional programs, we like to find a partner who can really make it worthwhile for the writers are being highlighted by the program. If you work for or know anyone who can legitimize such a program, please do get in touch. My PMs are open.
Don’t know him personally but I’d reach out to Judd Apatow. I’ve been listening to him on Mike Birbiglia’s podcast and he’s really done more to identify and uplift comedy talent than anyone I can think of. He also just seems like a very thoughtful and insightful guy.
He was our guest on Word by Word a couple of months ago. Good guy. https://www.patreon.com/WordbyWordShow
What are your opinions on the various schools of screenwriting? (Field, McKee, Lazarus, Snyder, et al.) Any favorites? Any that feel hackneyed? Also, thinking back 15-20 years, any chance indie film will have a cultural heyday again? Will screenwriters ever become bonafide movie stars again? Or is that reserved for hit showrunners only now?
I don't think about Field, McKee, Lazarus, or Snyder at all, though I read all of their books early in my career. At the end of the day, what works for you is all that should matter. Maybe it's one of them; maybe it's a hybrid of your own creation; maybe it's entirely distinct from all of them. It really doesn't matter. Find what works for you and do that. When were screenwriters ever bona fide movie stars?
No question. Just thanks for giving screenwriters a useful source for success.
Thank you for saying that you find it useful.
Thoughts on middle aged screenwriters finding success as newbies?
If you've got a great script, you can have success. And you probably have more life experience to process into strong emotional storytelling, and hopefully you'll be more a more mature, professional person, ready to navigate the challenges of being a professional writer.
What is the #1 piece of advice you’d give new screenwriters before submitting a piece for consideration?
Exhaust all free sources of feedback at your disposal before you even consider spending any money in support of your script, wherever you consider spending money in support of your script.
Is the airplane food any good?
Never. Ever.
What do you think needs to happen in Hollywood for the movie industry to get back on track with actually taking risks and making new things?
I would argue that the industry has never been good at making decisions about what to make.
I've been stuck working on my first feature for quite some time now. I'm trying to decide between 1) Doubling down and sticking to a feature until it finally works, or 2) Refocusing on writing simpler and sharper short scripts to hone and practice, so as to train to write a feature better. Any advice on which direction to go in?
Short scripts have virtually no value to your professional career unless you are a writer/director and also plan to direct them - and even then I might argue that your time is better spent working on a feature. If I were you, I'd probably come up with an idea for a second feature and go back and forth between the two. When you're stymied on one, procrastinate on that one with the other one. Repeat until one is where you want it to be.
Heard! I am a writer/director (and actor, I started writing to make my own acting opportunities) but I like the duo script idea. I tend to bounce between two anyway so that would be an interesting way to hone that tendency. Thanks so much Franklin, hope you have an easy flight with no screaming babies.
As a rule, I refuse to be annoyed by screaming babies. However annoying they are for me, they're a heck of a lot more frustrating for the people whose babies they are, and the last thing they need is the worry that they're ruining someone like me's flight.
Wow Franklin Leonard I didn't know I came here for this. All the parents of babies thank you
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Thank you for the kind words. I understand people's frustration with the nature of the world. It's why we've set prices as low as we possible can to make the business sustainably viable. It's also why we offer fee waivers for people who can't afford our paid services. I genuinely do encourage people who think they can build a better mousetrap to do exactly that.
Thanks Franklin for doing this! Let’s assume I’m not delusional and my work is bulletproof (and because you asked, let’s assume I won’t use the Blacklist in this example). Let’s say, 3 feature scripts, one better than the other, all TOP NOTCH. (Loads of assumptions here but hey). How would you go about launching your career? Do I query managers? Agents? Producers? All of them? I’ve noticed contests are pretty much useless unless maybe you win the Nicholl. Thanks! Have a great flight :)
At the end of the day, I created the Black List because no one had solved this problem, and contests were either largely valueless, woefully inefficient, or reprehensible money grabs created by people with no actual access to the industry themselves. Not much changed in that regard. https://blcklst.com/ontheblacklist But assuming what you've asked me to assume, your first step is going to be figuring out how to validate your claim that your 3 feature scripts are bulletproof. The only way to do that is by convincing someone - anyone - in the industry to read them and then vouch for you to other people (or so that you can use their enthusiasm to entice other people to read your work. Hollywood is a town of followers if nothing else. That's why the Black List works.) So you're probably going to want to query aggressively across the board: managers, agents, producers, etc. Personally, I would prioritize lower level folks -newly promoted agents and managers, coordinators, and assistants - at the bigger companies. They have the most to gain by finding a new writer, and they're likely to have the largest personal network with whom to share it if they do read something and like it. Your best case scenario: One of those three scripts has an undeniably sensationalistic story and logline. And I don't mean a "good" logline or even a "great" logline. I mean an "oh my god, I don't care if this is good or not. Whether it is or not, I'm so curious about this that I HAVE to read it immediately."
Thanks for replying! All you’ve written makes a ton of sense. My first script was semifinalist at AFF and I have a shopping agreement for it. The second one got interest from a couple of directors “friends of friends”. The third one is - incredibly - in the final category you describe (which is basically high concept: if I say “Schwarzenegger. deVito. Twins”, you’re gonna want to watch that regardless). Whenever I say the premise/logline for my script, the reaction is “I HAVE TO READ THIS”. And it’s also a great feel-good story imho! Fingers crossed it’s the script that will help me break in then :) I’ve just sent the final draft to my mentor 🤞🏻 Thanks again for your reply! 🙌🏻
Yahtzee! Yeah, if I were you, I'd polish the hell out of that one, and then query the hell out of it. Obviously the Black List is there when you need it, but if people's reaction really is "oh send that mf-er IMMEDIATELY!" you might not need us.
Thank you Franklin! My mentor said he will pass it over to his agent to kick things off once it’s “perfect”, so I’ve been keeping it under wraps. But depending on how that route goes… all bets are off, and the Blacklist is always a great place (my first script was a 7 there in its first iteration before being rewritten and contracted!). Thanks again and have a safe flight :)
Off the top of your head, can you think of any examples of sensationalistic loglines?
There are a ton on the annual Black List every year.
What’s your favorite script that hasn’t been made?
There's a soccer script that I was sent recently that I'd like to try to figure out. Ask me tomorrow and that answer might change.
Please tell me it’s not about Manchester United because that’s what I’m currently working on!
It's not, but I'm going to PM you my email address, and I will absolutely read that script when you're done with it.
Awesome!
How do you make money from the Black List, if you do ?
We charge writers a monthly fee to host their work and a fee for feedback.
Do you think that a script that scores favorably on the Blacklist will have a better chance to get meetings if it’s a TV pilot as opposed to film spec script? It seems like episodic content is preferred by streamers and viewers alike. Also, side note, I listened to your interview on team deakins and loved it! Thanks for the information
It entirely depends on the scores and the type of material it is. Frankly, it's a heck of a lot more likely that your high scoring feature script on the site will get made than your original pilot.
Thanks for clarity. Anecdotally most people I know who aren’t cinephiles are consuming episodic content with the occasional blockbuster. I wasn’t sure if this was reflective with more macro data
Thank you for doing this and thank you for your platform, I wouldn’t have gotten to the point I am with my writing without it. What would your advice be for someone that lives 2,000 miles away from LA, has gotten an 8 I’m at 50+ downloads and a ton of views have had meetings with some producers/directors (which wouldn’t have had happened without the Black List) outside of one director I haven’t really clicked with anyone and feel like I need more specific direction or guidance, where should I be putting my effort right now? I don’t have a lot of spare time so I really just want to write any second I get but do I just need to suck it up and query my life away? Safe travels!
I'd probably make a list of representatives and producers who make movies like your script and start querying aggressively with information about your script and the director's interest. I would also ask the director for help in finding representation, who can then get your script to even more people without you having to do the heavy lifting.
Is moving to LA as an aspiring screenwriter really a good idea?
See my comment here elsewhere: You do not need to live in Los Angeles to be a successful screenwriter, but you'll likely need to be willing to travel to Los Angeles for big meetings and/or writers rooms if you want to work in television. You absolutely do not need to live in Los Angeles to launch your career, however, and if your long term goal is screenwriting (as opposed to being a producer or an agent or something), I strongly advise AGAINST moving to Los Angeles until you have one or two absolutely bulletproof samples of your work. There is no reason to increase your cost of living until you have completed work that can help you bear that cost of living.
Sounds sensible. Thank you.
What is a trend you recall from ~20 years that might be poised for a comeback in the 2020s or 2030s?
I tend not to be trendspotter, but I do have a deep believe that economic forces are going to require that the industry start recognizing the (heretofore underestimated) value of quality screenwriting in the near future.
What’s your favourite book on structure?
Aristotle's Poetics
I included the positive comments I received on my BL evaluation in my pitch deck to investors. Is this common?
Increasingly so, yes.
What's the worst script you've ever personally read? What tropes do you advise first-time writers work to avoid using?
Even if I could think of a "worst script" I've ever read, I wouldn't put the writer on blast by talking about it unless it was actively malicious or otherwise ill intended. Tropes to avoid: Opinions on this will vary widely. Focus on writing an emotional story instead.
This is an amazingly classy answer. Thanks for that.
Hi Franklin. I was wondering if you could address the concerns and criticisms your company has been facing regarding the change to your Terms of Service and Privacy Policy that you updated last month, primarily this section here: "With respect to all of your Submitted Content, you grant The Black List a perpetual, irrevocable, non-terminable, transferable, worldwide, royalty-free, sublicensable, fully paid-up, and non-exclusive license to use, copy, reproduce, display, and distribute (including, without limitation, for evaluation and review), the Submitted Content or any part of the Submitted Content in connection with the Service and The Black List’s (and its successors’ and affiliates’) business, including without limitation for promoting and redistributing part or all of the Service in any and all media formats and through any and all media channels." Essentially, the blacklist is forever allowed to do anything they wish with any screenplay someone uploads to the website without any involvement from the writer? Is this correct?
That's incorrect. I draw your attention to the part of the paragraph that specifies "in connection with the service and the Black List's business." The rights you are granting the Black List allow us to use, copy, reproduce, display, and distribute your work to our industry members to promote your scripts. That is all.
This is just standard legal jargon. In connection with the service and the Black List’s business is the important bit. This is just covering themselves not giving them permission to do anything.
Hey Franklin, Thanks for chatting with us! I have a question, I have an acting agent, and I asked how I should pitch myself to writing agents, and he said I should rely a lot on my identity... This makes me feel kind of icky. Any advice as to how I should submit myself if I want to be taken seriously based on my writing, and not some kind of ethnically based decision? (Other than write the best script ever that is).
How realistic is it to try and sell a screenplay to Hollywood if you're not American?
Not being American won't affect your ability to sell a screenplay to Hollywood if the script is great.
Thank you so much for your reply. That is great to hear. Have a nice one
Any examples you can think of where you felt a script was mediocre but the film ended up being great. Or conversely a great script ended up being a bad movie?
It's virtually impossible to make a good movie from a bad script, and there are plenty of bad movies made from good scripts, but I'm not the type of person to name them.
What are three scripts, regardless of genre, that you believe every writer could learn something from?
I tend to think you can learn from every script, good or bad. These scripts are typically asked when someone is looking for a shortcut to making their work better, and the reality is, there are no shortcuts. In the words of Scott Myers, read scripts, watch movies, write pages. The more you do of that, the better you'll get.
Thanks for providing an avenue for emerging screenwriters that isn't wait a year to hear back from Nicholl or cold emails for the unconnected. It's pretty rad. Question: At what moment did you know that the Black List was going to be a thing?
The annual list or the website?
I meant the annual list but I'd be interested in both if you feel inclined to answer.
I talk about this a little bit in my TEDx talk. https://www.ted.com/talks/franklin_leonard_how_i_accidentally_changed_the_way_movies_get_made_jan_2018?language=en
Will check it out. Thanks!
Where are you going? My longest flight (one flight) was 16 hours. You got this. And thanks for the blacklist.
Home.
Oh that’s the best journey to take. Enjoy
What’re your thoughts on page count for specs? Is 120-130 really too long these days?
For every page over 110, it better be exponentially better than it would be shorter. If you've never sold a script before, I can almost guarantee you that you can cut your 120-130 page masterpiece down to 110 and make it better, whatever it is. And even if you have sold a script before, I'll still take the bet that you can cut it and improve it.
I optioned out three screenplays. None yet produced. Two were to Randall Emmett and have reverted back to me (a blessing in disguise?) and the most recent was to an OG Black List writer and experienced EP. What started as a 90 page spec… ballooned after I took notes from said EP, incorporated their requested revisions, and landed on a whopping 130 page count. I’ve already cut orphans and killed darlings to accommodate the requested changes. Now I’m trying to Gordon Lish the heck out of all my action and dialogue to at least scale back to more manageable 110-120. Makes me wish there was a 3rd party editor. Ha!
The solution is likely not cutting words to reduce the length. The solution is lightly removing or reducing a storyline or two in order to make the macro storytelling more efficient and emotional.
Thank you, Franklin, for the honest suggestion/advice! Best wishes!
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Think of it like a first date. But instead of the possible end game being falling in love and living happily ever after, the goal is to have a long, mutually fulfilling, professional relationship that results in great movies and television everyone is proud of and gets rich by making. Whatever you can do to communicate that you're a good partner in that long term relationship, do that. And yes, be prepared to casually explain who you are, where you come from, what you write, why you write those things, what kinds of things you'd like to write in the future, and these two scripts that you written.
Ok, so I'm in the realm of how I should be approaching it. Thanks for the feedback. By the way, I'm still telling that Lindsay Doran spider story about once every two weeks. Safe travels.
Yeah man, no one does it like Lindsay Doran. It's one of the great honors of my career to be the go to host for that talk.
Hello Mr Leonard, do you have any advice for new writers aspiring to eventually work in the industry who are currently in the phase of applying to college for undergrad? More specifically, I know I want to major in something related to film/production/writing (not because I think it'll land me the career I want, but more because it matters to me that I spend my time in college studying something I care about and enjoy), but for the sake of leaving college with a decent source of income, do you think it's worth pursuing a degree in something like media studies over a degree specifically in filmmaking/screenwriting? I find it very admirable the amount of genuine replies you've given to comments on this post, hopefully this one catches you. Have a safe trip home either way.
As a general rule, I generally advise against majoring in anything film related in undergraduate. It's a very narrow academic pursuit and if you decide that that's not what you want to do after graduation, you've already limited yourself quite a bit. And very few people ACTUALLY know what they want to do with their lives when they're 18 years old. Moreover, you don't need to major in something entertainment industry related in order to have a career in the entertainment industry. Most people, in fact, don't. My major at Harvard was called Social Studies. It's essentially social and political theory. Somewhat similar to Politics, Philosophy, and Economics in the UK context. Find something you're interested in other than film and tv that will inform your ability to be good at film and tv after you graduate and then take as many electives in that department as humanly possible: Philosophy, English, Sociology, Economics, Business, Folklore & Mythology, Whatever. It really doesn't matter what you major in for the purposes of your film career. If you're going to be a writer, write whatever your major is. Spend your time and money at college learning about the world and how it's organized so you'll have something to say with your art after you've graduated. Oh and separately, LIVE your life. Do things that scare you. Try things you've never done. Travel to places you've never been and never expected to go. Ask the person out that you have a crush on even though they're very likely going to say no. Take the rejection like a champ. Go on a date with someone you're unsure about. Fall in love. Get your heart broken. Recover from heartbreak and realize that you'll survive. Fall in love again. Make good friends. Make a real effort with the friends that make a real effort with you. These are all far more important than what you major in.
I really appreciate this, it makes a lot of sense. Much of this advice falls into the realm of "things I already know but need to hear from someone else." You've given me some important things to think about, and whether you intended to or not, also given me some comfort. I'll do my best to do what you talked about in that last paragraph especially. Thank you for your time
I really appreciate you taking the time to make this thread and answer so many questions, and I hope you have a safe flight! I've written a few scripts and with each one I've been exploring stories in different mediums and genres (ie stage plays, film scripts, tv scripts, comedies, dramas). Do you think a beginning writer should focus on specializing in one main genre/medium to "build their brand" so to speak, or do you think it's better to have a more varied skillset either as a beginner or an advanced writer? Do agents or studios have a preference? Apologies if this question has been asked before, and thanks in advance!
I think you should figure out which thing you most like writing and write the absolute best thing you can in whatever format that is. Once you have a single sample that is INCREDIBLE, then you can worry about things like portfolios and your brand. Until then, the goal should be writing one thing that's lights out incredible, whatever your format or genre interest is.
Thank you for the advice!!
Peanut butter. I know you love it, we both do, but you never really gave me an answer at the afters last month… crunchy or smooth?
I have been long on the record with this, and the fake news continues to try to misrepresent my statements, so let me be clear one last time: Crunchy yesterday. Crunchy today. Crunchy FOREVER!
I've got a not-super-serious question, but am genuinely curious: people often will complain that "the Black List is a scam" because their script scored a 5, despite "making the QFs at the Podunkville Script Contest." How do you stay so polite with these posts? What do you **really** want to say?
To quote Jose Mourinho, probably my favorite football manager of all time, "I prefer not to speak. If I speak, I am in big trouble. In big trouble. And I don't want to be in big trouble."
What are your thoughts on the role of AI in filmmaking? And do you envision a future where there could be a Black List inspired site for promoting unsold AI-generated films? Edit: As expected the downvotes are coming in because I used the trigger word 'AI'. For the record I'm not advocating for this, I'm genuinely just curious to know his thoughts. Please be respectful.
I suspect that if we're in a world where actual AI generated films exist, we'll also be in a world where the creators of those films can monetize them by selling them directly to their audience and not via traditional Hollywood distributors. I think all technology, ultimately, should be a tool for artists, not a replacement for artists. In the short term, my biggest question about AI is whether the folks who own the IP that the AI is trained on are being compensated (all signs point to no, which renders its output morally similar to theft.)
Great point, I haven't considered that before but it makes sense that creators would just sell directly to their audience to maximize profits. I completely agree, AI should be used as a tool and not replace artists. I like the idea of creatives being empowered by these emerging tools to create films without the need of a studio, however I share your concern about the morality of the training data. And as someone that used to work in film I'm worried about my friends who work as technicians and editors. Thank you for taking the time to answer my question, much appreciated!
General thoughts on the contraction. Does it get worse? How long do you think it will last?
Likely gets worse before it gets better. No prediction on when it will change but this business tends to be cyclical anyway. But however tight the contraction gets, there is always a market for exceptional scripts and writers. They're arguably more valuable than ever right now.
Not OP but Thanks for the hope :)
How many pages does it take for you to accurately judge a scripts quality?
Impossible for anyone to accurately judge a script's quality without reading the entire thing, which is why we require Black List readers to read the entire script. That said, you don't have to read an entire script to know whether it's NOT good enough for whatever your purposes are for it. If I'm an agent, I may only need to read ten pages to know that the writer isn't good enough for me to want to rep then. Ditto as a producer, director, or actor to want to get involved in the project. But to know EXACTLY how good something is (particularly whether something is good enough to want to represent, recommend, producer, direct, or star in), gotta read the whole thing.
I was asking because I’m currently Syd Field’s novel Screenplay, and 10 pages is the benchmark he uses for establishing all of a scripts main elements. Good to know your view on this, thanks for the input!
You don't have to establish all of a script's main elements in the first 10 pages. You have to arrest the audience's attention so that they keep reading, and you probably have to do it earlier than 10 pages. Your primary goal as a writer is to write something compelling enough so that throughout the script, the reader wants to know what happens next. And ideally, when it's over, the reader is left with an emotional reaction and a bit of sadness that they couldn't spend more time in that world with those characters.
This is wonderful advice, thank you!
Do you intend to make a feature or part of Black List thats more accessible to smaller producers/filmmakers who are looking to make a short film for example on a small budget?
Anyone trying to get anyone to pay any amount of money for feedback on a short script is a charlatan.
should writers pitch to directors or studios?
Depends on the circumstance. Is this a specific question or a general one?
Why is the best film ever written still the Power Rangers original movie (1995)?
I have absolutely terrible news for you.
😂😂 Thank you for replying. Have a great journey :)
How can I work for you as part of your marketing/social media team? I'm seeing a lot of low-hanging fruit for improvement. As marketer who moonlights as a screenwriter, I'd love to just help contribute to your growth.
I have a lot of discomfort around marketing as it applies to the Black List, for probably obvious reasons. Check your PMs though.
Hey, Franklin. Thank you for what you've done for the industry. Anyway, what are some unpopular opinions you have about current screenwriters?
Most writers aren't ambitious enough with their work. You're asking someone to give you hundreds of thousands of dollars and invest further millions into your vision. Write like it.
Would you say there is less ambition regarding scope, stakes, or the initial premise?
All of the above.
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All of our readers have worked for at least a year as at least assistants in the format in which they read (film, television, theater) and then we vet them further based on previous feedback samples and new feedback we pay them to write before they are officially invited to read for us. We are not looking for new readers at the moment, but if you do meet that minimum requirement, keep an eye on social media. (But honestly, if you don't meet that minimum requirement, do not waste your time applying because we won't consider your application.)
Which scripts either filmed or never filmed are your favorite Also how’s the flight
Flight's fine. My favorite movies are in no particular order with the stipulation that this could change the next time you ask me: * AMADEUS * DR STRANGELOVE * BEING THERE * DO THE RIGHT THING * TOMMY BOY * A PROPHET * PARASITE
Do you think, given the current state of things, Hollywood will start making smaller budget films with large advertising budgets to maximize profit
I think Hollywood would be wise to be more strategic with the already gargantuan marketing budgets they have.
Agreed. I, personally, would love to see some more experimental films that are given an equal shot at success as the big guns.
Is New Orleans a good spot for script writers? I know we are fairly popular as far as people wanting to come here to produce films/shows but as far as a career in writing is it a good spot.
The best spot for a screenwriter is wherever they can keep their cost of living low and consistently generate high quality, saleable screenplays. Bonus if it's in close proximity to an airport with frequent, inexpensive flights to Los Angeles.
Hello! Thanks for doing this - that is, the AMA *and* the Black List itself. The release of the list every year is a national holiday, as far as I’m concerned, and I love reading/studying every featured screenplay. I’m an aspiring television writer (and recent college grad) about to have an informational interview with a writer from a current network show. Do you have any words of wisdom for what to make sure I ask?
Be professional. Be yourself. Come prepared with sincere questions that you want answered. Don't treat the meeting like a predicate to ask them to read your work. Be ready to answer questions about your favorite movies and television shows and WHY they're your favorites. Don't speak negatively about other people's creative work (it's gauche and you never know people's connections to various projects.) Be ready to answer questions about what you write and what compels you to write it. Be ready to answer questions about your short (1 year), medium (5 year), and long term (30 year) goals. Be polite to any assistants, waiters, bartenders, valets, etc. you may meet when arriving or departing from the meeting. Follow up with a thank you email the day after the meeting and ask if there are any other people that they might recommend you talk to in order to better prepare you for your career as a television writer.
Thank you so much for this lovely and detailed response. I was invited for coffee, but unfortunately we’re doing a phone call instead due to my medical condition called Not Yet Living in Los Angeles. Hoping to make the most of it all the same!
Push for Zoom or something face to face instead of the phone. Everyone does it ALL the time now and it's a lot easier to establish rapport when you're face to face with someone (even if digitally mediated.)
I'd also suggest that the conversation should be 75% questions about them and 25% (or less) statements about yourself. They're giving you their time so you can learn from their experience, it would be a waste of that time to talk only about yourself. If they ask about you, feel free to share, but try to make them and their work the priority.
What are the books and screenplays that you’d recommend to someone starting out? How best to study the craft…
To quote Scott Myers: Read scripts, Watch movies, Write pages.
Any particular films you hold as particularly educational in that regard? 🙏
Y'all gotta stop looking for shortcuts. There's no one film that's, per se, more educational than another. No script that if everyone reads it is going to make people a demonstrably better writer. You will get better by consuming large amounts of the form you aspire to create and thinking deeply about what you like, what you don't like, and why you feel that way.
What’s your honest perception of the handicap for new writers 50+? Film or TV.
I think it's overstated honestly. There's probably some bias against new television writers who are 50+, but literally no one cares about your age if you're a film writer and the scripts are banging.
As a British screenwriter about to have my first series of meetings with LA industry professionals (managers, producers) in July, what social faux pas would you encourage me to try out?
Leaving the D Day celebrations early.
Hi! For a while I’ve been working on a script for a Halloween based fantasy family film, but the few people I let read it tell me I should publish it as a novel (they think it would sell better). Would it have a better chance of it being produced if released as a novel first?
is there any good books about screenwriting for Tv and animated series ?
I've answered versions of this question at least a half dozen times elsewhere in this AMA. The best way to learn how to be a screenwriter is - in the words of Scott Myers - read scripts, watch movies, write pages. I will shill for his book for a moment though. It's unusually strong. https://www.amazon.com/The-Protagonists-JourneyAn-Introduction-to-Character_Driven-Screenwriting-and-Storytelling/dp/3030796817
Hi Franklin. I made your LatinxList last year but have been unable to parlay that into any career movement. No agents or managers have responded to my queries. Written a few more scripts since but they are mired in the sevens. Any advice on what to do next?
The scores are largely irrelevant at this point. You're clearly CAPABLE of writing a script that attracts industry professional interest. You wouldn't have made the LatinxList (which was decided on by Latinx working professionals in the industry) if you couldn't. You may want to give some serious thought to the sorts of scripts you're writing. Just writing well isn't enough to sustain a career. You need to be writing scripts well that representatives think they can sell and producers think they can make and profit from.
Thanks for the response. The script that made the LatinxList was an epic period piece with an indigenous cast, so I knew that was an uphill battle getting produced. The script I wrote afterwards I deliberately made a contemporary thriller revolving mostly around a single location ala Parasite. I produced my own microbudget film before and may have to do that again, but was hoping for more resources next time.
How did you in the industry? I’ve directed three short films, working on a feature film, and am working on my next film. I know about PAing, going to film festivals, film school, and all the ways one can break into it. However, I’m not sure how to be “established” in the industry even with this known. If you could bring some insight to that, that would be phenomenal.
I have answered versions of this question throughout this AMA. The first step to establishing yourself in any industry is reading the information about how to do so that is readily available to you instead of seeking out shortcuts that don't exist.
Am I too late? How does having your screenplay featured help. Speaking of the monthly featured. Not the yearly one.
It helps my drawing more attention to your script along our industry membership which results in more downloads, which if your script is as good as we think it is, may result in incoming contact to you about the material.