11 ms·

I'm disappointed in the shallow look people are giving this. You can't just read the marketing copy and take it at face value. Amazon Studios is actually pretty

I'm disappointed in the shallow look people are giving this. You can't just read the marketing copy and take it at face value. Amazon Studios is actually pretty terrible for creatives, as many successful screenwriters et al. have been pointing out for over a year now: http://artfulwriter.com/?p=1103 http://artfulwriter.com/?p=1103 http://www.hitfix.com/blogs/motion-captured/posts/the-morning-read-why-amazon-studios-is-a-very-bad-idea-for-writers http://www.hitfix.com/blogs/motion-captured/posts/the-mornin... Since those were written things have improved slightly, but anyone thinking about participating should still have serious reservations: http://johnaugust.com/2011/amazon-studios-now-slightly-less-terrible http://johnaugust.com/2011/amazon-studios-now-slightly-less-...

Firebrand 15y ago
I'm not sure how I feel about all this spec work that is appearing in writing communities. It's one thing in fields like design or development where the IP could potentially be reused. With work like this that takes months to create, you risk never being able to use this work again once you post it up.
- waterlesscloud 15y ago
  Spec work has been part and parcel of the screenwriting world forever. As have free options. Something everyone tells you not to do and most people end up doing anyway.
- melvinram 15y ago
  As a designer, I protest. It's always okay for other industries but when it hits home, people cry foul. Spec work is spec work.
waterlesscloud 15y ago
Mazin's argument is that if you were good enough to write a script that grosses over $60 million you could get a better deal than $600,000 for the script. But I don't know if that's true. First time spec sales over $600k are very, very rare. A number of things have to come together in a way the resembles luck more than anything else for that to happen. For an established screenwriter, sure, they could do better. For a first timer...I'm not so sure.
- jonnathanson 15y ago
  First-time specs rarely sell for much higher than the low sixes. After that, a writer usually finds himself jobbing around town on low-paying rewrite and polishing gigs on existing studio projects. It could be years before a young writer, hot off the sale of a spec script, ever cracks mid-sixes on his next payday. And he may even sell multiple specs, never to see a single one made. So I'd argue that Amazon offers a compelling deal for the young writer. If I were starting out as a screenwriter right now, I'd shop my script to agents and to Amazon. If it's good enough to land me an agent, I'd go with the agent. If I'm getting nowhere with the agency search, I'd try Amazon. Either way, it's nice to have an alternative to the traditional discovery model.
  - wisty 15y ago
    So it's not a great deal, but script writers rarely get great deals.
    - jonnathanson 15y ago
      Typically not, unless they manage to get really lucky and find their script in a bidding war the first time out the gate. Or unless they get a script actually made into a movie (very rare, even for successfully beginning screenwriters), and the movie does well. Once you start hitting it big in screenwriting, you can make a very nice living. But most writers go through a very long dues-paying period, and that's not including the ones who never even make it to the starting gate. Now, some people might be tempted to say "But if I can make a couple hundred thousand from a spec sale, can't I just write a ton of specs and get rich?" Probably not. The way to become known amongst studios is to take a bunch of rewriting or project-based jobs, preferably after having sold a debut spec. If you figure that the average spec could take anywhere from 6 months to a year to write, and that most specs don't sell, you're looking at a very uncertain income stream. And even if you do make a nice sale, you have to factor in everybody's cut: agency, manager (if you have one), lawyer, taxes, etc. In general, screenwriting follows the pay function common to most of Hollywood: you spend a long time making close to nothing, but if you ever manage to make it to the higher echelons, you can make a killing. Skill plays a role in this journey, but luck is arguably even more important. Understandably, not everyone has the stomach for it. If you want to get rich, there are far easier and better paths to doing so. Writing is really a game you have to be in because you love it so much that you can't imagine doing anything else. It can be a fun lifestyle if you manage to make ends meet, and a great lifestyle if you manage to become successful at it.
deleted 15y ago
[deleted]

Firebrand 15y ago

I'm not sure how I feel about all this spec work that is appearing in writing communities. It's one thing in fields like design or development where the IP could potentially be reused. With work like this that takes months to create, you risk never being able to use this work again once you post it up.

waterlesscloud 15y ago
Spec work has been part and parcel of the screenwriting world forever. As have free options. Something everyone tells you not to do and most people end up doing anyway.
melvinram 15y ago
As a designer, I protest. It's always okay for other industries but when it hits home, people cry foul. Spec work is spec work.

waterlesscloud 15y ago

Mazin's argument is that if you were good enough to write a script that grosses over $60 million you could get a better deal than $600,000 for the script. But I don't know if that's true. First time spec sales over $600k are very, very rare. A number of things have to come together in a way the resembles luck more than anything else for that to happen. For an established screenwriter, sure, they could do better. For a first timer...I'm not so sure.

jonnathanson 15y ago
First-time specs rarely sell for much higher than the low sixes. After that, a writer usually finds himself jobbing around town on low-paying rewrite and polishing gigs on existing studio projects. It could be years before a young writer, hot off the sale of a spec script, ever cracks mid-sixes on his next payday. And he may even sell multiple specs, never to see a single one made. So I'd argue that Amazon offers a compelling deal for the young writer. If I were starting out as a screenwriter right now, I'd shop my script to agents and to Amazon. If it's good enough to land me an agent, I'd go with the agent. If I'm getting nowhere with the agency search, I'd try Amazon. Either way, it's nice to have an alternative to the traditional discovery model.
- wisty 15y ago
  So it's not a great deal, but script writers rarely get great deals.
  - jonnathanson 15y ago
    Typically not, unless they manage to get really lucky and find their script in a bidding war the first time out the gate. Or unless they get a script actually made into a movie (very rare, even for successfully beginning screenwriters), and the movie does well. Once you start hitting it big in screenwriting, you can make a very nice living. But most writers go through a very long dues-paying period, and that's not including the ones who never even make it to the starting gate. Now, some people might be tempted to say "But if I can make a couple hundred thousand from a spec sale, can't I just write a ton of specs and get rich?" Probably not. The way to become known amongst studios is to take a bunch of rewriting or project-based jobs, preferably after having sold a debut spec. If you figure that the average spec could take anywhere from 6 months to a year to write, and that most specs don't sell, you're looking at a very uncertain income stream. And even if you do make a nice sale, you have to factor in everybody's cut: agency, manager (if you have one), lawyer, taxes, etc. In general, screenwriting follows the pay function common to most of Hollywood: you spend a long time making close to nothing, but if you ever manage to make it to the higher echelons, you can make a killing. Skill plays a role in this journey, but luck is arguably even more important. Understandably, not everyone has the stomach for it. If you want to get rich, there are far easier and better paths to doing so. Writing is really a game you have to be in because you love it so much that you can't imagine doing anything else. It can be a fun lifestyle if you manage to make ends meet, and a great lifestyle if you manage to become successful at it.

deleted 15y ago

[deleted]