Save the Cat! Strikes Back: More Trouble For... (20 page)

And remember:

“This… is the business… we have chosen.”

If you want to produce movies or if you're a filmmaker, that's different. But if you're a screenwriter who wants a career with the majors, with rewrites, assignments, and sales, pay heed!

See, the funny thing about the whole circuit is no matter where you are in the hierarchy, no matter how much clout you wield, we're all asking the same question Ben's agent asked:

Whaddya got for me?

Sometimes in my fantasies, I see myself as the head of development somewhere, green-lighting movies and working with writers, directors, and producers to make my projects the biggest hits they can be. But how, really, is that different than everything else I've done in my career? I've forever been the screenwriter who is thinking up posters and writing movies that will please most people most often. It's no different than what everyone on every level is doing all over town. What's that special, sizzling-hot, extra-cool thing that will fill my bill?

Not only for the people in charge, but the public too!

I may be a smart writer — or agent or lawyer or manager — but when someone asks:
How's it going?
what they're really asking is:

Whaddya got for me?

How is whatever you are developing of interest to, and for… me? If it's good, how can I get in on it? If I can't get in on it, how can I learn from what you're doing and make my projects more like yours? The bonus that writers have is they are the ones who can think up and execute these ideas. You as the writer have tremendous power. Don't ever forget that it starts with you.

In the beginning was the Word. And the Word is yours alone!

So now you have it all. Scripts in play. Agents and managers at your beck and call. That show biz personal trainer who is taking 10% of your body fat (hopefully). Now what?

Agents will tell you, or tell me anyway, that they will spend the first half of your career “putting you into a box” — and the second half of your career getting you out of it.

What this means is, in order to sell you, they too have to figure out what they're selling and package you accordingly.

If you are a horror writer, it will be easier to sell you, and send you up for assignments, if you are a really good horror writer who specializes in horror and are the go-to guy or gal in… horror. If you are a comedy writer, it will be easier to sell you if you not only write comedy, but specialize further by being a
type
of comedy writer. Do you write spoof, rom-com, gross-out, sophisticated, or urban comedy? Then every assignment that comes up in your category is one I'll send you out on.

My friend Tracey Jackson, whom I've known since I was three — I even have a photo of me, Tracey, and Jamie Lee Curtis at a nursery school birthday party (available upon request) — has always written witty women's comedy. It's why she was hired to adapt
Confessions of a Shopaholic
(2009). Tracey writes “funny women” and “sophisticated” comedy, so if you have a project that falls into these categories, she's one of three or four top women writers in town to call.

In addition, Tracey turned a penchant for all things Bolly-wood into an original sale of
The Guru
(2000), and now also is asked in every time a Bollywood comedy needs an American twist. And because she is a very smart careerist, Tracey has never been afraid to turn down assignments or reject being put up for ones that aren't in her category. Why? Because she not only knows her strengths
and preferences as a writer, she also realizes the loss of focus that comes from being all things to all people.

Point is: By finding a specialty and getting really good at it — or going further and making a category of movie uniquely your voice, e.g., “It's a J.J. Abrams actioner” or “It's a Judd Apatow comedy” — you make it easier to sell you.

How does an agent “put you up” for an assignment?

Well… there's this big book. It's called the
Open Assignments Book
, and all the major agencies maintain one. It's no more than a printout in a binder where every studio and production company that is looking for someone to rewrite an existing script is listed. Don't be horrified if the project you sold as a spec screenplay turns up on this list, because most screenplays go through multiple writers. Especially as the studio gets closer to green-lighting a movie, they will make sure they've done everything they can to get it into optimum shape.

You may also wish to develop other skills. There are writers who specialize in structure; writers who specialize in dialogue or action set pieces; and writers who are called in to do the pass that will simply straighten out all of the other drafts and distill them into the final shooting script.

You've heard, I'm sure, that there are many professional screenwriters who have never had a screen credit who work for decades making a very nice living doing nothing else but such doctoring. These hired guns can be expensive (a one week “pass” on a script by these specialists might run you $500,000 or more). And it all gets back to the vital question I asked myself at a turning point in my career:

What service do I offer?

Am I best at coming up with ideas? Writing a particular type of movie? Or being an expert in one aspect of the writing process?

Finding the thing you do best, and nurturing it, is what a good agent or manager will work with you to exploit.

The ideal, and what most agents/managers recommend, is:

►
Do
always be working on a spec or two or three.

►
Do
always go up for assignments you're right for, and once you're hired, do your best to “write it into production.”

►
Do
always be thinking what your service is. What is it you do better than anyone, and how can you develop “a voice” that is uniquely yours?

These three activities will keep you plenty busy. You should never be sitting on your hands, wondering what you should be doing to further your career. Before you call up your agent to bug her (more on that in a minute), you should make sure you're doing everything on this list — because odds are at the end of your chat, it's what your ten-percenter will suggest, too. I know all this sounds like a lot, but it's not. It's your job now.

So say it aloud:
I can do this!
Yes. You can.

I was being a little facetious when I told you about Ben's meeting with his agent. Yes, the point of the conversation was:
What're you working on?
And you'll always be working on coming up with a spec. But Ben was also offered the chance to meet with people around town by his smart agent — all due to his success.

There was Ben BEFORE, like so many of you, in the desert, just him and his ideas. Now here he was AFTER with his Fiji water, ready to “go to the next level.” Pretty cool! Ben had passed the first test. He'd written and sold a script. Now he has to get more projects “in the pipeline,” and that means a combination of
Pitches
,
Rewrites
, and
Get-to-Know Ya's
. So what are these?

“Pitches” are just that, a verbal presentation of a script yet to be written, and one reason Ben's agent was asking what he is working on. Having sold a script, Ben is in a much better position to pitch new ideas and perhaps sell them. During the spec screenplay send-out, Ben's agent made a list of possible producers who might be interested. In addition to Underground, another producer was needed to “take the script into the studio.” I don't know about
Ben's sale, but an agent may make phone calls to, and send scripts out for, 20 – 50 producers, hoping to ramp up interest in a script. (So you see how much work is involved?) In the course of this, some liked Ben's script, some passed, but even those who didn't sign on may have liked Ben's writing. And having seen someone else ace them out of a sale, they are more inclined now to meet and see what Ben has that might help
them
.

Whaddya got for me?

Pitch meetings are ever thus. If it's a hot idea, or if the writer has “heat,” the agent will gang up many meetings in a few days hoping to generate the same kind of excitement a spec sale does. More often, it's a calmer affair. One producer may like the idea most, so more meetings are set to work on the pitch and get it ready for sale.

But it all starts with that initial meeting.

If you are versed in
Save the Cat!
you are ahead of other pitchers. Poster. Logline. Simple story spine. Eager and inspired telling of the tale. Ten minutes, tops. That's the pitch.

One of the handiest hints I've seen to organize your pitch came up in one of my classes in Seattle. Betty Ryan constructed a great way to give a concise outline of her story by identifying seven key points of the BS2 to guide all her pitches:

Betty Ryan's Short Pitch Guide

1. Opening Image – A brief “who” of the hero

2. Catalyst – The thing that sets the story in motion

3. Break into Two – The essence of the story and poster

4. Midpoint – The complication that challenges the hero

5. All Is Lost – How the hero loses everything

6. Break into Three – The solution to the hero's dilemma

7. Final Image – How he is transformed by this story

Regardless of how you organize your story, once you've finished your pitch… shut up! The first one to talk loses. If you give
into temptation and can't help spewing more stuff after you've said “The End,” you are indulging in a pitching no-no called
Selling Past the Close
. My other advice is, once you've pitched, and waited, and they pass and then ask if you have anything else you'd like to pitch to them… say no. Others will disagree, but to me, I think writers should be more than guys with a coat full of watches.
Don't like that one? How about this?

I need to believe that what you're pitching me means something to you. You can hint that you have other things you're working on, and thumbnail those, but if they want to hear your next idea, schedule a time to come back in and tell it right.

Rewrites follow the same pattern. Having read Ben, a producer or a studio might have work for him on a stalled script, book, or other project yet to gel. When there is material to review before the meeting, they'll send it to you to prepare. What every-one is looking for is your “take.” My advice is to not necessarily listen to what the producers think they want. A stalled project is so because producers keep hearing the same old solutions, so your job is to try to think “outside the brads” of the script, and come up with a fresh take.

Many times the way to do that is to review the very same techniques we've been using on your script – namely “The Five Questions to Straighten the Story Spine” (see
Chapter 4
) or a review of the “Three Worlds” of a story landscape (see
Chapter 3
). And when you dazzle them with your skills and get the job, delivering can really help your career. The A-list writers are those that master this service.

“Get-to-know ya's” (also called “Generals”) are less formal; if you have a coat full of watches to sell, now's the time to whip ‘em out! The producer or executive liked your script. This is her chance to put writer's voice to writer's face. Sometimes, if a General goes well, you'll spark to one of her ideas, or she'll spark to one of yours. These casual meetings can get serious fast.

Me? I like to dress nicely for these events. After I prepare, I try to make sure I've got a casual, but professional, outfit ready. Women, I've learned from Tracey, are best served by wearing comfortable chic. Tracey always wears nice slacks and a blouse to our pitches, and always has great personal presence. Tracey is a former actress (you can see her in the hairdresser scene of
Heartburn
) and is “funny in the room” as they say. It helps. If you aren't like this, or feel like you want some tips in this area, read my pal Stephanie Palmer's book,
Good in a Room
, which is excellent. I even keep a diary, a habit I developed early on, and make notes about what projects I'm pitching, whom I met with, what my impressions were about both them and my performance, and make sure I put every contact into a database that I keep updating every year.

I also like to drop a quick written thank you note to the executive I met with. And if there is some news item or hobby we touched on in the meeting that's personal, I usually mention it. Just a friendly letter on the occasion of our meeting!

The result of every meeting is duly observed and communicated to your agent or manager or lawyer or whoever it is who set it up. If it went badly, they will hear about it; if you tanked the pitch, it will be noted, and the report card of all your strengths and weak-nesses filed away for future reference.

It is all about the ongoing relationship with your representatives… and you are keeping tabs on them as well!

Since you have three best friends now — your new friend, the agent; your best bud, the manager; and your most favorite person in the whole wide world, your attorney — there's nothing wrong with keeping all of them on their toes. This is like the checks and balances of the Legislative, Executive, and Judiciary branches in the U.S. Government — though I will not say who is President in
our Hollywood configuration. Often I have called up my lawyer when I have a problem with my agent. He then places a call and the problem is resolved. Got a glitch with your lawyer? Talk to the manager about it. He's there to help! Explain why you don't want that codicil added to your contract. It sounds so much better when your manager is telling your attorney than when you do. So let Mr. Stealth Producer know.