John August

QandA

Drafts and revisions

QandA, Words on the page

I just have a question (or a few questions) about drafts. How many drafts
do you normally do? How much do you change from one draft to the next? Is it
possible to be 100% happy with a first draft and leave it with that? Thanks.

–Simon A.

Depending on your definition of a "draft," which I’m going to define
as a revision that changes more than five percent of the script, I would say
most of my projects that have made it to screen went through at least twelve
drafts. Some of these went through massive overhauls, like throwing out
70+ pages, while others were much more focused, like changing a villain’s motivation or
clarifying a character’s backstory.

That said, my first drafts tend to feel very much like the final movie that
gets made. Even if a fair amount does end up getting changed before hitting
the cameras, I always make sure the first draft I show people could actually
be shot. Anything less than that – i.e. a rough draft – should be for your
eyes only.

Agency papers

Film Industry, QandA

Any struggling new writer would jump at the chance
to be represented by an agent, any agent. But what is the downside to taking
the first "lifeline" offered?
If a contract is signed by both parties for a period of two years, can it be
broken if things don’t work out?

–Huerfano

The contracts you’re talking about are called agency papers, which are relatively
common at smaller literary agencies, which tend to be the companies that represent
newer writers. Basically, the document defines the relationship between the
writer and the agency, stating that the agency receives its commission on any
work it finds for the writer, for a set period of time – up to two years, but
sometimes only a year.

The contract mostly protects the agency, which is worried that the writer
will suddenly jump ship to a bigger agency upon selling a script for hundreds
of thousands of dollars. You can understand why the agency would be nervous.
Not only would it lose a client, it would lose its commission.

Not every agency requires its writers to sign agency papers, and truthfully,
a lot of people never bother signing them. Frankly, I’ve never even seen them.
But you shouldn’t freak out if an agent asks you to sign them.

That said, before you agree to work with any agent, you need to do a few things:

First, do your homework. Ask to talk with one of the agent’s current clients,
preferably a phone call with just the two of you. What work has the agent gotten
the writer? How quickly does the agent return phone calls? Better to ask the
hard questions now, than wish you’d asked them earlier.

Also, check that the agency is a WGA signatory (or whatever equivalent guild
if you’re outside the U.S.). Even if you aren’t a WGA member
yet, you want to make sure that the agency you’re dealing with has an agreement
with the WGA, which sets basic working rules and can offer you a lot of protection,
including the ability to drop an agent who isn’t getting you work.

Finally, trust your gut. If an agent makes you uncomfortable, don’t work with
him. While it’s hard to pass up an opportunity for representation, just remember
that if one agent liked your stuff, another one will as well.

Do I have to write the courtroom scene?

QandA, Words on the page

I am writing a screenplay that has a court room sequence.
Since I find it hard to write lawyer lingo, I figured that I could write the
sequence in a
voice over and have the actors do their thing as I write it out or as the director
sees fit.

–Scott

I hate to burst your bubble, but those lengthy courtroom sequences every week
on "Law and Order" — the ones where Sam Waterston cleverly gets
the witness to screw up on the stand — someone actually has to write all of
those. Every word, every comma. Waterston is a talented actor, but he doesn’t
come up with a single thing he says. Neither does the director. It’s all in
the script, and it’s really, really hard to write.

The same holds true for every line spoken in every movie you’ve ever seen,
with the exception of a few improvised comedies and Dogma experiments.

If you find it impossibly difficult to write lawyer lingo, I can think of
a few options:

  1. restructure the story so you don’t need the courtroom stuff
    at all,

  2. get someone to help you, or
  3. tell a different story, one without
    lawyers.

Worried about copyrights

QandA, Rights and Copyright

My movie has main characters who love movies and, at last count, reference
over fifty films and watch nearly a dozen. You addressed the need to get permission
during filming and encouraged us the aspiring to just go wild during the writing
process, but what about in the copyrighting process?
Should I get the permission of the producers of, for
instance, THE OPPOSITE OF SEX, if I write that it’s playing in the background
of the scene or of PHOENIX if my characters refer to it in conversation,
even though they refer to it in a nice, non-slanderous way.

–Josh M. Nileski

I fall back on my standard advice of Just Don’t Worry About It.

If you’re excerpting whole scenes of THE OPPOSITE OF SEX, then
there would obviously be legal issues, since you can’t copyright something
that’s already copyrighted. But it’s not like there’s somebody at the Library
of Congress who’s going to read your script and press the emergency copyright
infringement alarm.

As far as referring to other movies, Josh, this is America. If you want your
characters to say that TOWN AND COUNTRY was a boring, unfunny disaster, they
can. (By the way, it was. I like and respect pretty much everyone involved
in that movie, but what the hell happened?)