John August

QandA

MPAA numbers

Film Industry, QandA

I know about WGA and Library of Congress copyright registration, but someone
told me that films also get MPAA numbers on the scripts? Is this true?

–V. Thomas

You don’t need to worry about this. Really. Ever. At all. I’ve made a couple
of big studio movies, and I’ve never seen an MPAA number on anything.
But since you’re curious, I’ll tell you a bit about the the magic numbers.

The MPAA is a trade organization made up of
the seven major film studios: Fox, Warner Bros., Sony, MGM, Disney, Universal
and Paramount. While these studios compete fiercely with each other, they work
together through the MPAA on issues of common interest, such as preventing
piracy, maintaining copyright, and establishing ratings. The MPAA — specifically
its president, Jack Valenti — is the "face" of the film industry
to Congress.

Way down on the list of MPAA responsibilities is the job of keeping track
of its members’ movies, for all sorts of internal reasons. That’s when a movie
is assigned a number, which is probably the same "MPAA number" your
friend saw on a script.

It’s nothing a screenwriter ever needs to worry about, but now you know.

Paying for notes?

QandA, So-Called Experts

I would like
to get my script evaluated by a professional. How do I know who is reputable,
honest and skilled at this? And how much (approx.) should it cost?

–Anonymous

In Los Angeles, it’s pretty rare for the writer to pay for notes or coverage.
Usually, it’s done as a favor, either by friends who work in the industry,
as part of a class, or in exchange for work done at an internship. Professional
readers and story analysts are generally paid by the buyer, either a studio or production company, and spend their days reading through the material submitted
for consideration.

I worked as a reader for two years when I first moved to L.A., first as an
unpaid intern, then later for TriStar. It’s a good first job for any screenwriter,
as you get the opportunity to read a lot of scripts, and eventually earn enough
to pay rent.

There are some freelance analysts who will read and critique your work for
a fee. You can find listings for them in the back of Variety, The Hollywood
Reporter and the various screenwriting magazines. While I’m sure many of them
are dedicated and conscientious, there are a few things I would ask to see
before writing a check. First, they should show you a sample of the coverage
or story notes they write. Ask yourself, if you were handed this document,
would it help you write your next draft? Second, they should be able to give
you some references, both in terms of writers they’ve helped and places they’ve
worked. Third, you need to have some sort of contract or agreement that makes
it clear that they are working for you on a one-time basis, and that you’re
not signing over any rights to them. Many freelance readers are also aspiring
producers, and you need to be clear what the boundaries are.

Obviously, these are the kinds of guarantees you’re looking for when you’re
dealing with a complete stranger. If you’re dealing with a friend, acquaintance,
or friend-of-a-friend, you’ll probably be a little more flexible in your requirements.

How much should you pay? Like eye surgery, you really don’t want to shop for
the cheapest rate you can find. I could imagine it costing as little as $100,
or as much as $500. Only you know how much it’s worth to you.

There’s one online service I’ve seen that does coverage and story notes, called
ScriptShark. This is in no way an endorsement, because
I don’t know if they’re any good. But if any reader has worked with them or
any similar service, I’d love to hear about your experience, so I can pass
it along in a future column.

Film censorship

Film Industry, QandA

In your opinion, can film censorship be used as a form of publicity to increase
market interest?

–Alex Rimmer

I can only answer in terms of the U.S., where "film censorship" usually
equates with getting an "NC-17" rating, which makes it difficult
to book theaters and advertise.

While there’s some tradition of a distributor milking a ratings fight for
publicity (SHOWGIRLS, DOGMA, CRASH), I’m not convinced the drama puts any more
butts in seats opening weekend. Rather, I suspect that the number of patrons
attracted by the controversy is largely offset by the number turned off. And
it’s important to remember that most of the movies branded NC-17 receive the
rating for sexual content, which is difficult to market beyond a certain level
anyway. The attendant controversy only highlights the sexual aspect of the
picture.

For truly tiny movies that might otherwise get no publicity at all, talk of
censorship might be an effective strategy. But for most movies, trying to generate
controversy this way seems ill-advised in my opinion.

Book before the script?

Adaptation, QandA

I’ve heard it being said that one of the ways to get producers interested
in your screenplay’s story is to do it the long way and write the book first.
Do you agree, and is it harder to get a book published than a screenplay bought?

–Brian

Wow. Writing a screenplay, and then writing a book based on the screenplay,
seems like a tremendous amount of misdirected work. Yes, some producers do
like to read novels, but the vast majority would prefer a script to a novel
any day of the week. After all, a script is a lot closer to being a movie than
a book is. Plus it’s shorter, and you can throw it across the room without
damaging your walls.

My advice is to pick the format you’d prefer to write, hopefully the one that
best matches your story. If you choose to write a book, make it the best book
possible — don’t go overboard trying to load it up with "this would be
a great movie!" moments. If you choose to write a script, trust that the
quality of your writing is all you’ll need to sell it.

I recently adapted a book called BIG FISH by author Daniel Wallace. Meeting
with him for the first time, I was surprised to see he had never thought of
his book being a movie. The moments I thought were cinematic, he thought were
just good storytelling.

As for your second question, I’m not sure whether being published is easier
or harder than selling a script. My gut instinct is that it’s easier to be
published, simply because there are so many different publishing houses, and
frankly, so many books. But there’s a big difference between being published
and making money.