Advice from Pros

[Rankles]

I've not been here nearly long enough or in the industry, hell at all to be starting a thread like this but in a couple of run ins with professionals I've picked up a few pieces of good advice and I figure this thread can be for people to share advice they've recieved from industry people that they think is good or even advice of their own, quick sentences that people will remember, especially newbies.

Ok here are mine that a producer with a long career told me a few weeks back, paraphrased.

"When pitching a script, the guys you are pitching it to will not even be the guys making the movie, they are just putting the money in. That said, don't try and impress them by name dropping who's already on board or saying what other people think of your story, just pitch your idea like you truly believe in it and all they will be looking for is that glint in your eye that says you believe the film can happen. These financiers may know nothing about what makes a good story, so long as you look like you believe in the project."

"Film school just teaches you how to not make mistakes but that is a part of learning. It saves you time, but the best way to make films is just to go out there and make them." (The same guy also said film school can still be beneficial if you want to be making films, rather than producing or writing. However he believed you could get the knowledge you need from books or experience.)

And finally "Just get out there and talk to everyone. Work for free for a while and get yourself noticed, show people your scripts or your previous work."

Snappy advice form the gurus here would be awesome too.

 

[knightly]

I don't have a quote per se, but I have noticed that the popular, self made directors have always just gone ahead and made crappy little shorts early on in their careers. The thing that separates them from the "I have a camcorder and I'm not afraid to use it" folks is their willingness to criticise them selves and allow to ask others to criticise them. They've also used their mistakes and learned from them. So I guess I'll quote my dad:

"A mistake isn't a mistake if you've learned from it."

 

[clive]

Best quotes from other professionals, hmm...

OK

"On the second draft of your screenplay double the amount of action and remove at least half of the dialogue"

"What most people forget is that the film business is a business... there's no point even in developing an idea if you don't know exactly who is going to buy it and roughly for how much when the damn thing is finished."

"People who think the film industry is glamorous haven't stood in a muddy field up to their arm pits in shit in the middle of February when they were losing the light and four days behind schedule."

"The script is everything, whilst it's possible to make a bad film from a good script, it's impossible to do it the other way round."

and finally, my current favorites and my own personal mottos

"It's all just talk until the cheque clears"

"I don't pitch"

and
"Do you want it right, or right now!"

 

[indietalk]

KISS - Keep it simple, stupid!

 

[directorik]

I spent 14 years doing special make-up effects. My profesional quote for all those years was "You want it when?" followed by laughter and more often then not falling on the floor, kicking my feet in the air.

As a director my professional quote is, "Got off the floor. You've only got two days left."

 

[Unknown Screenwriter]

Here are the HELPFUL quotes I've received from many pro screenwriters:

"If you're not having fun, FUCK it."

"If you can't fix it, FUCK it."

"You gotta KNOW THE RULES before you can break 'em."

"Fuck Quentin Tarantino!"

"Quentin WHO?"

"No reason for you to move to LA."

"Agent? You don't need a fucking agent."

"117 pages? Get real."

I've got more but my coffee shop is closing...

filmy

 

[CootDog]

I'm perplexed about the "117 pages" quote Filmy. What was their problem with that? Too many, not enough? What is the context around that quote?

 

[Media Hero]

In general -

'Under promise. Over deliver.'

A psychological ploy. Helps to manage expectations and put you in good favor when you deliver.

And re: writing -

"Put your butt in the chair. Even if all you leave is a butt print and a page of bullshit. The buttprint will fade and the bullshit can be composted."

 

[Unknown Screenwriter]

Too many...

I'm perplexed about the "117 pages" quote Filmy. What was their problem with that? Too many, not enough? What is the context around that quote?

I'm strictly talking about SPEC scripts here... The general rule of thumb is that you shoot for NO MORE than 110 pages. The rewrite (assuming you sell it) can be just about any length and additional feedback i.e., DIRECTION, CAMERA ANGLES, etc. are actually most welcome.

I once gave a copy of a SPEC to an A-List friend of mine... He immediately went to the last page and said, "117 pages? Get real." --Then he promptly handed the script back to me. LOL.

110 pages really is the magic number for a SPEC script these days... You'd be surprised how many professionals in the field won't even bother to read your SPEC if it goes beyond 110 pages. On one hand, I think it's stupid if there's a fantastic story in there... On the other hand, I'm finding out that TIME is the most precious commodity I have these days... i.e., NOT ENOUGH OF IT!

As soon as somebody sees more than 110 pages in a SPEC, they immediately jump to several conclusions...

1) This person does not know how to write a screenplay.
2) This person didn't even bother to tweak it to 110 pages.
3) This person is in LOVE with their work.
4) This person didn't do their homework.
5) This person won't have the ability to do a rewrite.

--and on and on...

Having said that... It's important to note that this goes for SPEC scripts that you're trying to market. If you've already got the contacts... Already sold a script... Already in the industry... No problem. At that point, people just want to read what you have.

filmy

 

[clive]

I remembered another three. One from the producer who started my professional writing career, one from my friend David who now has a show in the West End, the other from Richard Curtis who wrote Four Weddings etc.

From the producer --

"In this industry it is easy to get into the habit of sizing people up, you start seeing everyone as a potential contact and every encounter as a potential networking opportunity. If you do that I guarantee two things will happen, one is that you'll wake up one day with a book full of contacts and no friends, the second is that you'll surrounded by people you neither like or trust. In this industry you are better off with half a dozen good friends than twenty high powered connections."

From Richard Curtis --

"Most comedy writers pitching for TV write a pilot and an outline of the rest of the series. The problem is the first episode of any TV series is rarely the best. So, I write the whole series, pick the best script from the series and pitch that one. Even then I expect to rewrite, Blackadder was rejected twenty three times before the BBC picked it up. From this I learned that where most writers fail is by not doing enough work and giving in too soon."

From David --

"My success is down to one thing really, every time somebody gives me notes on my script I smile and nod, then I go and rewrite exactly what they've asked me to do... but it is the smiling and nodding that's important."