I've read that 10 years are required before someone sells a script and therefore "breaks in" (this is the term I keep reading and I think it means to establish a career)
When I hear "break in" (as long as it's not a police show), my thought is "getting recognized as being a member of that community" or "getting started professionally". Selling or optioning a script is a signal that your writing has reached a level that other professionals (directors/producers) gauge your work at a professional level. Writing a script and having it made into a movie even if not for money is "breaking in" for many. Most indie productions are no/lo budgets. Optioning/selling a script is the next step up. As with any career, credentials accumulate. Required? Ridiculous!
Is this idea true or it depends on each case?
It depends on each case. As many have stated there are
many factors: commitment of time & effort; talent; network of mentors & contacts; training; access; and admittedly a degree of luck. Though I believe if you work on the first five, you create your own luck--opportunities. If you are already a successful writer (novelist, blogger, etc.) then adapting that to screenwriting may not be a challenge. Diablo Cody (Brook Busey-Maurio) had achieved a level of success by publishing her memoirs and a parody blog. People judge her because of her choice to work as a stripper earlier in her life, which is stupidly closeminded. They ignore the fact that she graduated with a degree in Media Studies and had been a writer for "Entertainment Weekly", "City Pages" and wrote her novel "Candy Girl: A Year in the Life of an Unlikely Stripper" as well as her popular blog. With that experience, she was encouraged to write a screenplay by her manager. If you look at the biographies of many successful screenwriters, you will find a similar pattern. "Juno" was a first effort at screenwriting but she was creatively successful prior to that.
If so, why does it take so long? Thanks for answering this!
There are several reasons. Unless you are in the business 24/7, the entertainment industry is pretty chaotic to schedule around. Most of us have day jobs.
How long does it take to get a college degree? It should take 4 years. Some take longer. Others will breeze through in 2 years! Is success measured by the Bachelors, or do you need the Masters or Doctorate? Are you working your way through college? Others find the BA/BS doesn't go very far so they need to go back. Getting that MBA or PhD can translate to 10 or so years post high school.
Just as a degree takes longer if you only take classes half time, if you are a half-time writer, your efforts are not the same as a studio writers or readers hired to churn through scripts. Needless to say, competition is stiff and things go in and out of fashion. Even if you wrote an awesome comic superhero script, the studios already have "their best men on it" (established writer/directors on those projects).
As several have pointed out, when do you start the clock? How long does it take a novelist to convince a publisher of their story's merit? Having family and friends "in the business" can be a quick route. Being able to self-publish (or self-produce) is another. In that case, money is the great dis-equalizer. If you can crossover experience, as many actors and novelists do, you can appear to accomplish things quicker than normal. It takes time to learn the craft of screenwriting. It takes time to make connections.
In the past, one's only option was Hollywood for films and New York/Chicago for theater. Television made all three media centers. Today, the drop in the cost of technology and the available delivery platforms has made film and movie production less expensive (and potentially more profitable). As states have increased their tax incentives, Atlanta and Detroit and even New Mexico are becoming large film and television destinations for major studios. Kickstarter and Indiegogo have also contributed to changing the financial backing of indie films. Why is this important to your question?
Writer/directors have many more options now. And while writers will continue to have a difficult challenge breaking into the Hollywood writing market, there are new studios and production companies growing up around the country. Some have posted on IndieTalk looking for scripts. Opportunities abound but those big five need to be in place: time & effort, talent, training, connections and access. Access is becoming more open. Involvement will help with training and connections. Reading will also help with training. But only you can put in the time, effort and talent. I think "breaking in" can happen very quickly. Becoming successful takes time and effort which some screenwriters don't have. They think that one script will be their 'golden lottery ticket'. It's one thing to have a "great idea" that you really want to see made into a movie. The reality is, you keep that in your back pocket and push forward with lots of other projects, some which are not your own. When you are established, you pull it out, dust it off and go at it again.
If you put all your time and energy into this as a business, you could see some success in 2-3 years. If you have or develop connections, even sooner. If you put reasonable energy into it, most screenwriters will see some success within ten years. If it is a hobby, as Brian pointed out, you might never sell/option a script.