The Screenplay's The Thing

Lost in Creation

2011-09-27T12:03:00.000-04:00

It's very important to have a clear vision of what you want and to stand by it. You'll be given all kinds of notes from all kinds of people. Some of those notes will be really good and useful, and the good or usefulness will usually be pretty obvious. "Oh, why didn't I think of that?" But as there are so many different people who will tell you what their vision of your show should be, you should know what it is first, so you can decide which battles to fight and which notes to take to heart, because it's easy to get lost. Very easy. You're into your umpteenth draft of your pilot script and suddenly you have no idea who these characters are any more, or why you were passionate about them in the first place. This is not me saying you should be completely inflexible either. You have to decide whether it'll still be the show you wanted when it's done, because you are going to have to write it. Also, always keep all your drafts; You never know what you might use later.

Getting Paid

2011-07-25T12:34:00.006-04:00

A few things you might need to know:

If a producer (or the accounting department thereof) tells you that you need to submit an invoice before getting paid, they're either lying or misinformed. While invoicing might be standard practice in the rest of the business world, the IPA states the onus is on the producer to pay writers for completed work within 15 days, no invoice required.

Oh, and signed contracts too. From my helpful friend at the WGC:

Clause 122 of the Animation Section says that you should not start work before you have a signed copy of your contract in place and Clause 114 says the producer has to pay you within 15 calendar days of handing in your script stages. If they don’t pay you, they don’t own the rights to your script material!

...who had this exchange with the producer:

I spoke to [me] and he didn't send in an invoice, his agent neglected to tell him that he had to. He is sending it to me now and it will be paid out next Friday.

Although, just for your information, the Animation Section does not require that a writer has to send in an invoice; the onus is on the producer to pay within 15 days, with our without one!

Apparently, lots of writers get asked for invoices, and so producers keep asking for them, but they're not supposed to ask, and we're not required to give them.

Now, in my experience, it took way longer than 15 days for them to pay me, but the postal lockout happened in the middle of all that. Would it have been smart and thoughtful of them, with a looming postal strike to send me an email or something asking if I wanted to make other arrangements for picking up the cheque? Yes. Is it unrealistic of me to expect such thoughtfulness? Probably.

The Guild helped me out, got the accounting department to agree to Stop Payment on the cheque and courier me a replacement, since it had been over a month. (The strike/lockout really screwed my family over, as my wife is self-employed too, and all her money was held up in the mail, so for a while, we had no income, and creditors, unsympathetic about the strike, they still wanted to get paid.). The next day, the original cheque arrived, and I called their accounting department to see if the stop payment had gone through. They said "Yes," and instructed me to either send it back to them, tear it up, or both. While I was in the shower, they called, frantic, having discovered the cheque hadn't yet been stopped, it was still good, but fortunately, I hadn't done a thing to it yet. (I wanted to take photos of it, being my first ever money earned from writing and all.)

So I did finally get paid. The cheque arrived the 13th of July. (From work completed May 21st, and a cheque mailed out on June 10th.) Although this delay and trouble soured the thrill of my first sale, I was told by my Guild contact, that this is for the best. Many writers, they said, aren't very attentive to the business side of things. Having been stung, I'll more likely keep a closer watch on my money, keep after producers to get paid on time, and not put up with as much bull next time. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.

What Happens Next?

2011-05-01T17:33:00.000-04:00

And just like that, one of my pitches sold. I'd been pitching story ideas to a number of shows, and one of them finally said, "Hey, we like that." (It's an animated preschool kids' show)

I've got some work ahead of me. Beat sheets, and the first draft, but then there's also the paperwork:

WGC (Writers' Guild of Canada)

They're sending over a contract at some point with their initial offer. My agent will go over it and probably make a counter offer, but meanwhile, that contract will allow me - after some fees are paid - to join the Writer's Guild of Canada, which may also affect the fees I'm paid. Some production companies try to lowball writers, especially new (and desperate) ones like myself. While the Guild doesn't have set minimums for animation writing (something they're working to change), there's less likelihood of funny business. And there's RRSP contributions and benefits package contributions. This, after the Agent takes her cut. It's like that First Summer Job paycheque all over again. But it's always a little painful the first time...

CAVCO (Canadian Audio-Visual Certification Office)

I was asked for my CAVCO number. This is new. I hadn't even heard of it before. I had to google it.

It's a proof of Canadian citizenship registry, for tax incentive-related purposes. Basically, you prove that the people who work for your production - including writers - are Canucks, and you get tax credits for them. From the site:

The Canadian Audio-Visual Certification Office (CAVCO) provides a service regarding proof of citizenship or permanent residency for producers and key creative personnel as required for the Canadian Film or Video Production Tax Credit (CPTC) program.

This service allows individual producers and key creative personnel eligible for Canadian content points under the CPTC to send their proof of citizenship or permanent residency, e.g. valid passport, birth certificate or permanent resident card, directly to CAVCO using the secure CAVCO Online system, or by mail. The individual will be assigned a unique CAVCO Personnel Number that will be confirmed to him/her through a return email stating that they have been registered as a Canadian citizen or permanent resident for the CPTC. Canadian citizens will only have to submit citizenship information once and permanent residents will need to re-submit their documentation only when their certificate of permanent residence expires.

There you go.

I filled out the application online, it took just a few minutes, and sent them a scan of my birth certificate. Hopefully, I should get the number within a few days.

Since it's free, if you're an aspiring Canadian writer (or other entertainment professional to be), it might be a good idea to get this out of the way early, so you'll already have your number when your train leaves.

How much?

2011-04-08T23:06:00.000-04:00

It's hard to know how much to put in a pitch. Some studios know immediately from just a single paragraph that they don't like your idea, whereas others need a full treatment written before they'll reject you.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Nice Guys Finish Last?

2011-04-01T11:34:00.000-04:00

Recently, I got some feedback on my The Time is Right pilot script, which said some very complimentary things about the story, the world I'd created, and so on. The only part they didn't seem to like was Syd.

Syd Lambert, the emcee of the game show "The Time is Right" is, to put it plainly, a jerk. He's rude and snarky to the people he works with, and often cruel and sarcastic to the contestants he interviews.

This could never work on TV. I mean, can you think of a reality show where the host is cruel to the contestants, one that's successful, anyway? I'm drawing a blank.

Maybe it's a Canadian thing.

The Time is Right has been reviewed by both professionals and amateurs alike, and no two reviews are alike. Everyone seems to hate or like something different. Even two of my own friends were divided. One suggested changes, the other said, "NO, shoot it exactly as written, it's perfect!"

That it garners such a reaction from people is creatively satisfying, (I must be doing something right) but as for selling it, it may be a long road. Nopantsisland likes to remind me it took years to sell Breaking Bad, and I know it took 5 years to get Babylon 5 on the air.

I'm not comparing myself and my writing to either of these shows any more than I'm comparing myself to Shakespeare (via the blog title, a Hamlet reference.) What I am saying is patience, as well as persistence seems to be the ticket. Nopants and I have had parallel ups and downs getting our babies down the television birth canal, and had our share of false labour. (Although I hear the first contraction started for her this week. *fingers crossed*). The best part is her creative vision has been restored. If we're all lucky - and by us I include the television audience - it'll survive to the screen.

PUSH!

The Finish Line

2011-03-21T14:44:00.000-04:00

I just finished the first draft of a MOW I was working on. It took me longer than usual to punch out a first draft, largely because I was busy with other projects and pitching for shows, which kept me away from this particular one for a while. Then, Sunday, I wrote the last 1/3 of the script in a dead heat, working most of the afternoon, then starting after dinner and typing "FADE OUT" at around 11:30. Now that's more like it.

I love finishing things. Writing "The End" or "FADE OUT" is very satisfying, even if much of what you've just written is crap, as most first drafts are crap. The key is to then rewrite and edit that crap into scripty goodness. But first, comes the finishing.

Finish stuff, seriously.

Your episode here.

2011-03-18T12:18:00.000-04:00

I've been pitching a lot lately.

My agent shops my original ideas around to producers and studios who like what they're reading, (and say some really nice and sometimes confusing things) but ultimately can't or won't buy it because it's "not a good fit". With so much competition in the marketplace today, networks of all sizes (and now perhaps online ones too) are branding themselves (ow!) to stand out from the ever-growing crowd. So the key here is to find the right network with the right-shaped hole in their schedule. Or someone who sees what the puzzle could look like down the road with your show in it.

I've been pitching episode ideas to a handful of series, and so far nobody's bought anything. My ideas are described as "funny"(Yay!), but not a perfect fit for that particular show.

In one case, my idea was such a perfect fit it was something they were already working on. I had nailed the format so perfectly they couldn't buy it because "been there, doing that". So, they're taking a nugget of one of my pitches and changing everything around it until it's different, and fits their show, kind of like taking out an exacto knife and cutting a puzzle piece into a new shape so it'll fit. (I'm still waiting to see if the sky blue matches on that).

In another, I'm still trying to find the piece that fits. Some of my pitches were rejected because, essentially, "Yes, we did do this kind of story all the time, but now we're not any more." BUZZ! Try again. In each case, I get "funny, but no thanks." The Story Editor has been sympathetic and encouraging. S/he realizes what a nutty situation this is, that it seems like they're making impossible demands, but keeps encouraging me to keep trying. And I will, damn it. I don't like being defeated like that, when I've finally got a toe in the door.

Those making the show will always know their show better than the writers trying to pitch to them. And these examples I'm using aren't anywhere near the cryptic, epic, arc-driven serial dramas that are the darlings these days. Good luck with that. Make an appointment with Madame Ruska and her crystal ball.

Both situations have been learning experiences. In the first case, it's a taste of writing the actual episode. No battle plan survives engagement with the enemy. No pitch survives engagement with the Story Editor and Show Runner. I've heard stories from writers I know personally, about pitching to a show, writing the script, and then discovering only half a dozen lines survived from the final draft they submitted. It happens. Nobody knows the show better than the show runner, so even once you've sent in a draft they're "happy" with, expect lots of changes.

But that comes later. I'm still not there yet. I'm close, but no cigar. (Smoking will kill you, anyway.)

Meanwhile, It's a big puzzle. I'm just looking for my place in it. With luck and perseverance, maybe I'll find I'm the right shape.

Starting over

2011-01-24T16:15:00.000-05:00

I deleted the previous blog because I found I didn't have much to say, or at least, not much that you couldn't find elsewhere. I mean, more experienced, more successful writers have interesting blogs out there talking about everything from the business to the art to the craft of writing, so what do I have of value to add?

A good friend of mine pointed out I had some insight into the process which might be useful, which was true, I did write about that sort of thing from time to time. And while I don't feel I'm "there" yet, I am further along than I was a year ago, and the year before that.

And, I suspect, there will be stuff coming up soon that will bear discussion, even if I can't spill the particulars. If I can discuss it without giving anything away, then perhaps it may be of some use.

Meanwhile, I felt a place-holder blog post was in order, so welcome to my blather.

The other issue was Google's need to consolidate all my online activities and attach it to a single e-mail address. I had one e-mail address for general purposes, one I sign up for stuff with, and it's a Gmail address as I find they have the best spam filters. I have a separate Gmail address for just my iPhone, and was hoping to keep that for strictly business purposes, but then I kept getting sent to the wrong place with blogs, YouTube and so on...

Oh, and it seems if I hadn't taken the trouble to delete all my prior blog posts, that when I restored this one, it might've all come back. Oops, oh, well. I think I have it all saved at some point or another.

So I'm back. I will endeavour to be insightful, or at least amusing and irreverent. Your mileage may vary.