Archive for February, 2010

What the heck is script coverage?  Script coverage is basically a brief memo, written by a studio, agency, or production company which acts as a sort of “book report” for your script.  Script readers who are low on the totem pole usually read your script, then write a 2-3 page “script coverage” and then pass that script coverage up to their boss.  Many studio executives, agents, and producers don’t have time to read the entire stack of scripts they’ve got piling up, so they only read the coverages, which saves them time.  Then, based on how well your script does in the script coverage, the executive would then read your script.

A script coverage usually consists of three sections (A) A section listing the information about the screenplay, such as author name, page count, genre, title of the script, etc., (B) A synopsis section, where the script reader writes a brief 1-2 page synopsis of your script, and (C) A comments section, where the script readers writes her thoughts on where the screenplay goes right, and where it needs work, with regards to character, dialogue, format, plot, pacing, originality, budget, setting, you name it.  And then finally, there’s three general ratings a script reader gives a script when she covers it:  RECOMMEND (the highest rating, meaning that the script reader recommends this script to be read by her boss), CONSIDER (the middle rating, meaning that the script reader feels there are some good elements in the script, or that the script could use some improvement), and PASS (the lowest rating, meaning that the script reader feels that the script needs a lot of work in its current draft).

And usually, you never know that your script got read, let alone covered.  And almost NEVER will you be allowed to see the coverage that some agent’s assistant or associate producer wrote about your script.

But now you can get your own script coverage BEFORE you send your script out to an agent or producer.

A script coverage from a company like my company Screenplay Readers, can be a hugely valuable “sneak preview” into the world of potential readers, agents, and producers that awaits your script.

http://screenplayreaders.com

Other places that do script coverage:

http://www.scriptswami.com/

http://www.scriptshark.com/script-coverage.html

http://www.jamiesteinscripts.com/services.html

If you’re like me, you can’t stand mindless, self-replicating action films with the same Matrix-type speed-ramping shots, and the same Serpentine font in the key-art, and the same heavy-sounding  metal-rock soundtrack.

But my advice to you is: go ahead and write a script like that.

Because odds are, if you hate the genre, your writing will naturally gravitate away from the expected, or the already-been-done, and you just might end up with a super-unique take on the genre.

But after all this, you still can’t come up with a mind-blowing hook, don’t freak out.  Because here’s the cool part.  Due to the sheer volume of shit sandwiches passing as scripts in floor piles of agencies all across Los Angeles; due to the massive, overwhelming number of terrible, terrible scripts there are out there, your job of coming up with a hook that’s actually mind-blowing is actually, counter-intuitively, easier.  Because all it has to do, really, is just stand out from all that pabulum.