ASK & DISCUSS INDEX

7 years, 4 months ago - Vasco de Sousa

I get that some of you can't afford an experienced writer. Well, here's a simple solution. Shoot an out of copyright script. I've seen many scenes from Shakespeare that do credit to their directors. Monologues or duologues that are creatively shot, well designed, that tell you that this director has talent.

I've done some Moliere on my own. (Moving the camera around and repeating the scene from different angles on my own was time consuming, but the most difficult thing was the embarrassment of knowing the people outside and next door could hear me and thought I was talking to myself.)

The fact is, if you use public domain material, then you show your talents as a director more. Because you can't cheat, when everyone knows the script, people will know that you aren't editing out the mistakes. But, some people seem to think that because they have "vision" or need, they have an automatic right to an original screenplay.

Even reading some of the requests make me angry.

If you want to know what all the unreasonable requests for writers on shooting people feel like, read this:

https://www.makealivingwriting.com/write-content-mills-writers-true-stories/

Most of those "horror stories" are better paid than anything I've seen on SP in the past few months. Yes, since I rejoined. And, I've applied to all the "better paid" writing jobs, I think.

The cynic in me says "let's put content mills under resources." Maybe we can list upwork, freelancer, peopleperhour and guru.com as well. But, funnily enough, the impoverished women in Bangladesh who hired me through these sites years ago (when I was desperate enough to be on content mills) pay more than many of the "poor directors" from the developed world who live in post neighbourhoods and use film communities.

People don't understand how long it takes to write a screenplay. Or, a good screenplay at any rate. They read some nonsense on Raindance blog about someone writing a draft in five days, and don't understand all the research that went before that draft, or other drafts that went in afterwards.

I think another one of the problems is that too many people think of themselves as writers. They think writing is quick and easy, so they assign no value to the writer's craft. But, if they think they are writers, why not write it themselves? If writing is so much quicker and easier than raising money, then it must be easier than explaining your vision to other writers.

The hardest part about raising money is explaining your vision to others. The second hardest part is understanding the vision of others. If you can explain your vision to a writer, then you can explain it to an investor. (And no, investors don't always need to see the script. Sometimes it's not written until after the money is raised, and they understand that if you tell them that.)

If you're a director who wants to use my work but doesn't have money, I will approach investors with you. I would literally hold your hand, but there's too much gossip in this industry with hand holding. However, if you're willing to actually raise the money, I will walk in there with you, help you pitch, and so on.

Of course, I might also add to please, please, stop insulting composers, cinematographers and others. But, as badly paid and treated as composers are, most people know they can't write music themselves. I've applied to jobs as an animator, and even though I'm a better writer than animator, I like the way I'm treated as an animator better.

It's that extra insult, the client who never wrote anything more complicated than a university essay saying "I'm a writer" that really gets me. If I was broken down on the side of the road, and didn't have the money to hire a mechanic, I wouldn't say "I'm a mechanic" to the next person who pulled over, and then sit there and watch her work.