-- Job Roles --
Screen Writers:
Screenwriters often get into their job role by practicing and writing their own screenplays as early on as possible, and presenting them to people in the industry. Often, when it comes to screenwriting for television, a lot of screenwriters start by joining an existing project. They will write and develop a screenplay for either a television episode of a movie, usually either based on an already existing story idea, or coming up with a completely new and original idea. They should prepare the scripts they create specifically in a way that make sure that readers are able to envisage the settings and emotions present in them, as well as the ways in which they will work when done on screen.
Writers are also known to collaborate with the projects' producers, directors and actors to redraft the scripts until they are all happy with the final one. Working with other members of the project is quite common for screenwriters, especially with the producers and directors, who they must have a very good, trust-heavy relationship with in order for the project to be as good as it could possibly end up. They also work with development producers & their assistants, actors, and sometimes even researchers in order for the screenplays to be factually accurate in any places they should be. In TV dramas, they may work with story producers and story-liners, who provide the frameworks for season-long story arcs that should be considered and incorporated into the writing when making the scripts.
Tight deadlines are not a rarity for screenwriters when it comes to their work. In film, screenwriters are expected to start by developing usually around three screenplay drafts; the third is known as 'the polish', being the version that is ultimately pitched to producers and/or film studios (alternatively, screenwriters may get commissioned by producers or studios to create one for them from the start). Once the screenplay gets chosen and picked up, other screenwriters may be brought in in order to help by working with a development producer so to get it ready for production. Sometimes, the screenwriter may unfortunately be replaced entirely by another some time into the project's production.
Along with the story producers and story-liners, script editors often work along with the main screenwriter(s) to improve the existing scripts to get them as close to perfection as they can get them. This includes correcting more factual features of the scripts by doing real research about the world in order to make the story and its features as accurate to life as they can/want to make it. On top of real research though, they will also take part in correcting the script in terms of the facts of the world within it, such as keeping characters who are present consistent with their personalities and/or arcs and keeping the season on the same course it began on in order to complete its ultimate arc if necessary.
Working for mainly publicly-funded organizations, script readers are responsible for reading screenplays given to them and writing full coverage reports on what potential the script may or may not have for development. Usually, these reports are between four and eight pages in length, involving a story breakdown, and an assessment of its suitability containing a logline, premise, synopsis, an analysis of its genre & tone, as well as (at least) two pages for comments on the weaknesses and strengths, an overall summary and verdict.
Directors:
These are often known to many as the "creative lead" of the project they are in charge of, holding the creative vision and keeping it as much as they can throughout the entire process (from pre-production until the final edit has been made). Directors have the job of imagining a visual form of the script that works, then working closely with other important members of the crew (director of photography, production designer and assistant director) once the money for the project has been found/raised to turn that image into a reality. They also eventually work with producers and casting directors, to find and choose actors, with directors of photography to develop the filming styles and notes for camera shots and changes to the script, and with lighting, wardrobe & make-up supervisors to instruct their jobs.
Producers:
The producer of a movie has a lot of important responsibilities, such as the financial, practical and creative parts of TV drama & film projects. They are often the driving forces of the productions throughout, right up until the project's eventual distribution, spotting and solving any problems that may have the potential of coming their way. Until then though, they have a lot of jobs to do; things like spotting the commercial liability and creative opportunity of the film, coming up with ideas for the stories and hiring writer and/or securing rights to scripts (also known as 'optioning') that they could use, and many other very important jobs. They are responsible for deciding on the projects overall scale and getting funding suitable for it, which if done wrong can change the project massively. A good producer will create a nice working environment for those working with them (like the line producers they are responsible for hiring) and and constantly communicate during the project with those they need to in order to make it the best they can.
Development Producers:
This type of producer is responsible for actually finding the stories and scripts that are eventually turned into a completed project and turn them into quality enough pieces of work in order for them to be commissioned by a TV channel/made into a feature film. Specifically, these pieces of the crew will read through the screenplays they have, analyze them deeply, in terms of what weaknesses and and strengths that may be attached to them, and ultimately assess whether or not they will overall be appealing to audiences. They should make script notes throughout the read through on these, requesting the writer of the script to make re-writes matching up with these notes. This is a very time consuming job, in some cases even taking up to ten years for the script to be finally put into production because of this step. When it comes to the TV side of this job, they are also responsible in some cases for pitching concepts to television commissioners (usually a verbal presentation). They will be employed by broadcasters, production companies and/or screen agencies, with amounts of responsibilities put upon them depending on the type of organization employing them.
Development Assistants:
Slightly similar to the development producers, the job of a development assistant is simply to help them out on their workload, due to this being only an entry level role. They will often do this by reading scripts, blogs & novels, write script reports of their own and take their own notes during any story-lining sessions they attend.
-- Commissioning Bodies --
There are five main ways a script can be put into production. These include going through corporations, independent production companies, independent directors or producers, organizations and/or competitions.
Corporations (larger companies, group of companies and/or individuals) are legal bodies which are separate from those who own it. That being said, they are still able to access the majority of responsibilities and rights that an individual is able to, such as being able to take out loans and borrow money, sue others & be sued, and enter into contracts. There are many popular examples of commissioning bodies of this type, such as the BBC and Channel 4. The BBC in particular are known for offering a variety of opportunities to get people's work and scripts seen and put into production, such as the BBC Writer's Room (BBC, Writer's Room, What We Do), and Sky also commission similarly (Sky, Sky Studios, Commissioning).
If you are an unknown writer, it may be beneficial to pitch to a smaller, independent production company. This is because you will be, for the most part, cheaper to work with, Often, smaller production do their own editing of scripts, also even sometimes receiving financial help from bigger corporations so to develop scripts in return for some of the revenue and money that is gathered from the final product. As an example, the company 'Hartswood Films' have made many shows which they have gone to companies like the BBC in order to acquire funding for. These shows ended up being made for the BBC and aired on their channels, with specific shows like 2007's 'Jekyll' being an example (hartswoodfilms, 2021, home).
As well as production companies that run entirely independently, there is also a chance for screenwriter's to get their works noticed and looked it by showing them directly to any independent directors and/or producers that may be interested in doing so. There are a huge amount of independent people out there who have the ability to help finance and turn your ideas into a reality, such as entrepreneur Dan Friedkin who helped out Ridley Scott by giving him 10 million dollars towards reshoots for 2018's 'All the Money in the World', and Ken Kao, the ex-lawyer who ended up co-financing 2017's 'Silence'.
Organizations also exist out there for the sole purpose of helping out and nurturing people that work with screenwriters, as well as the writers themselves. While they do not actually finance screenplays and their development, they do offer assistance in other areas, such as actual script development and the improvements of them, in order to give them the best chance of being seen. Many of these exist and are always there for screenwriters to join and get aid from, including but not limited to 'The National Writer's Room', 'The Author's Guild' and BBC's own 'Writer's Room' (BBC, Writer's Room, What We Do).
Many competitions exist out there which give aspiring screenwriters a chance to get their ideas seen and, in some cases, even picked up. This is a common occurrence in both Britain and America, with competitions like 'the Blue Cat screenplay competition' running at certain times of the year, letting unknown writers gain some more recognition for themselves and their talent (BlueCat, Competition, 2021 Competition).
-- Optioning --
"Optioning" when it comes to screenwriting is when contracted permission is given to somebody to have exclusive rights in terms of development of a screenplay. Usually, this is the process of a producer and some executives from a production company forming an agreement with the screenplay's writer which gives them exclusive rights for it in exchange of a fee, usually being at least a thousand dollars (maybe $2500 from higher-tier production companies) given to the writer. They must sign a contract agreeing that during the finite time period agreed for the company to own the rights, the writer are not allowed to sell on or create the project on their own without the company and/or studio's involvement - this is of course until the contract dates agreed run out, in which case the parties can agree to extend the time (sometimes with the writers being paid again, sometimes not), or the rights are returned exclusively back to the writers. Generally, this first timeframe will last between 6 to 18 months, averaging roughly at around a complete years time, with the companies also being given the first chance to renew the agreement for additional time before anyone else during the first agreed amount of months. During this contracted time period, the writer will be updated every now and again on the progress of the project, maybe even being invited to things like pitch meetings and asked to do rewrites for them, perhaps being paid for each one (all depending on the details of the contract signed - someone else may be brought in to do so instead). As for the contracts that come with screenplay options, they will include four main elements; these consist of the option period, payment, the purchase price and the renewal period and payment. It is also worth mentioning finally that even if a script is picked up from a writer by a company and contracted for optioning, this is not always a guarantee that the screenplay will be turned into a completed project, but no matter the case on if it does or not, the writer will still be paid regardless.
-- The different types of screenplays --
In professional productions of episodes of television and movies, there are two different types of screenplays, each holding their own importance to the project; the 'shooting script' and the 'spec screenplay'.
Spec scripts/screenplays (short for 'speculative screenplay') are done completely by writers for free. The basic idea is that the writer will make the script on the assumption (or 'speculation') that it is good enough to sell in the open market, with the purpose being to showcase the screenwriter's talent at telling stories through structure, dialogue and action. This type of screenplay is a great way for a writer to get noticed, as they start off free to be made by the writers (even if it is true that they are not allowed to be made into a product by a company or studio until that studio has paid to do so). Generally speaking, spec scripts are "naked" scripts, empty of any attachments like stars or directors, with their main function being to just purely deliver its story.
Example of how a Spec Script is set out - (Screencraft, 2018, 5 Essential Elements Every Spec Script Should Have, 5. Simple and Straightforward Format)
A shooting script is an early version of a project's screenplay which is used during the production stage. These are usually made by the project's cinematographers and directors, incorporating scene numbers, camera directions, detailed special effects & action sequences, information on sets, costume & lighting, as well as simply notes regarding the acting in the scenes, and following a specifically set out number of procedures specifying how any revisions to the screenplay should be implemented among the crew and the cast. This type of script will often be made while a project is still in pre-production, after the spec script has been done, with the director and cinematographer lining the script with all the kinds of camera angles and movements they plan on using while filming each scene, then breaking each up into shots using the correct names and jargon for each. All the changes made on the script will be marked with asterisks and with pages changed to be put into revision colours and numbers.
Example of how a Shooting Script is set out - (SlideShare, Daniella McHugh, 2017, Shooting Script)
-- Page Lock-down --
During the editing and revision stage of a production, it is common for professional studios to take part in using page lock-down while doing so. What this means is that since when a script is put into production it is already assigned page and scene numbers as to make things easier when reading and shooting the script, strict guidelines are put in place in terms of how any changes should be distributed and logged as to not confuse things. For example, if a piece of dialogue is removed or changed on the fourth page of the script, that page will then be removed and replaced with 'page 4A', which will then be distributed instead. If the script changes for a page ends up spreading across to another page, page 4A, 4B, 4C and so on will be made. These newer pages will also be printed in different colours, so to make them more easily identifiable. Page lock-down is extremely important if these screenplays are eventually to be filmed and/or produced properly and effectively. The 'locking down' of a page is the process of specifically coding and sending out individual pages when any script revisions are made, as opposed to needing to manually send out each individual page again, changing every page's number and potentially confusing crew and cast members or constantly transferring large amounts of handwritten notes again and again.
Example of how a Page Lockdown is set out - (CeltX, 2016, revision-mode)
-- Agents --
Many screenwriter's eventually come to the decision that they want and/or need an agent to help with their careers, but many also struggle in terms of how to get one. When it comes to the reasons for wanting an agent in the first place, they can help out with finding them future work, while others are simply responsible for handling the contract side of things. Depending on what kind of agent the writer is looking for, they may approach either a large company who supplies agents to many writers across media, which has the positives of lots of experience in the job for example, or they may instead be more interested in a smaller 'boutique' service from a smaller company, allowing the agent more time to focus on you and any of your needs a lot more than the alternative - each has their own positives and negatives, so it ultimately comes down to the writer's personal preference. It is fairly important that the writer and the agent has a decent amount of chemistry between themselves, as trust is an incredibly important feature to these relationships, knowing that they have your best interests in mind. As for when to approach a potential agent, the timing being correct is something that can significantly help your chances of creating a work relationship with them; it is best to approach agents if you already have some work to show your skill so far, with any rewards or nominations from film contests for example also being huge helps to your chances. Reaching out to specific agents directly or meeting them at an event beforehand are also great ways to give yourself more of a chance for them to choose you out of all the people who likely reach out to them on a pretty consistent basis, but it is also important to do the appropriate research on the person and/or company before deciding on who you want to link up with, making sure that they are the type of people you want to work with and that they have the skill sets you are looking for - relationships between writers and agents can often last many years, so it is important that the person you choose is perfect for you.
'Script Angel' is a great website for finding many potential literary agents to work with (Script Angel, About us), finding out what each specific company is looking for and how to approach them, with examples of agents on the site including Knight Hall, United Agents, JFL Agency and many more. Starting with Knight Hall, doing some research into how they run their business after finding them on the websites list will reveal that they are always looking for new screenwriters, writers who can direct and even playwrights, directors and "stage and screen rights in selected novels". Like many agents, they are reachable through their public email, with their address also being listed on their website about section (Knight Hall Agency Ltd, About Us, Contact). They also specify how they keep their business small in size and "highly specialised", working with clients such as Simon Beaufoy, Perrie Balthazar and Benjamin Bee. Moving onto United Agents, who work with clients including Ann Macquire, Livvy Haudock and Anne Carteret, they are similar to Knight Hall, with the addition of also being able to be contacted through a phone call and Fax (united agents, About). Finally, JFL Agency is one that specializes with clients who work in radio and theatre as well as the typical television and film clients; people including Ben Harris, and their newest writers to join them at the time of writing, Ryan James and Rachel Mentiply. They specify on their site that the best way to approach them is to send them a preliminary email, then follow up with an example of a script you have worked on when/if requested (JFL Agency, About us, About JFL Agency Ltd).
-- Screenwriter's earnings: how & how much? --
Unsurprisingly, the pay for a screenwriter's work is not a consistent amount across the board, depending on things such as who the writer is, the size of the project and other similar factors. However, there are a number of components to the deals writers may agree to which are very important for a screenwriter to be knowledgeable about and fully understand before agreeing on anything - these components consist of: against, option, guarantee (also known as 'front-end'), step deal, back-end and bonuses.
Starting off with the deal's 'against', this can be essentially described as the value of the script when unproduced against the value it will be when it has been greenlit for example, obviously going up in worth when it begins to be actually produced - valued 1 million pounds against 3 million as a random example of how it would be described. Optioning has been explained in detail above already, but in short, it is a contractual agreement between the producer and writer including a payment from the producer to hold (often temporary) ownership of rights for the screenplay. Now, the deal's 'guarantee' is simply the amount of money that is, as the name would suggest, guaranteed as a payment to the writer from the producers upfront, no matter if the film ends up even made or not, with the 'back-end' being slightly the opposite - a payment relying on the production and release, being triggered and given to the writer by the first shooting day beginning for example. In addition to the back-end, bonuses exist for the writer depending on who the producer is and whether or not they decide to award them with any if the project performs well upon release. This performance quality may be based on a number of possible choices, such as the box-office returns, if a budget bonus is received for the project if it attracts extra financing, and a sole-writer credit bonus which occurs if no other writers are needed to be brought onto the project throughout its production. Finally, the fee the writers are paid upfront is more often than not split into a ;step-deal', being distributed to the writer in steps throughout the project's run. For example, if the step deal chosen was a 3-step-deal, it may include a first draft, rewrite, and final polish payment, but the producers are able to negotiate and/or undertake further optional steps if they choose to. Either way, the steps payments are usually paid in halves, 50 percent being sent when the step begins and the remaining half once it has been completed.
-- Professional Presentation --
It is very important when presenting a piece of your work to do in professionally, while also making sure to keep those you are presenting to involved in the presentation and what is being stated within it. It is also extremely important that your presentation of both your work and your self are suitable in quality and professionalism, and this can be achieved through many routes. Starting with how you present yourself, it is important that you come across as very formal, while also leaving opportunity for interaction with those you are presenting to during your talking about your script idea - it is much better to discuss the idea instead of just simply telling the idea. This would mean that the clothing and manner of speech should match that of a typical formal manner, as opposed to too relaxed and perhaps even inappropriate.
Of course, the main reason you would be in an interview/pitch like this in the first place would be to show off a piece of your work to a potential employer and/or investor in the project idea. Due to this, it can be helpful to consider how successful the film could be if made for those you are presenting to at some point, such as by talking about the trends of the film market as of recent times and how it will fit in, as to interest those you are presenting to both creatively and financially.
Another small piece of presentation information which is considered still to this day as the 'professional' standard is related to each script's font style, size and layout. Specifically, a rule that can not be disobeyed is that of making sure the font used is one in particular - 12 Point Courier. Every piece of text within a screenplay will be expected in the industry to be in this font, including pieces of dialogue and each parenthetical included for example. It is also very important to be sure to remember where capital letters are expected to be placed and where they are not, as to be sure that the screenplay comes across as professional as possible if showcased to somebody at one point in the script's future.
-- Time Management --
Although not uncommon in other career choices, being able to manage your time well and meet strict deadlines is an incredibly important skill to possess while working as a screenwriter. Often in media jobs, especially in larger productions which have a lot of money and people involved, a single person on the project missing a deadline will end up affecting the entire production, pushing back other jobs done by other people and ending up in delays and more costs for example. Specifically when it comes to screenwriting deadlines, for example if the writer has been requested to make some edits to the script before it can be turned into one used by the performers in the scenes, a hold up of these changes being completed will result in the actor's getting their lines later, filming will be held up, meaning more days may need to be arranged for the equipment to be taken out, and so on. A common potential issue in larger productions where the project's filming dates are pushed back, particularly when there are big names in acting on board, the actor more than likely has multiple roles lined up for themselves and may not be able to make the new postponed dates for filming set out due to these already booked roles taking priority - this is yet another reason why a script being finished on time with the date it is expected on is extremely important for keeping a project going smoothly, keeping the desired crew members on board while they can.
-- Legal & ethical considerations --
Copyright is a very important thing for many people and creatives, including screenwriters. In fact, copyright, which can be defined as the assignable, exclusive right the creator of a piece of media or any other creation is given for a fixed number of years, affects screenwriters in the UK and the art of screenwriting in general quite often. Here in the United Kingdom, a creator does not need to apply to have copyright over something they made, but instead automatically has it assigned to them when they have created something. This means that the piece of work is then protected from others using it in order to benefit themselves without first reaching out from permission from that creator (like making money off of a film idea without the creator profiting from it themselves for example). 'Plagiarism' is a term often used in relation to copyright and, more specifically, copyright infringement. Essentially, is someone was to 'plagiarise' a piece of someone else's work, they will be guilty of copying that piece of work and in essence stealing their copyrighted work in order to pass it off as their own - this is not legal. Not following copyright law can get you into a lot of trouble, like if you were to include a copyrighted piece of material like a song in a film you make without asking for the correct permissions from the rights holder to do so; often, unless stated otherwise like with 'royalty-free' pieces of music, others are not instantly allowed this right unless they directly pay for or ask for it.
Three other related terms which are both very important to know and understand are 'libel', 'bias' and 'defamation'. Libel is used to describe a false "statement about somebody" which is untrue, that has been publicly published which possesses the possibility of damaging the person and/or businesses' reputations it is about (Oxford Languages, libel definition). When it comes to media, it is very important if mentioning a brand or real figure not to ever explicitly state damaging lies about them as if they are fact, as this will count as libel and could get you into a lot of legal trouble due to the potential harm it may cause that company and/or person, either financially or just general life quality depending on how severe the libel is. The term 'defamation' is a very similar one, defined as the action of "damaging someone's reputation" due to the publicly stated lies/incorrect statements put out there through a libel; this, again, can often lead to a lot of repercussions for everyone involved and is best so stay away from ever taking part in as to avoid any issues (Oxford Languages, defamation definition). Finally, bias, in its most basic terms is, due to whatever reasoning, feeling and/or showing "favour towards" someone or something, such as a personal opinion, or vice versa (Oxford Languages, bias definition). In the case of this job sector, a script reader for example would be expected not to be more likely to approve one script they come across more than another simply due to their existing relationship with whoever wrote the first - this would be a clear example of bias in the industry, which is unfair. There is also the issue, however, of the script itself containing bias in some form, whether that be about something not very serious, or something a bit more damaging, such as the political bias said to be in the movie 'Zero Dark Thirty', which resulted in criticism from other writers in the industry such as Glenn Greenwald, who went as far to say that the director, Kathryn Bigelow, was "subtly" putting her "thumb on the pro-torture scale" throughout the movie.
Reference List:
BBC Writer's Room, 2021, 'What We Do', available at:
Sky, 2021, Sky Studios, Commissioning & ideas submission, available at:
Hartswoodfilms, 2020, Home, available at:
BlueCat, 2021, competition, available at:
Ken Miyamoto, 2018, 5 Essential Elements Every Spec Script Should Have, available at:
Daniella McHugh, 2017, Shooting Script, available at:
CeltX, (2016), revision-mode, available at:
Script Angel, 2021, About Us, available at:
Knight Hall Agency, (no date), About us, available at:
United Agents LLP, (no date), About, available at:
JFL Agency Ltd, (no date), About us, available at:
Oxford Languages, (no date), defamation definition, available at:
Oxford Languages, (no date), libel definition, available at:
Oxford Languages, (no date), bias definition, available at:
Prezi, Menna Salah, 2016, Movie Bias, available at:
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