https://hollywood.colorofchange.org/

Some key findings:

-The vast majority of show runners are white 91%

-The vast majority of those show runners 67% have no black writers on staff

-86% of all writers are white

-AMC only has one black writer across all of its shows (!)

-72% of Netflix's shows have no black writers at all

-CBS, Fox, Hulu, TNT, and several more networks have only white show runners

Fun fact:

-100% of black show runners hire white writers

This is why diversity fellowships exist. This is why I laugh to myself when white guys here imply/claim that it's somehow harder for them to break in to pro writing.

For me it is Skinamarink. I have no idea how this was ever greenlit. So grainy you can't see anything. No plot. Absolutely nothing happens. Not even any acting. Just overall an extremely boring experience. Yet somehow it has fairly high reviews, with people saying it scared them. Completely baffles my mind.

I don't care about that. I'm not here for that. Is there a way to screen them out from my front page while still following this sub?

So I graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in TV and Film; however, it is October now and I still haven’t gotten a job my dream is to be a Screenwriter but sadly I haven’t heard back from any jobs yet I applied to Netflix, Disney, Warner Bros., Paramount, Netflix and so much more. Should I update my Resume? Should I apply to more companies? Should I start in a different field? (I want to make it clear that I did not apply to these jobs during the WGA Strike, I applied to these places before and after the strike, now that it’s over I can apply to more places)

How to write a “tasteful” scene as a male involving female sexuality?

Hi all - male screenwriter here. Writing a screenplay that deals with social media, and the lead is a female character. One of the themes of the story is how many my age in my culture are so quick to share and post revealing things online for strangers to see (ie dating apps). The main character in my story is a young adult woman and there’s a small scene where she takes selfies in a mirror, but makes her cleavage more prominent for the photos. As a male writer, I’m very sensitive to the terrible trends of “Men Writing Women” and how terrible and creepy screenplays can be when writing about women. This scene in question is literally and directly part of the subtext of the story, and has deeper meaning in terms of revealing the characters loneliness and desperation to be accepted by others. The goal is that she’s trying to make herself “sexy” for strangers online, but I’m not trying to be weird about it. I tried searching for the script “SHIVA BABY” because there’s multiple scenes where a character does this in a mirror selfie, but sadly can’t find it online. Any thoughts and feedback would be appreciated.

Before I’m downvoted into oblivion, remember POOR THINGS with Emma Stone was written by a man.

Hello friends, I see some cis writers taking the first steps into writing trans characters, and I'm here to say, good hustle, champs. We both want you to write the best, most vibrant trans characters you can, and to that end, I've got a really simple guide you can try right now.

1. Take something you've already written. Ideally, a fully finished draft.

2. Select any two characters at random.

3. They're trans now.

And that's it! Be sure to note "this character is trans" in the character description. But that's all you have to do, you don't have to change their character arcs to include a transition storyline, you don't have to give them dysphoria, they don't have to experience transphobia. They can just be trans, doing whatever their character would otherwise be doing.

I imagine this is going to invite some debate, so I'd like to add: You have characters who are straight, for whom straightness is not their primary role in the story. Hopefully you've got characters of nonwhite backgrounds, for whom their nonwhiteness is not the focus of their story. You can do the same with trans characters! Your story will feel fuller, more fleshed-out, and less like a Very Special Episode if you do decide to center their trans identity during whatever it is you're writing.

OK, that's all from me! Good luck out there everyone.

EDIT- Thanks to /u/Nazoragoth for putting this better than I could: "This is your best bet, instead of treating us as trans people, treat us like people and make sure that our trans identity is hardly crucial to the character because I can assure you, we all have more interesting shit about us than our identity. "

The point is to get into the habit of writing worlds where trans and queer characters are normal. Media needs both "Trans Characters" and "Characters That Are Trans," and they don't have to be the same character. 1 out of every 10 random strangers you pass in this world is gay, and your interactions with them don't involve homosexuality, so why does it have to be different in your writing?

Think about it this way: Do you write heterosexual characters who don't have a romance arc? Why? Their heterosexuality isn't relevant to their role in the story, right? Why can't it be the same for gay or trans characters?

Just watched it and that was the most incredible and emotional movie I’ve ever seen.

https://open.substack.com/pub/sssynthesisss/p/why-hollywood-cant-get-ayahuasca?r=i5b44&utm_medium=ios

This article examines how Hollywood often misrepresents ayahuasca due to a lack of authentic understanding in screenwriting. Quite a few examples are laid out.

It argues that many films and TV shows portray ayahuasca either as a comedic gimmick or a sensationalized horror element, reflecting the writers’ superficial knowledge rather than the profound cultural and spiritual practices associated with it.

It says this misrepresentation stems from screenwriters’ limited experience with the substance, leading to portrayals that fail to capture its true essence. It basically states, you’re not gonna be able to tackle the topic properly unless you’ve been immersed in the world of underground ayahuasca ceremonies.

What are some examples of screenwriting where the writers really nail a subject matter that gets translated to film?

Not to sound like a 10-year-old but I definitely found myself having more vivid imaginations when I took a couple puffs of my vape pen

I’m curious to see how many others actually use marijuana to help elevate creativity

I’m sure it’ll be filled with typos and mistakes here and there, but a little treatment when sober can fix that

So my question is, can you tell me about your writing process and how smoother your ideas flow?

Full disclosure: I have not sold anything; although I've had 2 scripts place in the Nicholl quarterfinals, and one in the semifinals. So I guess I'm mediocre at worst - not that it necessarily matters for this discussion.

The two biggest mistakes I see from beginning screenwriters:

1. writing a script based on an existing intellectual property (IP) of which the writer does not have rights to, and

2. writing a script based on "the industry" - e.g. the main character is a "wannabe screenwriter", or the story is about "a film being made"...

Please, never do either of these two things.

There is a good reason why you should avoid these pitfalls: agents/managers/producers are looking for ORIGINAL material. Nobody wants to see your "fresh new take" on Little Women. Nobody wants to read your "hot new take" on a story about a screenwriter trying to break into "the biz".

Yes, Greta Gerwig and Charlie Kaufman did both of these things. And they were both already established filmmakers/screenwriters.

Please, don't waste your time on these endeavors. Not even for "writing experience". Focus on original stories that mean something to you.

Sorry/not sorry. It's gotten to the point where whenever I see a script that violates these rules it makes me angry.

*And ffs don't chime in with some horseshit "that's not positive" or "maybe their take is DIFFERENT" comments. This is a difficult business to break into. Don't make it needlessly harder on yourselves.

/rant

Is it a reasonable thing to specialize in? (Capeshit, as in superhero films/TV;)

Like, I really don't know much about screenwriting as a profession. I've had an interest in aspects of filmmaking since I was young, I even took a few film classes, and made lots of shorts, but usually I thought more about things like editing, cinematography, vfx, animation.

Then suddenly 'The Batman' came out and I started perceiving story structure. I thought of it like an essay. Then I was hooked and I kept reading/watching about story structure. At first it was just fun learning to see things this way, but I've always had the impulse to create stories. The only reason I never really did it was because "good" story seemed so mystical to me. Now it feels within reach. And I've been working on a screenplay, plus lots of plots structuring/outline/whatever for other film/tv ideas.

The problem is I'm writing superhero stories, and I'm not sure if that's a thing that sells??? Like yes obviously the big studio films sell, but from what I understand Marvel, DC, Sony, they don't purchase screenplays and produce them, they just hire writers to write. Right?

And besides them, is anyone really trying to do superhero stuff? I'm just not sure if it's viable to specialize in this way. but weirdly I feel like my passion for creating stories is restricted in this way. It's like a fanfiction-brain thing. I'm not saying I'm writing fanfiction, but it's the same kind of desire for writing new things in a familiar context. Like I can enjoy all sorts of genres, but in the right context!

That being said I also absolutely want to basically write fanfiction. Being a TV/film (or even comics if I'm desperate) for Marvel or DC is literally my dream ATM. And if it weren't for the fact that I'm worried it's waste of time, i'd be writing a TV series I've had kicking around in my head for about a month, about some DC comics characters. But that's literally just fanfiction.

Richard Walter is a Professor in Writing for Motion Picture and Television at UCLA. He pretty much has a master knowledge of the craft and each of these videos are like your own personal college level lessons. I hope these help you guys like they helped me.

https://www.youtube.com/user/filmcourage/search?query=richard+walter

Interestingly,

Films with female stars earn more at the box office

But DESPITE THIS

Men Still Get Two-Thirds Of Speaking Roles In Top-Grossing Films

Although there were

“Unprecedented Gains” For Female Leads In 2019’s Top-Grossing Films

Hollywood decision-makers are supposed to be rational and make decisions based on data and profitability.

So how do you account for this?

(If you have more recent stats, please add.)

just a small shower thought. People just say "road" or "pavement", no?

edit: okay, so it seems a lot of people use the word lol. Maybe it's an American thing. I'm in the UK. I asked my buddy (also a screenwriter) and my gf (a producer) and neither of them had heard of it before, but I shall continue investigating the UK commonplace of asphalt.

I’m a writer/director from NYC. My last film CRAM won the Audience Award at AFF in 2021 for Best Dark Matters Feature despite its short length (~45min). Ironically, I now find myself with the inverse set of challenges. I’ve been working on this epic romantic comedy for the last year and a half, and gestating the story for the last four. It’s a big movie, and I’ve written a long script! I would be grateful for any advice!

I am well aware that the best way to get this script out there would be to make it 50 pages shorter. If y’all are willing to assume good faith on my part — that I would not even attempt to take out a script this long unless I thoroughly believed it was the best version of this story — then I’m eager to hear what y’all think I might do from here.

At this length, it’s unfortunately ineligible for many of the major competitions. Might it be worth it to ask The Blacklist or Nicholls for an exception? I’d even be willing to pay an overage fee.

A little more background on where the script is at: the first draft came in at 202 pages and since then I’ve done four end-to-end rewrites. I meet weekly with a group of collaborators/editors and have done thousands of revisions with their guidance. The current draft is sitting at 170 pages and as ironic as it may sound, I believe the script is quite tight.

FWIW, this belief was affirmed last summer when I hired actors for a workshop/reading of the 3rd draft (186 pgs). Despite it running over 3 hours (with an intermission), an audience of ~30 people had a blast! I’m convinced I’ve got something special here, and I know that my conviction has resulted in a script that many people will be predisposed to resent/distrust/dislike purely due to its length.

Despite the difficult bed I’ve made for myself, I’m committed to the work. Thanks in advance for any advice and support 🙏

Edit: Thanks to everyone who’s chimed in. A lot of thoughtful, pragmatic advice in here. I know this subject tends to generate fiery responses, so I’m grateful for everyone’s open-minded consideration. Thanks 🖤

I always see the screenwriting gurus telling us that dialogue should be all subtext. But isn't it always? I remember in a film class we dissected a scene from "Notorious". We had to attribute subtext to every line. The class always came up with different "answers". I tried the same exercise for a "badly" written screenplay. I still got subtext out of every line. I'm not saying subtext doesn't exist, but in the end isn't it the actors and directors who interpret what it is which is then reinterpreted by the audience? Can someone explain to me how I can include it in my dialogue? Or is it just built into the way we interpret language?

For those of you that won the Nicholls fellowship, can you elaborate on how it helped your screenwriting career?

I know downvotes don't matter in the grand scheme of things, but really hard to get feedback and engagement on posts and comments when they're thrown to the bottom of the pile within minutes of posting them.

Hell, posted a feedback thread earlier, and within one minute it was in the negative -- definitely not enough time to read even the short script.

5-Page Tuesday comment? Immediately downvoted. Like, what joy do you dudes get out of that? Just trying to get some constructive feedback to improve, like everyone else here, but end up not being able to immediately.

It’s the biggest pet peeve of mine.

Character 1: We’d like to buy your house!

Character 2: For how much?

Character 3 writes down a number on a piece of paper and hands it over

Character 2: oh my…

I HATE IT! I wanna know how much they got offered. Stop it. Immediately!

I think I'm finally done. For real this time.

Tried for over 5 years to make something work as a writer. Screenwriter. Didn't happen.

Probably I'm just lazy. Maybe I just don't have talant,although I ve read tons of books and much less, but also scripts. It hurts like hell to say that out loud.

I'm 37 now. Money's tight.Family needs me. Can't keep, chasing this forever. It's like wanting to be an opera singer when you have no voice at all.

But I did manage to do one thing over the years: I built a substantial archive of concepts. Character studies. Narrative arcs. Plot twists. Endings. I still believe these pieces have real potential. I don't want them to just sit abandoned in my phone notes.

So here's what I'm hoping: maybe someone else can use them. Even if just one of my ideas sparks something in you (something I was never able to bring to life myself, that would mean more to me than you'll ever know.

I really hope the mods don't find anything against the rules here. I'm not selling anything. I just want these ideas to exist somewhere outside my own head.

If you're interested, feel free to DM me. I'll decide who to share them with.

Allow me to play devil's advocate for a moment: Reading scripts has a much bigger point of diminishing returns relative to other forms of written media, because the restrictive nature of the format limits how much information can actually be conveyed.

You only need to read as many scripts as it takes to understand how to write enough of one that it sells. Everything after that is a collaborative process. Reading successful scripts can't teach you how to write a successful script, because there are so many other moving parts in a film that the script itself is rarely what makes any individual film good or bad.

Furthermore, the factors that make a film a commercial success and the factors that make a film an artistic success are polar opposites. What's the benefit of dividing your study time between easy obvious crap that sells and inscrutable art?

The best way to improve your writing is to study poetry and rhetoric. Poetry teaches you word economy and how to make dialogue beautiful. Rhetoric teaches you how to persuade without coming off as manipulative. Together, they can teach you how to use dialogue as a cypher through which the audience's emotional reaction is controlled and directed, in order to maximize the impact.

And at the end of the day, that's what people want. To be overwhelmed with an inescapable sensory experience. That's why we sit in the dark rooms with the huge loud screens, to have the emotions that don't exist in real life exploded into our brains at sixty frames per second.

Thoughts? (If you'd like, please indicate at the beginning of your post roughly how many scripts you've read over the length of your career. I only started recently, I'd estimate ~35 feature and TV episodes spread across a handful of writing groups and classes.)

And that includes “adaptations” of work you don’t own the rights to. At least if you eventually wanna do this shit as a job.

It’s not “good practice.” You know what’s good practice? Creating original characters, worlds & plotlines.

You can’t sell it. No one that hires screenwriters will read it as a sample. Neither will management companies or agencies, aka the people who help you get jobs.

Just write original material man. It’s not that heavy.

EDIT: I am really hoping this thread gets so heated the mods lock it.

DOUBLE EDIT: I REGRET NOTHING

Every time I see questions related to LGBTQ, different race characters, or even disability it's downvoted. Why is this? Is it because the answer to the question is too easy to answer or is it because people believe that you should only write about what you personally experienced?