by Liz Nord

 

"We Are Still Here," Snowfort Pictures

There’s no delicate way to say it: If you’re trying to get your first script made, the odds are stacked against you. 

Last year, Shaked Berenson's company got 28 scripts from agents, double that number from managers, and slightly more from producers. About ten times that number were unsolicited.

Epic Pictures Group made five films that year. Guess how many of those scripts came from the unsolicited pile? (Hint: It rhymes with “DeNiro.”)

So what’s an aspiring screenwriter/director/producer to do? Berenson and his fellow SXSW 2016 panelists, who have decades of Hollywood producing experience between them, gave a few pointers. The group included Gudrun Giddings, CEO of G4C Innovation; Travis Stevens, CEO of Snowfort Pictures (whose film Teenage Cocktail is playing at this year’s fest); and Winnie Kemp, Director of Development at Super Deluxe/Turner.

 

DO: Be cool

All of the panelists agreed that they prefer to work with people they know and like. So, whenever you’re not working or sleeping, you should get out there and make friends. Stevens remarked, “It might not be the best time management approach, but you analyze risk when considering projects, and just by having beers with people at festivals has helped us get to know them and make these decisions.”

The time it takes to build relationships is worth it, as going into production with people you like and trust can save you a lot of heartache in the long run. Berenson said, “We pick our projects by the people themselves because making a movie is gonna be a very long road. It’s a marriage. You have to know you can be in the lows and highs together. You have to be able to have a creative fight in the evening and shoot in the morning and be friends.”

But….

 

DON’T: Pitch at a party

The relationships you build at festivals and events have to be authentic, and the last thing you want to do is annoy someone who is in a position to help you. As important as it is to start a conversation when you have the opportunity to meet these folks, it’s also important that you save the actual pitch for when it is welcomed, and when the person can actually pay attention. A loud party or a hectic hallway outside a panel is not that place.

Giddings recommends: “Come up to me and say, ‘I have the most amazing thing you have to hear,’ and ask if you can follow up with me later and what is the best way to do it.”

 

DO: Make a (short) sizzle reel

Kemp put it plainly: “Executives don’t have a lot of imagination, so if you can show them something, rather than tell them about it, it’s better.”

The good news is that we now have the tools to make teasers or sizzle reels from home, long before we’ve completed our projects. These should be very brief (the panel recommends no more than two minutes). They should be full of passion, and show what makes you and your idea unique.

Sizzles don’t necessarily have to be very involved or expensive. The point is just to get the execs’ attention long enough to have them agree to that coffee or lunch where you can pitch the project more fully.

But…

 

DON’T: Include 30 seconds of credits

This one’s easy. If you’re making a two-minute reel, don’t take 30 seconds for credits — unless you definitely don’t want to get that lunch meeting.

 

DO: Care about your project

“It’s amazing how many pitches I get from people who don’t even like their script,” said Giddings. It’s well known across industries that people with resources invest in passion, but nowhere is that more true than in the film biz. Producers know how long it takes to get a film made and successfully put out into the world, so they want to be confident that your enthusiasm will last through the life of the project.

 

DON’T: Compare yourself to a big budget movie if you don’t have a big budget

If you want to be taken seriously when pitching, be realistic about your project. Look into other, similar projects. Know what is out there already in your genre; know what’s in the works. Don’t blow up your own spot by trying to be something that you’re not.

As Berenson quipped, "Don’t try to tell me that your $200,000 zombie movie is going to do as well as World War Z just because they are both zombie movies. Compare yourself to another movie with a $200K budget."

 

DO: Get your research on

Perhaps even more important than doing your homework about similar projects is to know the ins and outs of the companies you are pitching to. Do they make your type of film? How many films do they make each year, and what are their budgets? Are there specific producers within the company whom you might like to work with?

Kemp estimated that she gets 30 or 40 pitches a day; if you want your script to be the one she reads, you need to get targeted. Know why you are bringing the project to her specifically, and communicate that. She also suggested that reading The Black List is one way to understand what producers are looking for in general, as well as to find out what type of scripts are getting attention.

The best part about research for a new filmmaker? As Stevens pointed out, it’s free!

 

DON’T: Forget what makes a good movie

All the sizzle reels in the world won’t save you from a bad story. When it comes down to it, you usually still need to give the people what they want: great relationships, a fascinating premise, conflict, and all that jazz.

Stevens, the most indie-leaning producer on the panel, said that they key to his success has been to throw a little extra hot sauce on these basic tenets. “If you don’t have the money for movie stars and big visual effects,” Stevens mused, “how do you make your movie stand out? We’ve done it by taking something that has a core commercial concept and pushing it out a little bit, making it wilder.”

 

DO: Always be writing!

Kemp pointed out that the average age of screenwriter when they sell their first script is 37. And chances are they didn’t start writing at 36.

So write, write, write! Keep writing and putting together a portfolio, because that’s what will ultimately get you an agent.

There are plenty of techniques out there to help kickstart your writing, like using the new Flowstate app, entering a screenplay contest that forces you to have a deadline, or simply carving out a set time each day to get offline and focus solely on getting words on the page.

So, what are you doing here? Go get your write on!

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Check this out on nofilmschool.com

Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

Patricia Riggen is a rare beast in Hollywood - she is a female director. And over the course of the career she continues to bring her own style to film. After the success of her last film, "The 33," (the true story of miners trapped in a mine in Chile and were all rescued after being trapped for 69 days) she is really getting some notice. Her latest film, "Miracles from Heaven," is also taken from a true story. In this exclusive interview, Riggen talks about her craft and staying true to her own vision is the only way she will direct a film. She also has such glowing remarks about actress Jennifer Garner, and if you are not a fan of Jennifer Garner right now, you will be after you read this interview.

"Miracles from Heaven," tells the story of a young girl that is very ill. Surprisingly, after a very serious accident the young girl seems to be cured from her illness. But it is the story that the young girl tells that has everyone wondering if miracles do come from heaven.

Riggen believes it is her movie "Under the Same Moon," that got the attention of the producers of "Miracles from Heaven," "I get a lot of work from that movie. And then they also had the opportunity to see 'The 33.' I was invited to have a meeting and I guess I said all the right things. I was really impressed by the true story aspects of the story."

But Patricia had a slightly different vision than that of the producers. She wanted to bring a more universal sense to the movie. She wanted it to be a little less religious and a little more inclusive. She wanted the film to bring universal values that people of any faith or even no faith could grasp. Something for everyone. And she was given the green light to make those changes to the story when she was hired.

Patricia describes the key elements to being a good director, "Directors only have instinct to work out of, because there is no formula. Formula's don't work. Actually, if you follow a formula, you will probably end up with a bad movie. The only thing I have is instinct and intuition and just staying very, very connected to the moments and try to bring in what your gut is telling you."

And as far as miracles are concerned, Patricia states, "I am a believer, so my first instinct is to believe. And my second instinct is to go immediately and look for the proof. Which is what I did. I thought 'I love this story.' At my first meeting with Annabelle, we were sitting in a restaurant and she ordered a huge cheeseburger with fries and then she ordered a big chocolate sundae and she ate it all. I thought to myself, 'She was sick and couldn't eat and now she is eating.'

"And then we went to the house and I saw the tree and it was completely hallow. So then I could start connecting all the dots."

"When I met Dr. Nurko, I questioned him. He's a scientist. He can't say it's a miracle. And he said, 'I can't say it's a miracle.' So, I put that in the movie to give voice to all of the non-believers. Which is fine, everyone is included. But I also noted the huge heart of the man who really knew all the details of the girl and that the family was really close to him. And I thought that this was very special."

Riggen is happy to bring a film to theaters that families can enjoy together, "I brought my eight year old to the premiere of the movie and she was ecstatic about it. She was so excited that she was seeing a PG movie. And she did great. There are a few dramatic moments, but there are also some great moments of learning for a kid, for them to understand what other kids might be going through."

But for Riggen, she wants the audience to have a lasting impression after seeing her films, "I like making movies that people feel inspired by, a film that they will think about a few days after seeing it, and not entertainment that is completely forgettable the moment you walk out of the theater."

When it came time to talk about the beautiful and talented Jennifer Garner, Riggen was more than happy to discuss the qualities that make Jennifer Garner a very popular person in Hollywood and an extremely qualified actress.

Riggen noted, "I wanted the actor that was going to be Christy Beam to not just be a super talented actress, but a woman with a soul and a heart. So, I found out about Jen and I heard that she was a kind person. And when I met her, I knew she was a kind person. And that was something that was very important for the character. I also knew she was a mom, which was a huge element also. She is a mom of three and she was playing a mom of three. The kindness in her heart has really made her character. She has the responsibility to out there in front of the camera. She's the one that has to create this family and she was so generous to the little girl (Kylie Rogers) who plays Annabelle. She just has this personality that she is so open and so generous. She is so unlike what one would think a big star like her would be like."

Riggen continued to express her genuine impression of Garner, "There is something else that she brought. This character could have ended up being a one note character. The character of a mother suffering, suffering, suffering and suffering. It was Jennifer that was able to really come up with a different approach for every scene, for every moment. She gives such a wide ranch of colors to her performance. And it is really stunning to watch. That is why she is so engaging and so interesting to watch."

When it came time for the real Christy Beam to see "Miracles from Heaven," both Riggen and Garner were anxious. But they had no worries, for Beam loved the film. According to Riggen, "The family just couldn't have been happier."

So, when you are deciding on what movie to see this weekend, Riggen is hoping you will give "Miracles from Heaven," a try. After all, isn't a film that we can take with us after we leave the theater a special thing? With the plethora of films that don't connect with audiences emotions, this is truly a miracle!

"Miracle from Heaven," is rated PG for thematic material, including accident and medical images and has a runtime of 109 minutes.

 

Check this out on examiner.com