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SAMPLE SCRIPTS
My Fellow Writers,
You schmooze your way into a production company or agency, or maybe a friend of a friend gives you an open door. Now they want to read your "sample." So what do you give them?
Ten different people will give fifty different answers, but there are some basic guidelines on how to prepare and choose the right sample for the job.
(1) First and foremost, that sample script must be PERFECT! It has to read better than the script that won the WGA Award the previous year. Something that is mind-blowingly good. Something that makes the person want to continue reading it even though they're careening through traffic to get to their lunch meeting. These people read a ton of scripts. If yours doesn't stand out by its sheer quality, originality, power, emotion (or laughs), and concept, you might as well not bother on sending it. You need to, in one fell swoop, establish yourself as one of this person's favorite writers. Not just favorite new writers or favorite unproduced writers - but favorite writers in general. Don't let this freak you out. Take it as a challenge, and really go after the thing in your sample and in your voice that sets you apart.
(2) - (9) Read #1. It's that important to be perfect. It's the only truly vital part of this week's column.
(10) The script should fit the general area of the company, show, or agency you're approaching. Don't send a half-hour comedy to a company that specializes in indie films. You want something that's a sample that shows you can do (not just do, NAIL!) the kind of projects they work on all the time. That being said, if you have a couple of great samples (and if you do, you should already be working), you can often ask the executive if they prefer a feature or a one-hour, a comedy or a drama. Or you can ask them "What are your favorite types of projects; what do you personally really love?" - then pick the sample script that's in that area. That being said, it's still far more important to pick your best (and again, PERFECT!) sample than it is to pick the right genre.
(11) Doing a one-hour sample is a whole new ballgame. Just to give you a bit of background. Agents often try to sell one-hour writers based on the writer's sample of a current show. Every year, there are a few shows with great voices and great buzz that become the "hot spec." Over the past few years, some of the shows that have fallen in and out of that category have been SPORTS NIGHT, THE WEST WING, and, most recently, SIX FEET UNDER. The new season may or may not bring out another phenomenon that becomes the "hot spec." When choosing a show to spec, find out the handful of shows that are "hot" specs, then pick the one that best highlights your writing, and at the same time is a show you love and watch enough to do the spec right.
(12) There are also cases where unconventional samples work magic. People have landed meetings and offers based on plays, short stories, short films, specs of old shows (e.g., doing an I LOVE LUCY with a decidedly modern twist), and many other forms. The key with this type of sample is that it's really got to kill, because if it's anything less than superb, it will crash and burn even worse than a conventional sample. Often, series producers like to see evidence that you can write the voices of characters created by someone else - that you can "capture" the tone. So going too far outside of the mold may not always be in your best interest. If you do have a truly inspired sample, by all means, use it . . . but be prepared to back it up with another sample that shows you know how to write characters for a specific show.
(13) For features, remember that you're not necessarily trying to sell your sample to that company. You're trying to impress them with your writing, which really isn't easy. They read so many scripts, and they're often reading them with ten other things going on, or during their weekend. So don't ever let them read something that you wouldn't bet your life on. I know, I'm repeating #1 here a little bit, but believe me, it matters more than all of these other things put together.
Never, ever think you don't have a project to work on. Work on those samples. Make sure you're not just doing it to get a job, but that you have a true passion for the project you're writing. That inspiration will come through loud and clear, and will compel you to rewrite the script until it truly sings.
Best of luck. I'm off to break story on my latest spec.
Sampling,
Grady
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