by John | Jul 14, 2023 | Industry Diary, Industry News, News, Pitching, WriteMovies News
Why we’re pausing all pitching until 2023 WGA strike disputes are resolved.
WriteMovies would like to welcome our new Analyst Matt Rose, who shares our response to the 2023 WGA strike below:
Our team here at WriteMovies stands behind the Writers Guild of America during their current strike as they put the scripted film and television industries on hold in advocating for fair wages, protections from being overworked and understaffed, and safeguards against AI screenwriting.
As script consultants and contest runners, we’ve worked with countless writers, both aspiring and experienced, and we understand the painstaking labor that goes into perfecting a screenplay for production. From blockbusters to indie hits, we know that every great film or series begins with an excellent script. In all respects, we pride ourselves on doing everything we can to hone and bolster the voices of screenwriters. In solidarity with the writers who keep the entertainment industry afloat as proven by the numerous production delays and shutdowns effected by their strike WriteMovies will not be pitching to any studios that are WGA signatories until the strike comes to an end.
The demands of the WGA, outlined by AP News, include calls for much-needed updates to outdated wage and labor standards, which have effectively been used to underpay and overwork screenwriters in recent years. As audiences continue to move away en masse from live television towards streaming platforms, writers’ residuals from syndication have all but vanished while long-term streaming deals leave writers’ compensation disproportionate to their value. The WGA calls for increased upfront pay to correct for residuals lost to the streaming era.
Also based on norms of the past, overly-long exclusivity deals leftover from the age of 22-episode TV seasons block writers from accepting available work despite 8-10 episode seasons now being commonplace. The WGA demands shorter exclusivity terms to mirror the shrinking of TV seasons. The guild also wants to end the exploitation of “mini rooms” which overwork a handful of writers during development, and they demand contractual safeguards against studios’ and producers’ use of artificial intelligence to write scripts.
Any pitching to studios and producers is considered a crossing of the picket line even for aspiring guild writers, who may be permanently barred from WGA membership for scab behavior though writers may continue seeking agents or managers, according to screenwriter and WGA secretary-treasurer Christopher Kyle. WriteMovies will continue to offer our screenplay contests and development services, and our studio pitching for winning scripts will resume as soon as the WGA strike comes to a close. In the meantime, we are working as hard as ever to aid our winning writers in polishing their scripts and prepping our pitch materials!
Find out more about WriteMovies’ contests and submission opportunities HERE.
by John | Jul 14, 2023 | 2023 Screenwriting Contest, Contests, Industry Diary, Industry News, News, Pitching, Screenwriting Contests, WriteMovies News
WriteMovies is back and ready to launch our long-proven contests again in the weeks ahead.
It’s an exciting year for us and it’s hard to believe it’s already halfway done. We’ve been working hard behind the scenes on preparing our winners for pitching, as well as Dr. Alex Ross’s books and launches, and we’re getting ready for a dynamic few months ahead. Now we’re ready to relaunch our contests and services with an expanded and refreshed team – and we’re looking forward to finding out what you’ve been working on too!
We’re looking forward to having a big pitching presence in the months ahead – writers’ strike permitting! We’re also publishing our response to the WGA strike today here – we want writers to thrive in the new era, we’ve got some great winning scripts to promote, and we’ll share those adventures with you once the situation is right again.
Meanwhile, don’t forget that our founder Dr Alex Ross’s new book BLOCKBUSTED is now available in hardback and eBook and ALL of our newsletter subscribers can get a full 30% off! Click here to find out more – we look forward to sharing lots more about it in the months ahead. The film is full of exclusive insights into the evolution of Hollywood’s calculated blockbuster, including lots of your favorite movies from the 1970s to today. We’re also itching to tell you about his next book, which goes even deeper into one of the most iconic and talked-about films of the last half-century!
We’ve also got lots of strong new media and online course content shaping up to share with you as well – so there’s lots to look forward to!
by John | Feb 10, 2023 | Contests, Our Winners, Pitching, Sci-Fi and Fantasy Award, Screenwriting Contests
Over the coming weeks and months, we’ll be showcasing our many award winners from 2022 as we pitch them to successful producers and studios.
First is our Sci-Fi and Fantasy Award winner, a vivid portrait of a future family finding peace and happiness together in a deep-space setting, only to be torn apart by wars and social conflict as they try to reunite.
When a sentimental miner moves to a safer planet ahead of his studious husband and their daughter, an interplanetary class war threatens to divide the family forever.
To express an interest in producing or optioning this script, contact talent@atalentscout.com now!
About the writer:
Illimani Ferreira is a Brazilian writer currently living in the United States, more precisely in Coastal Oregon, where he is trying to figure out if, as a person who grew up in Brazil’s central savannas, he is a beach person or not.
Before moving to the United States, Illimani Ferreira had the chance to live in different countries such as Brazil, France, and Canada, and work in different fields, from Social Housing policy consulting to scrubbing toilet bowls at 3 am in a shelter for homeless persons living with the HIV. As an immigrant himself, Illimani cares deeply for matters related to immigrant rights.
Illimani’s writing is focused on a broad range of Science Fiction that can go from a grimdark noir to the zaniest of comedies. He likes to think that there is a bittersweet signature in everything he writes and, although his Latinx identity doesn’t steer his writing, it does illuminate his perspective. The same applies to the fact that he is a gay man.
by John | Jan 5, 2023 | Alex Ross, Contests, Our Winners, Pitching, Screenwriting Courses
We’re pausing our contests to focus on a big year for our founder and recent winners.
Like many people and businesses, 2022 was a challenging year for us, with unexpected staffing changes and resultant delivery challenges. This left us with a bigger backlog of work than we anticipated, but coming into 2023 we’re ready and refocused for an exciting year for us, our founder Alex Ross, and our winners. Here are a few headlines of what to expect in 2023!
We’re pausing our contests while we focus on Alex’s news and on delivering great results in the industry for our 2022 winners and existing clients. You can still submit for our “Anytime Entry” to get a 10-page Analysis of your script and a free submission of your redraft to the next relevant WriteMovies contest. We will work personally with any existing submissions to help them get the most out of their entry.
Our consultancy services are now delivered directly by Alex Ross – literally the world’s most qualified person in why films succeed and fail! They still also come with a free contest entry. Check out the many packages and prices available here!
We have big announcements to make about Alex’s work and publications in 2023, including book news which all screenwriters will want to know about – watch this space in the coming weeks!
We’ll also be working with our winning writers and clients behind the scenes – and will be pitching them to industry soon! We’ll introduce them and their scripts on our website and newsletters for you soon.
We’ll also be turning Alex’s, and our own, lectures and insights into snappy online videos and online courses!
We’re really looking forward to this year – hope you are too!
by John | Jun 10, 2022 | Pitching
With the deadline for the WriteMovies 2022 Writing Contest fast approaching on Sunday, and as we pitch all our winners to industry, we’re keeping a close eye on recent script sales from 2022.
Here’s our roundup of recent script sales from 2022 that caught our eye, and what they mean for you…
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by John | Oct 22, 2021 | Industry Diary
We’ve been keeping up with our work pitching our winners’ scripts lately, making sure that we’ve got everything ready as we reach out to industry. Here are a few of the things we’ve been up to…
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by WriteMovies | Sep 9, 2021 | Industry Diary, Industry News, Updates
Oh, and in other industry news, apparently there’s a Bond movie out this Fall as well. I’m guessing we can’t say “you heard it here first!” but anyway! In honor of it, this is the 007 Stage at Pinewood Studios photographed by our Director between meetings there.
It’s been an exciting time for our winners – as well as the new Success Stories we’ve already shared with you about exciting deals that Vanisha and Elizabeth have done thanks to their wins with us, we’ve got at least two more to come, which we’re itching to be able to reveal! Watch this space… but that’s just the start. We’ve got a lot of other entertainment industry discussions and activity to share with you this Fall. Here are other exciting discussions and outcomes we’ve been gearing up for this summer: (more…)
