Commissioning a Screenplay
“I am the Screenwriter;
the screenplay is mine. He is the Director. The film is his. I’ve said this
before: When I feel like being a Director, I write a novel”
John
Irving
Producing a Screenplay may be a
challenge in itself but getting it commissioned is a challenge in its own
right, it is a lengthy process with many legal and ethical obligations to take
into consideration.
So what is the commissioning process? Well with any idea for film or
television, it must go through a process where the initial screenplay is
dissected and analysed to see whether it is suitable for the specific genre
& broadcaster. Typically the screenplay will go through many different
individuals until it is word perfect for production, these individuals have
their own roles in the development process, one being the Development
Executive, whose job it is to find screenwriters who will provide screenplays,
they will also stay with the screenplay as it goes from expert to expert until
it is ready for production. The Script Editor is essentially the go between,
being in charge of liaising with the producer and the screenwriter who he/she
would work closely with and is very hands on when it comes to turning the
concept into a producible blueprint for a film/programme. The next player in
the commissioning process is a Script Reader, who is not necessarily as hands
on as the Script Editor or Writer, but role is just as important as they are
the ones who are specialised in analysing and critiquing the screenplay as it
is developed, and will also offer advice and recommendations on how it can be
developed further. This is the ideal route a writer will take for developing a
screenplay for both film and TV, but the issue with this as sometimes during
the process so many bits and pieces from the original concept are altered and
replaced so much that the screenwriters don’t feel like they have left their
mark on the final product so there are some well-known
individuals who write and direct their own material such as Quentin Tarantino
who has written and directed great films like KILL BILL (2003) and DJANGO
UNCHAINED (2012) also Robert Rodriguez has both written and directed successful
films such as MACHETE (2010) and the SPY KIDS (2001-Present) franchise. In
Hollywood It is not unusual for a writer to be more involved with the
production process than they would if it was a screenplay for TV broadcast as a
popular Quentin Tarantino statement is that when a writer writes a screenplay
for a film they write it as if it is a novel, something that can be published and
is enjoyable for the audience.
Typically the easiest way to get a screenplay
commissioned whether it be for film or television is to go through some sort of
middle man e.g. some sort of agent who will read the screenplay and if it has
potential, will link the writer up with the development executive (TV) or if it
is for film it can be different as each media production company has their own
rules and regulations for commissioning a script. Looking more in depth at the
television script commissioning process here in the UK, the BBC has its very
own ‘middle man’ in the form of the Writers
room, a service that lets anyone and everyone produce a screenplay and send
it directly into the BBC, this is cost free and is one of the most popular ways
people will seek commissioning as it also acts as a support service as they
publish real commissioned scripts that have broadcasted for people to read and
be inspired by.
When commissioning a script, there
are many legal & ethical concerns that must be considered, such as
copyright, plagiarism, slander and censorship. Copyright and Plagiarism are
both considered to be very similar, as legal action can be taken toward the
commissioner if it is found that the material broadcast breached someone’s
copyrighted material and can result in hefty fines and possible further legal
actions. Plagiarism is similar to copyright as it is essentially claiming that
you produced material that has in fact been done by someone else, it is when
you copy someone else’s thoughts / ideas illegitimately and can result in the
same consequences. Content written for television broadcasting must always be
appropriate for the type of broadcast and must adhere to the rules such as
writing with the watershed rule in mind, for instance if it contains
sex/violence then it must be commissioned post-watershed or if it is for
broadcast pre-watershed then the correct censorship must be taken, and extra
care must be taken to remove violent and sexual content.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
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