Exclusive Q&A: Story Analyst D.C. Mar (Part 3)
Another response from DC Mar, longtime script reader and story analyst to a Q&A; she did with me:
* How many scripts do you read/provide coverage on each week and for what type of companies?
When I was reading full-time for several companies at a time, I would read 2–3 three scripts per DAY with 9 am, noon and 4:30 pm deadlines or one book per day with either a 9 am overnight deadline or 4:30 pm next day deadline or day after next “regular” deadline. The volume of material and deadlines were dependent on the company. I was a full-time senior reader at New Regency for 12 years and their deadlines were the most stringent and but fairly typical at a big production house. Scripts and often books were expected on an overnight basis, meaning the coverage had to be emailed in by 9 am. Deadlines at NR got a bit looser in the last few years I was them, mostly due to budget cuts, and then we readers were expected to get our two-three script coverage or one book in by a “next day” deadline, which is 4:30 pm.
On average, I read 10–14 scripts a week for New Regency along with about 1 or 2 scripts or books that same week for other companies, which included APG when that company was still around and Radiant Prods., which is Wolfgang Petersen’s production company. So the type of companies I provided coverage for included big production companies like New Regency with lots of submissions coming in each day from top agents, studios, actors, directors and producers and other prodcos looking for a co-financing partner), management/production companies like AMG, which folded into The Firm, which had submissions coming in from or for their talent roster needing coverage on whether these projects would be appropriate for their clients. I also read for smaller production companies like AMG’s production arm, APG, which mostly had me provide coverage on their projects in development, and talent based production companies like Wolfgang Petersen’s and Katherine Bigelow’s needing coverage on projects he or she might produce and/or direct and also story notes on their projects already in development.
Currently, I read for The Weinstein Company and occasionally for a script writer service called Script Shark, both of which require a different mindset from the mainstream, studio-affiliated entities I’ve typically provided coverage for in the past. An important thing to keep in mind when reading for various entities is not what you personally like but what is right for that particular company/executives’ tastes and philosophy. TWC looks for projects that will not only earn money at the box office but also quality “filmmakers’ films” that have awards potential. But they also scout for Dimension Films, which is lower budget mainstream with an eye towards the younger demographics and thus a preference for high concept horror. Readers need to understand market conditions and trends and the specific tastes of the company for which they’re providing coverage. The insights a reader must cultivate when reading for different entities is good practice for the screenwriter also. If your low budget art house script lands at a mainstream oriented production house like New Regency, the script will likely get passed on no matter how great the writing is because it’s just not the right marriage.
10–14 scripts per week. Let that sink in. Imagine your screenplay is one of that group. How can you make your script stand out from all the rest? What can you write on P.1 that will make an exhausted and cynical script reader immediately get hooked into your story? How can you structure each scene, each page so the reader will want to keep reading until they get to FADE OUT?