“How Do I Get An Agent?”
Chad Gervitz writes a column at Script magazine. Lately he has been tackling the question on all your minds with these two articles:
How Do I Get an Agent — Part 1
How Do I Get an Agent — Part 2
Then he responded to several follow up questions with this column.
All are very much worth reading. In his last article, Gervitz notes something important about how you go about targeting agents or managers:
At least do yourself the favor of contacting the right strangers.
Your screenplay is about very specific incidents in very specific places. And just as specific producers work on specific types of material, so do certain agents. So think about writers or producers who have made similar movies, and find out who represents them. Often, those agents are familiar with the worlds of foreign films, indie films, international co-pros, etc.
Now, when I say “similar movies,” I do NOT mean big, famous blockbusters with similar themes or stories. I mean movies that are similar in their budget, production model, distribution, etc.
Is your film a broad commercial blockbuster, like Transformers or Twilight? Or is your movie a low-budget film, set in a foreign locale, like say, Maria Full of Grace or Amreeka? If so, find out what agent, or producer, put together the financing and creative team for those particular movies. That’s whom you want to contact.
Be honest with yourself about the film’s business model and commercial potential.
If you’re not, you’re handicapping your chances of finding partners and/or selling it. Lena has shared with me — in general terms — the area of her script (I promised not to reveal it here) … and I would say it’s not a particularly commercial idea.
This is NOT a criticism of the idea; it’s just looking at it objectively and realistically. It’s not Iron Man or Pirates of the Caribbean, so selling this movie will require people who understand these specific types of films and filmmaking — and these people are NOT the same people who make Iron Man and Pirates.
Let’s say your movie is a low-budget film about South Africa (I know it’s not, but go with me). While it’s not a science-fiction story, it might play with social commentary similar to Neill Blomkamp’s District 9, which was another low-budget South African film. Does your screenplay deal with issues confronting Palestinian families and/or Middle Eastern immigrants? Perhaps you could reach out to Cherien Dabis, who clearly has experience making these types of film … as do her agents, just like Neill Blomkamp’s.
You can often track down these people, or their representation, through the Directors Guild or the Writers Guild, which have databases allowing you to find artists’ representation. (You can also try WhoRepresents.com or IMDBPro, which are subscription services.)
Cherien Dabis, for example, is represented at WME. So perhaps her agent is well-connected to circles who would be interested in your low-budget Palestinian family movie. Some agencies even have special departments, like WME’s William Morris Independent and UTA’s Independent Film Group, that deal specifically with these kinds of movies.
Looking at your film this way — through a “business” lens — is more important than looking at it through a “creative” lens.
…Because while you may think your movie has much in common creatively, spiritually, and narratively with high-profile films like North Country or Miracle at St. Anna, or even a TV movie like Their Eyes Were Watching God, these movies — and their producers — get made in totally different ways, with very different processes, than low or mid-budget indie films.
This doesn’t mean your film isn’t a great idea and won’t be successful … you just have to understand what it is — then contact the agents and producers who play in that world.
Exactly the advice I give. Find movies that are similar in genre, tone, and scope (read: budget), make a list of the filmmakers involved, then research who their reps are. That group should be your first area of focus because at least you know they have some familiarity with and perhaps even passion for the same type of movie as you have written, therefore — hopefully — will be more likely to consider reading your script.
Note: If the movie they produced bombed commercially or was panned critically, that will almost assuredly not help your cause. Probably best to try some other filmmakers’ reps attached to projects that did well.
The most fundamentally important aspect of the whole seeking representation process is this: Write a great script. What does “great” mean? Here’s how Gervitz puts it: “…by ‘great,’ I don’t mean ‘pretty good,’ I mean ‘THE GREATEST SCREENPLAY ANYONE HAS EVER READ.’”
After a quarter-century in this business, I still believe this as an unalterable truth: If you write a great script, it will find a buyer.
About Chad Gervitz: Chad Gervich is a television producer, bestselling author, and award-winning playwright. As a writer and producer, Chad has written, developed, and produced projects (both scripted and reality) for ABC, FOX, Warner Brothers, Endemol, E!, Style, Fox TV Studios, CBS Studios, Weller/Grossman Productions, the Weinstein Company, TruTV, and Fox Reality Channel. He previously spent five years as an executive with the Littlefield Company, former NBC president Warren Littlefield’s production company, developing shows for NBC, ABC, CBS, UPN, and the WB. As an author, Chad’s TV-writing handbook,Small Screen, Big Picture: A Writers Guide to the TV Business, debuted in November, 2008, and has become a fixture in classes and training programs at CBS, NBC, NATPE, the WGA, and USC. Chad is a regular contributor to Daily Variety and Writers Digest, as well as several other nationally available books and magazines. He currently has a development deal with 20th Century Fox.