How to become a script reader
As we’ve discussed before, script readers play a pivotal role in the script acquisition and development process. On the front end (acquisition), they act as surrogate ‘gatekeepers,’ their coverage often a big role in determining if a script goes immediately into the recycle bin or moves up the food chain. During development, coverage can influence the way studio execs think about a script.
But one thing I haven’t discussed about the job of being a script reader is that it can be an excellent way to augment one’s learning re the craft of screenwriting. Simply by reading, analyzing, and commenting on a ton of scripts, you can have a Gestalt experience where you digest almost subconsciously key screenwriting elements such as structure, pace, transitions, and so on.
Yesterday fellow blogger and GITS friend The Bitter Script Reader answered a few reader questions on the subject of being a script reader:
What is the best company to work for as far as being able to get your foot in the door for script reading. I’m willing to take freelance, etc…
As far as I know there aren’t any companies that are in the business of hiring readers who don’t have any experience elsewhere. My experience is that you don’t start as a reader — you work your way up to being one. I’ve covered my path to becoming a reader in this post. Most of the readers I know have similar stories. If you really want to be a reader, expect to start out as a PA or Development Assistant first.
So I clicked through to learn how The Bitter Script Reader became… you know… The Bitter Script Reader:
As with every job in L.A., there are about a hundred different paths to getting to be a reader. My personal road was as follows: I came out to L.A. with few connections, but eventually got a hold of the UTA Job List through an alumni connection. (Nowadays, you can get it through Temp X at http://tempdiaries.com.) Through there I got an internship with a boutique management agency. Basically, I spent two days a week hanging out in the office answering phones and reading from the slush pile. These were looooong days because the job was incredibly boring. The phone seemed to rarely ring and the slush submissions were generally pretty weak. “Coverage” consisted of a grid, and four blank lines where we were expected to handwrite our opinion of the script in question. Most of what I read was pretty weak, and while my analytical skills weren’t stretched, it at least got me used to the idea that 90% of the scripts out there are crap. Plus, I made a friend there, but more on that later…
Key piece of info, folks, re the UTA Job List if you’re interested in moving to L.A. and getting a job as an assistant, an internship, etc — so check out that website.
You can read the rest of TBSR’s bio, but let me highlight one more thing from the post:
So basically, the best advice I can offer is to do whatever you can to get close to the people who work in development. It might take a while, so make sure you’re prepared when the time comes to take advantage of that connection. It might suck to endure an internship or two, but often it makes it a lot easier to job hunt when you’ve got something like that on your resume — especially if you’re straight out of college. Also, internships are great for making long-term connections. A guy I met at my first internship is a guy who four years later got me hired reading for the company where he was now assistant to the Chairman of a production company that I’ve served for almost two and a half years.
Absolutely true. Some of the assistants you meet in L.A. today are going to be running the film and TV business 10, 15, 20 years from now — so keep those relationships alive.
Re script reading: Even if you don’t pursue it as a gig, you should be reading scripts. A lot of them. That’s one-third of one of the most important screenwriting mantras I know:
Read scripts.
Watch movies.
Write pages.
BTW, if you haven’t bookmarked The Bitter Script Reader’s blog, you should. Some great info there in its daily posts.
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