As the so-called “gatekeepers,” story analysts are often seen as a malevolent force preventing the writer’s work from passing into the more friendly hands of the executive or producer. This is far from true. The following will help you separate fact from fiction.
Myth #1: Readers want or are paid to say “no.”
Fact: While executives are expected to champion only those screenplays that are a perfect match for the company’s commercial and critical goals, readers are under no such political pressure. Readers are expected to give all good scripts a “recommend” or “consider,” because even if the script is not a good fit for that company, it may still be a worthy writing sample.
Myth #2: If a reader says “no” your script is dead.
Fact: There are plenty of scripts that were bought despite a “pass” from the reader. This may be because the genre was one the company was looking for; because an actor or other “element” attached appealed to the studio; or because the executive liked the script despite the coverage.
Coverage is not a final stamp of approval or disapproval. Coverage is mainly used as a guide for the executive in talking with the agent or producer who submitted the material. It is also a record-keeping device, to help executives keep track of scripts they’ve received as well as good writers for future assignments.
Myth #3: Readers only read the first 10 (or 20) pages of a script, and if we don’t like it, we stop reading.
Fact: Executives may only read the beginning of a script, but it is the story analyst’s job to write a synopsis of the entire screenplay. This helps the writer, since we can explain in our comments that while a script has a flawed beginning, we are recommending it because the rest of the story works. A weak start can harm you, but not in the eyes of a reader.
Myth #4: Readers only read the dialogue.
Fact: To be honest, this one has some basis in truth. For romantic comedies, character dramas, and other dialogue-heavy genres, it is possible to get a sense of a story by reading mainly the dialogue. In any genre, long chunks of description are the sign of an amateur writer and will often be skimmed.
Myth #5: Readers are all inexperienced assistants or unpaid interns.
Fact: While assistants and interns often do read scripts as part of their jobs, only at the smallest companies would they be the sole readers. All major production companies, producers, and studios have staffs of readers who have been hired because of their skills as story analysts. Many are writers themselves, and most are film school graduates.
Myth #6: Readers are failed writers and resent other writers.
Fact: As mentioned above, it is true that many readers are writers. But this puts us on the side of the writer. We recognize the effort it takes to craft a story well. Because we have nothing to lose, we are more likely to take the writer’s side and plug a small story or point out a promising talent from an unknown agency.
Myth #7: Readers are jaded and expect to hate the script before we even start it.
Fact: Although the majority of scripts that readers cover are “passes,” hope still springs eternal in the heart of a story analyst with each new submission. This is partly because the pay for readers is so low that great scripts are the only perk readers get. When a script is well-written and entertaining, reading it is like being paid to watch a good movie.
Myth #8: Readers steal ideas from the scripts they read.
Fact: I have never heard of this happening, and this is for a few simple reasons. First of all, if a reader passes on a script in order to steal the idea, that script is probably being submitted to 20 or 30 other companies, one of which might buy it. Secondly, it would be foolish for a reader to steal an idea for a script they’ve covered, since the coverage report presents a clear paper trail. Thirdly, as discussed earlier, readers are educated professionals who respect other writers and would be foolish to risk both their job as a reader and their career as a writer by setting themselves and the company they work for up for a lawsuit. Finally, a reader learns early on that there are only a limited number of ideas. You may think your idea is original, but chances are there are a half dozen scripts being circulated right now with the same premise. It is the execution that makes or breaks a script.
Myth #9: Readers are pawns of the studios and only recommend commercial scripts.
Myth #10: Readers are intellectual snobs and only recommend small, weird, obscure stories.
Fact: Readers only recommend good scripts. A good script has complex characters, an original and compelling plot, and smart, credible dialogue. The screenplay may be a gross-out teen comedy or it may be a thoughtful coming-of-age film. It may be a big-budget science fiction blockbuster or it may be an avant-garde period piece. It doesn’t matter. A good script is a good script, and a good script almost always ends up as a movie eventually.
When a screenplay contains any merit, from an imaginative concept to lyrical writing, the reader is the first person to champion it. Reading imaginative, entertaining, moving scripts that we feel would make great films can make our job seem like the best job in the world.
