An excerpt from my script review for The Water Man which will be available 05/24/21:
1.) Marketability of the Idea
Blood List. Hit List.
Gaining notoriety via one of these lists is a good way to go.
Now, unfortunately it still requires having some sort of representation with industry connections as the voters tend to be people involved in the production process.
(Remember my slogan for the Black List…scripts everyone wants made but nobody wants to make!)
What I want to talk about is where we go post-Covid…
Think of some of the stuff we’re seeing on streaming services, on television, and maybe even in theaters.
We’re not exactly scraping the bottom of the barrel, but we’re close with projects that were either dead or dying being greenlit in favor of cashing in on something.
This is really in your favor. The closer Hollywood comes to a full restart, the more companies are going to need projects because there’s nothing left.
So what should you focus on?
Contained. Horror. Thriller.
I know, I know, we fucking harp on that a lot, but think about who we’ve become as a society over this past year.
Better yet, think of the money being spent on those tent-pole summer blockbusters on Covid testing and the like for a massive operation.
Most production companies don’t have it, and even if they do, will probably shy away from it in hopes of mitigating their risk over several small to medium projects instead of a single big one.
Have a period piece with a gigantic cast and expensive locations? File it away for later.
That action movie with so many fast cars and explosions Michael Bay will be jealous? Shelve it for now.
If you don’t want to write in horror, take a detour into sci-fi.
Good stories work in contained environments, you just need to make a few technique changes and challenge yourself.
Now’s arguably the best chance you’re going to get, so get to writing if you haven’t already!
(I know Reals has.)
The Water Man Box Office Stats
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