By: Ella Henke
If you’re a writer who’s still waiting on your first big break, chances are you’ve found that getting your script into the hands of the right people within the industry can feel impossible.
That’s where we come in. Shore Scripts was created to help bridge that all-intimidating gap, by connecting emerging writers with industry execs that can otherwise feel out of reach.
Most screenplay contests send out mass emails containing their winning submissions, without any context or further thought – that’s if they send your work out at all. Unsurprisingly, these emails largely go ignored by the industry.
Our Writer Development Program was designed to veer away from these common pitfalls.
In 2023 Shore Scripts is working with Coverfly to create real and tangible opportunities for our Feature and TV writers.
Let’s take a look at how the process works and what’s been happening so far this year.
So, how do we forge relationships with writers?
The first thing the Writer Development Team does once the contest cycle ends is to schedule a call with each one of our Winners and Finalists to learn more about them and their work.
In 2023 to date, 50 writers have benefitted from these opportunities to discuss their writing and career next steps. What separates us from other contests is the sheer number of writers we’re helping each year. We aim to help as many writers as we can in a single contest cycle.
What’s more, our one-on-one consultations allow us to create a tailor-made plan for each individual writer.
This plan centers around a few central questions –
-
- Are you still working on your script and looking for notes, or is it locked down?
-
- Do you have any additional material to support the project (one-page synopsis, tv bible, etc.)?
-
- Are you actively seeking representation, or do you already have an agent or manager?
-
- Are you looking to get your screenplay sold or optioned, get staffed in a writers’ room, or produce your own project?
Depending on the answers to such questions, our team then determines an action plan for how the script and writer can have the most chance of success.
This could look like giving you notes, helping to develop certain elements of your script that might currently be lacking, or jumping straight to getting your script in the right hands at the right time.
Whatever you decide is the right path in your screenwriting career, we are always guided by you. Shore Scripts never sends out a script to the industry without having first obtained permission from the writer(s) to do so. Moreover, we only send out scripts to those in the industry who the writer has selected after they have been reviewed and discussed.
Building these relationships is essential in learning who you are as a writer and what you want from your career, so that we can passionately sell you and your work to the most suited people on our Industry Roster.
Getting your script in the right hands
Our Industry Roster is made up of 300+ managers, agents, producers, production companies, and directors spanning the US, UK, Europe, Canada, and Australia. Just as we spend time getting to know our writers, we do the same with industry members.
This involves learning their likes and dislikes, the kinds of projects they might already have in development, the kinds of budgetary or geographic restrictions they have – anything that narrows down the type of project or writer they’re excited to hear more about.
The Writer Development Tesm carefully curates the screenplays we send to our Oscar, Golden Globe, EMMY, and BAFTA-winning Industry Roster, ensuring that the people reading your work are the ones who are most interested in the stories you tell.
Being plugged into our roster’s individual needs and matching our writers’ scripts to them is what makes us stand out from the crowd.
So, who’s on our Roster?
Here are just a few of the companies on our Roster reading this year’s best scripts:
- Verve
- Bellevue Productions
- Cinetic Media
- Drama Republic
- Epicenter
- FilmNation
- Good Fear Films
- LBI Entertainment
- Sugar 23
- The Gotham Group
