Judgement Day

So I found out yesterday that I didn't move forward in the Amazon screenwriting contest. I told you I'd share whether I did advance or not. It's never fun finding out your script was not one of the chosen ones. But you never know why one script gets chosen over another. It's possible the other ones were better, it's possible the readers just liked these for who knows what reason. All I know is I wasn't chosen. But this whole business is so subjective.

I'll never forget the time I was listening to the writer of The English Patient on KCRW. It was right after he won the Academy Award for writing for that movie. And he was telling a story about how the day after he won the award, he's in England where I think he's from, and he opens the paper and reads on the front of it and the headlines are something like, "England viewers choose The English Patient as the worst movie ever" or some horribly mean thing about his writing. And that's when I told myself, I will never again worry about if I can't please everyone with my writing. There's just no possible way you can. I mean, here's this Academy Award winner, and the whole country of England hated his film! Of course, as a writer, you need to have your trusted critics, like other strong writers who you respect, get their opinion. But no matter who you are, someone is not going to like your film. It just is how it's going to be. If an Academy Award winner is going to be panned by the whole country of England, what chance do we stand? All you can do is make your script the best it can be, and go from there.

Even another story of a talented writer friend of mine, who's had a few scripts sold and produced, before he got an agent, one agent told him that his first script was the worst thing she's ever read and there was nothing funny about it at all. He's a comedy writer, mind you. My friend's writing partner was ready to give up on their writing career, but my friend wouldn't let him. Then about a week later, a lawyer got their script around town and everyone liked it and they had a career from that point on. And I've read the script and it's very funny and very well written. So it goes to show, you just never know who's going to get your script. But you can't give up. You just have to keep writing, keep getting better, and keep getting it out there until that one person who believes in you and your writing finds you.

So yes it's a bummer my script didn't go far in this Amazon contest, but I've had enough really strong comments and feedback on it, from writers I really admire, and that's what I have to trust.

Then on a side note, the indie producer I've been working with, called me tonight to tell me she's ready to get back to finishing up the script I've been rewriting for her. She's hoping to get it produced in 2012. So that's exciting! So we're going to finish the rewrite next week and hopefully before the New Year is over. So that would be exciting.

And me and this other indie producer are meeting with the writer on Monday for the horror thriller we are hoping to produce. This will be the first time we have met her in person, so this is exciting.

So I could have an indie movie in production, producing my first film, and another script of mine produced by a huge studio! So even though the people of Amazon contest did not think I was worthy, there are plenty of other exciting opportunities in the works. That's what I have to remember. No matter what happens with some scripts, others are doing really well. And that's got to mean something.