SELL A SCREENPLAY ONLINE PROFESSIONAL
To give you an idea of how much a professional screenwriter can get paid, take a look at the following figures:
That’s why established screenwriters, who have already written produced screenplays and worked with the major studios, get paid even more money. So the studios are taking a risk when they buy the screenplay-because they are also hiring an unknown writer to work with. Now, this is a huge sale and the first time writer is still an unknown commodity to the film studios at this point. Here you can get a general idea of how a screenwriter might sell a spec screenplay.
Paramount puts in a bid to buy the script for $150,000.Īnd finally, Paramount steps in and bids for $550,000. Warner Bros wants to purchase the screenplay for $100,000. Maybe we should put in a bid to buy this screenplay too. And their thought process will go something like this: Warner Bros wants to buy this script? Ergo this screenplay must be incredible. The other studios will suddenly take interest. The screenplay agent will put the word out to the other studios that Warner Bros wants to buy it. Now, let’s say that a big studio like Warner Bros wants to buy a first time writers screenplay. The screenplay agent will get in touch with studios, producers and anyone else who might be interested in purchasing the screenplay. The screenwriter must be represented by a good, competent screenplay agent who is capable of starting a bidding war. So how does a writer sell a spec screenplay for high six figures? It’s quite simple. There have been quite a few first time screenwriters who have sold screenplays for high six figures to low seven figures-and many more screenwriters who have sold screenplays for less than this. Now, this minimum rate doesn’t mean a writer can’t sell their screenplay for a lot more money. This is taken from the WGA website.Īs you can see, you will be paid a certain rate, known as scale. To give you an idea of the breakdown, check out the image below. And under the terms and agreements of the WGA, a professional screenwriter is guaranteed a minimum wage.
Now, once you sell your screenplay you automatically become a professional screenwriter. The WGA is effectively a union that works to deliver better terms and pay rates for professional writers. If a screenwriter sells their screenplay then it is mandatory for them to join the Writer’s Guild of America (WGA).
So, while a first time writer might not get paid in the millions of dollars for their first original screenplay, the good news is that they won’t get paid less than… approximately US $50,000. Without money we can’t pay the bills, put a roof over our head or afford a nice laptop and a cup of coffee at our local Starbucks (the essentials for any working screenwriter). Is your head swimming with confusion yet? A lot of screenwriter’s have this question and, let’s face it, money is an important issue in anyone’s life. How much a screenwriter can sell their screenplay for depends on several factors-primarily whether the screenplay they are writing is an original spec screenplay, an original non-spec screenplay, a non-original screenplay, a treatment, a first draft or a complete package. But you can kind of get a rough estimate. The answer to this question is not so straight forward.
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