PROTECT YOUR BRAINCHILDREN (the only true © is the vault in your head)

[Haylar Garcia]

Well, this one has been a long time coming.

It's an ugly formula that reads something like: Inide + Mass Exposure X validation = GRIN.

 

It's a youtube universe, no doubt about that and the ability to  "market" yourself is a welcome and important part of the way we as artists take steps out into the world these days.

 

however, it seems to me that the word "Market" has lost its own definition in the process.

 

The reason I am writing this is beacuse a friend of mine just posted a teaser trailer on youtube which when i saw it, I imidiately realized just might be one of those concepts that is timely, original, but still true enough to the genre that it could be a very viable film, and even a break out money maker if the right set of circumstances were to evolve.

 

Then i thought; Hey,  If I'm thinking this, how many others are thinking this?

 

Then the fact that he had posted it on youtube for the world to steal, hit me with with a state of panic on his behalf.

 

The point being the word Market, really refers to well... THE MARKET...!!!

 

As creatives, our ideas are what makes us each individually viable in the market, and sometimes we are so quick to get our share of youtube fame, that we do not realize that we are effectively splattering our own valuable secret recipes into a cannibalistic market of drooling competitors.

 

Think about it; there is a reason Coke has protected the ingredients of its trade dominating product for so many years.

 

PEOPLE!!! when you have a good idea! KEEP IT TO YOURSELF, develop it, search out trusted and key individuals who can help you get  it going inthe right direction, DO NOT sacrifice snippets of genius to the youtube gods.

 

YOU CANNOT COPYRIGHT A CONCEPT!!!!

AND YOU CAN EASILY GET YOURSELF A

SUPERMAX GRADE SANS-LUBE SCREWING,

WITH NOT SO MUCH AS  A HALF-CIGARETTE IN RETURN.

 

thoughts anyone?

 

[W.C. Whitney]

Good advice Haylar.

    What a bummer it would be to get ripped off just because you were excited to share something so special with others.

  Bill

[Jim Brennan]

It's a sad reality, and trying to balance your creative energy with prudence is an awkward dance.

 

But the litmus test is really pretty simple.  If it's something that you can develop well enough to put into a treatment, do so.  Then Copyright it.  Then discuss it with some trusted friends.

 

If you haven't thought it through well enough to develop it to that extent, then realize that it's fair game for anyone who you share it with.

 

It's hard when you are in a group of creative people and the juices start to flow.  That's a part of who we are and what we do.  If you can accept that you are giving that stuff away, then you are better off.

 

My last thought is, although there are the occasional "brilliant concepts" that get thrown around, the way you are assessed creatively has more to do with execution than concept.  

[Vid Payne]

I know how it is to want recognition, to be noticed. As my first real story began to evolve, I couldn't wait to share it. And i did, with anyone who would read it. The same with music. It's not the same as it was when you had a master "tape" in your back pocket. There is magic dust we now blow to the wind that might rain glitter in China. The prettier it is, the more we want to show it off. We all need these reminders now and then.

[Alan August]

There are two kinds of spec scripts that sell. One, those that are character-driven and have a very strong and unique writer's voice. Two, those that have high concepts, well-executed. 

I think it's a much easier road if you can write the first kind (unique voice, character-driven) because a unique writer's voice--say, Diablo Cody or Jared and Jerusha Hess--is inimitable.  You cannot steal it.  Take the logline for Napolean Dynamite:

"A listless and alienated teenager decides to help his new friend win the class presidency in their small western high school, while he must deal with his bizarre family life back home."

Nobody is going to hear that and want to write it because it's not a high-concept film.  What makes it interesting is the unique vision that the writer brings to it.

But what if you're not the kind of writer that likes to write low-concept, character-driven films? What if you love writing high-concept, plot-driven films?  Then, I think you have to guard your work.

What if this logline had leaked out before the writers could get it produced:

"Three unemployed parapsychology professors set up shop as a unique ghost removal service."

Or this one?

"Two men from a top-secret government agency must try to save the world after aliens threaten to blow it up."

The high-concepts for Ghostbusters and Men In Black could have easily been stolen and, yes, it stinks.  No, the characters or execution won't bet the same as yours, but if the film's energy comes from its concept and the concept is taken, no one is going to want to make another ghost-removal movie or another secrect-agency-takes-on-aliens movie for a long time, and your once-fresh script will be dead in the water.

I have one high concept script that I have meticulously labored over for over four years and it would tear me apart if it were stolen.  It's a terrible problem trying to find trustworthy sources to send it to.  But as a new writer, I feel like I have to take calculated risks and hope for the best.

Above all, I think the thing to do is to keep writing.  No writer should bank an entire career on one or two high-concept scripts.  It is your body of work overall that matters and that will get you work.

[Karen Hemmerle]

Ha! Diablo Cody.

You hear it every week. Someone has a "genius idea; no one else has ever thought of this; it's gonna be EPIC!!!!". So they shoot a trailer and put it on YouTube, because "that's how feature films get financing". Uh-huh. Genius.

[Alan August]

Yes, Diablo Cody. She has a unique voice.

[Jim Brennan]

I guess the question you have to ask yourself (as always) is 'why?"

 

Why are you sharing it?  Or  Why are you sharing it now?

 

If it's for back-slapping and fuzzy warm feelings for your self, you need to realize this business doesn't offer that very much.  So if you need that, you might want to think about something else as a career anyway.

 

If it's to get feedback, you need to realize that most people aren't really qualified to give you something both intelligent and applicable. 

 

If it's because you want to look cool...well, I don't really know how to addresss that.

 

I've never been the paranoid type.  I'm happy to talk about most of my ideas in the right group of people.  Mostly because I have a lot, and most of them will never get pursued anyway.  There just isn't time.  Also because most ideas are not worth much without proper execution.  There are some good examples of that in Alan's post.

Even so, there's a couple of ideas that I don't really talk to anyone about except for my wife.  That's because they are literally like no other storyline that I have ever seen.  At some point those will get hammered out enough to be considered a "story", and then they will get copyrighted.  

 

But odds are they aren't as good as I think they are anyway.

[Haylar Garcia]

jim said:  "Also because most ideas are not worth much without proper execution."

 

Which is my point exactly, putting a cutting edge or really interesting/marketable concept out there in trailer, or short film, or screenplay contest form, might just  be planting the seed for someone who has the resources to execute it properly.

 

I'm just saying: no matter what kind of film/property you are creating,   it's very competitive in the market that gets you paid, so posting your arsenal online might not be the winning strategy.

 

again just my two cents-

 

 

[Alan August]

So Haylar, what do you think the best strategy is for new writers with high concept material? Avoid all contests? Send query letters to reputable agents?

[Haylar Garcia]

The screenwriting industry existed long before the internet and youtube,

the Hollywood lock is not so hard to pick.

 

I answer all of these kinds of Q's in my seminar every year, going to do it again I think in

June.

 

The fact is; there is no Golden Ticket Charlie... Just Golden Bread Crumbs.

 

 

[Jim Brennan]

I've never heard of anyone getting a major break from a contest, but I imagine that it's possible.  Of course, you are showing a bunch of people you don't know your work.  Not sure how I feel about that cost/benefit ratio.

 

I have been to Haylar's seminar both times he has done it, and I can honestly say that nearly all of the opportunities I have had are a direct result of what I learned there.  Yes, you have to be a really good writer, but there is even more than that to learn.  Hearing the info from a guy who is actually going through the process RIGHT NOW is extremely valuable.

 

Like everything else in life, nothing is guaranteed.  But the information I got there definitely opened doors for me.  Best money I have ever invested in my career (and I've invested ALOT).  I'd go again in a heartbeat if he offers it again.

[Ken Hendricks]

Haylar, would your "friend" be anyone that I might know?