A friend showed a few of my scripts to an agent friend of hers, including one written with a partner. I spoke with the agent on the phone; he’s seems very excited about the co-written script, and lukewarm on the others. He wants to meet with the both of us, but before that meeting, he asked me to send him “absolutely everything [you’ve] ever written.”
I’m sure he doesn’t mean it literally; I’m not going to send him my fifth grade book report. But I’ve already sent him my top-tier stuff. (Obviously; when my friend said she could send my scripts, I sent my absolute best work.) I’m not sure why exactly he’s asking to read “everything.” Is he hoping there might be other good scripts? Does he want to see if I had good ideas that were poorly executed (definitely true)? Does he want to see short films?
It’s such a weird request, and I wasn’t prepared for what to give him.
— Matt Price
Los Angeles, CA
He may be asking for more material because he’s worried you only have one script in you. Agents want clients who write. A lot. A big stack of scripts shows you have a work ethic.
But your first instinct is correct: you’re much better off showing him a few great things than a lot of mediocre ones.
An exception might be non-screenplay writing; if you have a great play or funny short story, put it in the pile. A lot of aspiring screenwriters are terrible writers who’ve seen a lot of movies. Showing actual facility with words might distinguish you.
Once you’ve sent him your best stuff, you’re done. You may have older writing in the trunk that was pretty good when you wrote it — it may have been the best thing you’d ever written back then — but it’s not who you are now.
I’ve buried the script that got me an agent. It’s not terrible or embarrassing, but I’ve gotten a lot better since 1994.