John August

WGA

The Contract between Writers and Readers

Episode - 132

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Genres, QandA, Scriptnotes, Three Page Challenge, Transcribed, WGA, Words on the page

John and Craig look at the implicit contract made between screenwriters and readers — and ultimately, movies and their audience. That’s a natural introduction to our Three Page Challenge and the three new entries we look at this week.

Also: Late Payments suck. You shouldn’t tolerate it, and neither should your agents.

There are still a limited number of tickets available for the great Scriptnotes/Nerdist Writers Panel crossover live show on April 13th. You can find a link in the show notes.

Links:

* Get your tickets now for the [Scriptnotes/Nerdist Live Crossover episode](https://www.nerdmeltla.com/tickets2/index.php?event_id=791/) on April 13th at Nerdmelt, with proceeds benefiting [826LA](https://826la.org/)
* Patti Lupone [interrupted](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WruzPfJ9Rys)
* Film Independent’s [Directors Close-Up series](http://www.filmindependent.org/event/directors-close-up-2014/#.UwuxjkJdVxo)
* [Chicago Fire](http://www.nbc.com/chicago-fire) and [Chicago P.D.](http://www.nbc.com/chicago-pd)
* Three Pages by [Blake Armstrong](http://johnaugust.com/Assets/BlakeArmstrong.pdf)
* Three Pages by [Sandra Lee Slotboom](http://johnaugust.com/Assets/SandraLeeSlotboom.pdf)
* Three Pages by [James Stubenrauch](http://johnaugust.com/Assets/JamesStubenrauch.pdf)
* [How to submit your Three Pages](http://johnaugust.com/threepage), and [Stuart’s post on lessons learned from the early batches](http://johnaugust.com/2012/learning-from-the-three-page-challenge)
* The [XStat syringe](http://www.revmedx.com/#!xstat-dressing/c2500) by RevMedx
* [Threes!](https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/threes!/id779157948?mt=8) on the App Store
* [Outro](http://johnaugust.com/2013/scriptnotes-the-outros) by Scriptnotes listener Betty Spinks

You can download the episode here: [AAC](http://traffic.libsyn.com/scriptnotes/scriptnotes_ep_132.m4a) | [mp3](http://traffic.libsyn.com/scriptnotes/scriptnotes_ep_132.mp3).

**UPDATE** 2-27-14: The transcript of this episode can be found [here](http://johnaugust.com/2014/scriptnotes-ep-132-the-contract-between-writers-and-readers-transcript).

The One with the Guys from Final Draft

Apps, Directors, QandA, Scriptnotes, Software, Transcribed, WGA

The makers of Final Draft pay us a visit to clear up John and Craig’s misconceptions of, well, everything. It’s double the umbrage for your money.

Then we discuss Quentin Tarantino’s leaked script, the upcoming WGA negotiations, and how to make it clear you’re attached to direct your spec.

Links:

You can download the episode here: AAC | mp3.

UPDATE 2-6-14: The transcript of this episode can be found here.

Getting paid on time

WGA

Under the terms of the WGA minimum basic agreement, studios are required to pay screenwriters within seven days after delivery of a script (or other contracted literary material). In practice, however, studios often drag their feet. It can take months to get paid.

Today, the WGAw launched a [new initiative](http://click.email.wgaw.org/cp/onlinePreview.php?t=NDMzOHwyODIzNnxqb2huYXVndXN0QGdtYWlsLmNvbXw4MjYxNDJ8MjA5NjkxNTAwfDExMTc4NTU=&n=ghyHTi0oIvg-1117855) aimed at getting writers paid on time by focusing on talent agents.

Under the new system —

> [Agents will] voluntarily provide notice to the Guild when screenwriters deliver their literary material to the Company. Agents will be able to choose among three methods to keep the Guild informed. An agent may copy the Guild on invoices, complete a Script Delivery Notice form that is available on the Guild’s website or email the Guild at a dedicated email address.

> Once the Guild has received delivery information from an agent, the Guild will track whether the writer has been paid on time. If the agency confirms that payment was made, no further action will be taken. If payment is late, a Guild representative will contact the Company to demand the payment, including accrued interest.

We’ll see how it works in practice.

Agencies have a vested interested in getting their clients paid; ten percent of that money is theirs. But individual agents are often reluctant to complain too much about late payment because of ongoing relationships. Transferring the burden of where’s-the-money calls to the WGA may take the pressure off and get writers paid sooner.

A second possible boon: better data. By aggregating payment data, writers can get a better sense of which studios are systematically late.

As before, any WGA writer facing late pay can always contact the [Late Pay department](http://www.wga.org/ContactUs/LatePayContactUs.asp).

Egoless Screenwriting

Film Industry, News, Psych 101, Scriptnotes, Transcribed, WGA

It’s a week of big egos as Craig and John take a look at when (or whether) filmmakers will be able to pull a Beyoncé and surprise-release a feature film, and what Mrs. Carter’s tussle with Amazon and Target means for the future of retail DVD.

Then we dust off an old blog post on “egoless programming” and find it has a lot to recommend for screenwriters. Finally, we look at the lawsuit over The Expendables because it’s crazy town.

Links:

* [BEYONCÉ by Beyoncé](https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/beyonce/id780330041) on iTunes
* [The Ten Commandments of Egoless Programming](http://www.codinghorror.com/blog/2006/05/the-ten-commandments-of-egoless-programming.html)
* The Hollywood Reporter on [The Expendables lawsuit](http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/expendables-writers-guild-tribunal-evolves-667599)
* Lego [Mindstorms](http://www.lego.com/en-us/mindstorms/?domainredir=mindstorms.lego.com) and [Crazy Action Contraptions](http://www.amazon.com/dp/1591747694/?tag=johnaugustcom-20)
* [European green](http://carsihaveseen.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/IMG_0175.jpg)
* [her](http://www.herthemovie.com/#/home) is in theaters now
* A bad her review in [The Village Voice](http://www.villagevoice.com/2013-12-18/film/her-movie-review/) and the [very few other bad reviews](http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/her/reviews/?sort=rotten) on Rotten Tomatoes
* [Outro](http://johnaugust.com/2013/scriptnotes-the-outros) by Scriptnotes listener Matthew Chilelli

You can download the episode here: [AAC](http://traffic.libsyn.com/scriptnotes/scriptnotes_ep_125.m4a) | [mp3](http://traffic.libsyn.com/scriptnotes/scriptnotes_ep_125.mp3).

**UPDATE** 1-10-14: The transcript of this episode can be found [here](http://johnaugust.com/2014/scriptnotes-ep-125-egoless-screenwriting-transcript).