What Makes A Screenplay Marketable? by Wendy Kram
Film Courage: What does writing a marketable screenplay mean?
Wendy Kram, Consultant for screenwriters, directors, production companies:Great question, probably one of my favorite questions. I often say that you can have a great idea, super-high concept (I think I referenced previously)…I’ve heard story ideas and I go “Oh my gosh, that is great!” I want to option it before I even read it and then I read it and it’s not well-executed. So if you have a great concept that’s not well-executed, chances are that it will not sell. If you have a high-concept that is well-executed, you have a much better chance of it getting sold.
Conversely, you can have a project that is totally not high-concept but if it is beautifully executed, it then becomes marketable. So for example, if we take a movie like JUNO (and I’ll define high-concept). High-concept is THE HANGOVER, a bunch of guys…you know from the movie poster…I mean a lot of your audience knows what high-concept is but there are those who don’t and it’s terminology we use a lot and it’s basically where the concept is very big and immediately recognizable from the movie poster…(Watch the video on Youtube here).
About Wendy Kram:
Seasoned Film and Television producer, Wendy Kram, created L.A. FOR HIRE, a consulting firm for production companies, writers, directors and anyone in media and PR seeking Hollywood connections and expertise on how to get their project to the next level.
With over fifteen years of experience in the entertainment industry, Wendy has supervised and produced a number of award-winning motion picture and television films for companies including: Walt Disney Studios, Sony Pictures, Hearst Entertainment, Sandollar Productions, Granada Entertainment, CBS, NBC, ABC, USA, HBO, Showtime and Lifetime Networks. Credits include “Mad Money” with Diane Keaton, Queen Latifah, and Katie Holmes, the award-winning miniseries, “Sally Hemings: An American Scandal” with Sam Neill, and the romantic comedy, “Making Mr. Right” with Dean Caine for Lifetime Network. Wendy has a track record working with A-level talent, agents, filmmakers and executives.
As a native New Yorker who loves the city she grew up in, Wendy recognized a gap between many New York-based production companies and the Hollywood community. L.A. FOR HIRE was created to help fill this gap by providing a bridge between Hollywood’s key decision makers and companies in New York and other metropolitan cities around the globe.
Our clients come to us in order to help them navigate through the Hollywood system, where we provide insider knowledge and know-how that comes from our years of experience.
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