Sell your screenplay on Filmarket Hub — Part Seven
Creating the perfect Sales Dossier
For the final entry to our series, we’re going to take an in-depth look at what is perhaps the most valuable tool when it comes to making your script stand out and grab a producer’s attention: the sales dossier. We’ve mocked up a model that we’ll be using as a reference of the key elements that any good dossier must have.
1- Creative vision
When you’re selling a script, you’re not just selling an idea or a story. You’re selling an entire universe, complete with an artistic vision, a specific look, mood, atmosphere and tone. Of course, these things will already be deeply ingrained in any good script, but it never hurts to create a separate document where you go in depth and help your future producer get a closer look into your film. Here are a few ways to do it: write down your references, films that inspired you, a short text describing your artistic intentions, a moodboard with images that capture the tone of the film… Anything that can make your project more unique and define your own personal style.
2- Your own profile
We already went over why it’s so important to sell yourself as an author in our first post. The sales dossier is a great place to expand on what you already mentioned in your One Page description and user profile. Add a detailed list of your previous work, any awards you might have received in the past…
3- Budget, again
Remember our post on how to make a reliable budget estimate? The sales dossier is also the right place for that. A casting wish list, with letters of interest, if possible, can go a long way towards justifying your budget. A short text describing what scale of production you envision for your script will also help companies know if your script is the kind of production they’re looking for.
4- Selling points
As we’ve said many times in this series, anything that sets your project apart from the rest is worth mentioning. What’s special about your script? Is it a thriller with a unique tone? Do you have a main character with a unique or diverse voice? Have you created an original universe with special rules? Do you address any important social issues? In the end, it comes down to this: why, among all the similar projects, should yours be the one to read?
5- Proof and other documents
Try to include every bit of information that can back up your main selling points. For example, if you’re trying to adapt a book, you should include a document certifying you own the rights to it. If you’ve talked about your screenwriting awards elsewhere in the dossier, you should add the official diplomas.
6- Look the part
The actual content of your dossier is just as important as your presentation. A dossier with a good presentation and an attractive visual design won’t just look better, it’ll also contribute to creating a unified aesthetic vision for your project. Pay attention to color, font and background images, and make sure they represent your film’s themes. And don’t forget to add links to everything! You don’t want people having to constantly go out of their way to search for things.
And that’s all! As you can see, this final post has been sort of a compilation of what we’d explained in greater depth previously. The sales dossier should be a very complete file that tells your future producer everything they need to know about the film they’ll be making!
