Besides death and taxes, one of the surest things in life is change. I remember when I started my career fresh out of college, working as a script reader. That was around ten years ago now, back in 2003. Before Web 2.0 and Social Media.
We don’t have to go too far back, let’s say pre-2006, to a time when things were markedly different.
Screenwriting Agencies Have Become More Open
When I started work as a script reader, the screenwriting agency that hired me was a closed shop.
By closed shop I mean it was very difficult for a screenwriter to get in touch with an agency; and if you think that’s difficult, try getting your script read—that’s a whole other ball game.
Pre-2006, a lot of screenwriting agencies didn’t have any web presence (and many to this day, still don’t). They chose, instead, to be exclusive and elusive.
And although they might have given the impression of being elitist, they acted in this manner for a very good reason.
Screenwriting agencies and the agents who work for them are not only in the business of making money—they’re in the business of strict quality control. They are also resistant to change.
It’s Become A Lot Easier To Find Talent
As the gatekeepers to Hollywood, screenwriting agencies prize themselves on finding top quality talent and delivering that talent to Hollywood.
In the words of my former boss, “we can’t just have any old Schmo walk in off the street.”
Screenwriting agencies have always wanted to find and recruit the best talent—nothing’s changed there.
Except the world changed. We advanced. Technology advanced. And we became more open and inter-connected than ever before.
This change is something that a lot of agent’s in Hollywood resisted and fought against and I understand why.
It used to be the case that if you were trying to be a screenwriter or actor, you would have to fight the good fight and struggle for years. And then, once you had some exposure, and only then, would you get noticed by one of the Hollywood agencies.
So, in a way, you were already a proven commodity when you were found.
Agencies Like A Sure Thing
Nowadays, people can get exposure almost immediately. Screenwriters, actors and directors can land deals in Hollywood overnight, if someone sees their material on a blog or video and likes it, then they get find representation based on that.
This is great news for artists trying to break into Hollywood. If you’re a writer who has just written a screenplay, it is now easier than ever to connect with other artists, to network and get your script read.
This, in turn, makes it so much easier to get noticed by a good screenwriting agency.
One of the major complaints I hear from agents is this: they have to work harder than ever because they have so much talent to sift through nowadays.
A screenwriter in Timbuktu can get their screenplay to a screenwriting agency and read by an agent much more easily these days; whereas this feat pre-2006 was much harder to achieve, and pre-2000, it was almost impossible!
I don’t mean to suggest that it’s easy to find representation with a screenwriting agency because it’s not, unless you’ve written a good screenplay. It’s not something that everyone can do.
But what I am saying, and this is true now more than ever, it is much easier to get your material read and to get exposure these days.
This stacks the odds of finding representation with an agency in your favor. Thus the probability of a screenwriter finding an agent to represent them and selling their script has increased exponentially.
A Globalized World = More Opportunity
These days screenwriting agencies have to work that much hard to sort through all the talent out there.
In days gone by, a screenwriting agency would be dealing with mostly local talent, or, at the very least, talent that had moved to LA or the New York area. This is no longer the case.
In this day and age, anyone from anywhere can let their talent shine!
In the meantime, screenwriting agencies and the agents who work for them are doing their best to harness this talent.
* Liz Fairbanks has worked as a reader, development assistant, and talent agent in Los Angeles over the last seven years. Liz loves traveling, reading and yoga. Liz also works as a freelance consultant for Script Mailer (a company that connects screenwriters with agents and producers in Hollywood).