When The Job Ends
I’m the voice
of this guy…A couple of years ago, I spoke to a room full of recent Princeton graduates—all aspiring screenwriters. I asked them a fairly simple question. “When is the job of the screenwriter over?” Some said when the script is done, some said when the movie got greenlit, a few said when the movie started shooting.
All fine answers, but in my opinion, all wrong answers.
The screenwriter’s job is over when the film is print-mastered and prepared for duplication. For those of you less production-savvy, I’ll adjust that slightly.
The screenwriter’s job is over when the movie premieres.
When I say “screenwriter,” what I mean is “the screenwriter currently employed.” There should always be a screenwriter currently employed on the project (see my essay on The Stand By Writer), and that writer’s skills may be required until the very last moment the story can be affected.
For instance, on Monday, we did our final mix on the final reel of Scary Movie 4. As it so happens, I’ve enjoyed the great pleasure of being the “Mel Blanc” of the movie (so says our post-production supervisor). If you see the movie, odds are that every single grunt, groan, single word, off-camera shout or generally non-descript utterance is yours truly. It’s quite possible that I may imitate an actor or two for a line here and there (not that I’d ever admit that or tell you which actor, I ain’t talkin!). Even better, I actually have a real role in the film as the voice of the Saw Puppet.
A Saw Puppet with a secret!
Okay, enough bragging about stuff that’s not that impressive.
The point is that there were opportunities even up to the final minutes to adjust off-camera lines and dialogue for the puppet, and before I or anyone else could perform them…someone had to write the words.
And if I weren’t there, who was going to write those words? (“You, Lieutenant Weinberg?”)
Let me now make a larger point.
It’s not just good for writers to be around to work on this stuff. It’s good for everyone else, including the mixers and music editors and dialogue cutters and producers and post-production supervisors to be comfortable having writers around working on this stuff. We cannot live on the one hand under the delusion that our jobs end when we finish typing the script document, and complain on the other hand that we’re not viewed as part of the team.
If we’re not a purposeful part of the team, then we are not part of the team. Mind you, I’m not in this for a crew jacket. I want to be part of the team in order to influence the movie. See, the calculation that many miss is this: work leads to power.
Let’s all say it together.
Work leads to power.
Credits are nice, and starting the process is great, and getting the green light is wonderful. But continuing to WORK on the movie is what earns us the ongoing influence and actual power-over-the-film that we really want.
I started writing on July 1st. I stopped writing on March 27th. Somewhere in there, I wrote treatments, I wrote drafts, I wrote scenes, I wrote lines, I wrote ideas, I wrote moments, I wrote versions and I wrote explanations. All writing. All on equal footing in my mind. All necessary.
If you believe yourself when you type “The End,” then you’re in for some surprises when you see what happens to the movie at the real End. And yes, this might mean taking fewer jobs and sticking with one gig longer. It might mean short-term financial losses in exchange for what will probably be long-term financial gains. It’s worth it. You will be a linchpin. You will be a filmmaking partner.
Work leads to power. Raise your carpal-tunnelly fist in the air…and keep it up there until the dupers start spinning.
Is it your voice in the tv spot “Saw it all” ? :-D
Then, just for fun, Jim Abrahams made all the “puke” sounds in “Airplane!”. What about you ? :-D (I’ll make no reference to your “popcorn bucket”…oops ! ;-)
Good article Craig !
Thanks for this. But I have a question. What happens if they decide not to involve you - i.e. if the director / producer/ whoever completely cuts you out after the film wraps and post-production starts. How common is this situation in the US? Or do US contracts prevent this lock-out happening?
Alfie:
Yup, that’s me. :)
Now, in one of the spots, I believe you hear my voice untreated. It’s just me doing a gruff-voiced imitiation of Tobin Bell. In another spot, you hear a treated version of my voice, which we used for the movie, in which I’m pitched down a bit with a computer. It’s more ominous that way.
I don’t have any puking noises, but I do provide the voice of a Japanese man committing suicide, an Indian man being punched in the face by Leslie Nielsen, a dying hanglider and many many others.
Andrea:
There’s nothing guaranteeing you the work. You need to be wanted. Then you need to negotiate a deal, often it’s an “all services deal” that covers you for the duration of the production. It’s currently uncommon. I want it to become more common.
I thought the job ended when the executive producer storms out of the story meeting, face purple with rage, roaring, “You’ll never work in this town again!”
How does a screenwriter work out an “all services deal,” and is the writer actually paid for their time?
Thanks for this website- it’s very informative!
Craig, do you find that some directors/producers resist this or view it as “tampering”? I fully agree that writer’s should be involved in production as deeply as you recommend but wonder if you’ve encountered resistance on jobs previous to this. If so, how did you overcome this? -M.J.
I do whatever it takes to promote the movie, too. A couple of my HBO World Premiere movies from over 10 years ago just got re-released on DVD and I’ve plugged them here and there and generally tried to increase the unit sales. The more successful my films are..
Anon:
All services deals are common. Your representatives negotiate a fee for all of your writing services between two dates (typically between the date the deal is signed and a production milestone like completion of principle photography, completion of all photography, print-master, etc.). The only restriction is that the total value of the deal divided by the total number of weeks worked must be at least WGA weekly minimum.
MJ:
Some people are suspicious. You just have to approach them with a “what’s best for the movie” attitude, and then you have to deliver the goods. Sounds easy, right?
But how do you deal with the fact of being “out of tune”? I mean, during the shooting and post-production don’t you find that you are in a different rhythm, in a different vibe that when you were alone writing? How do you maintain coherence?
Never mind all this writing advice. What I want to know is, what kind of research did you do to prepare for the lynchpin role of “Voice of Indian Guy Being Punched By Leslie Nielson”? Did you spend a few months in India, soaking up the culture and generating sense memories of the sight of the brightly colored fabrics and the smell of curry, all the while making written notes of vocal inflections? Or did you decide that the getting-punched part was really the core of the character, and focus on that?
mouhahahahaha
Craig, at what point in your career did you start getting all-services deals? Because, for me, it seems a bit much to ask for. The last assignment I wrote is out to directors now, and is not setup at a studio. I can’t imagine the prodco (a mini major) agreeing to pay me a weekly fee on a project that is nowhere near a greenlight.
Michael:
All services deals are only relevant once you get the green light.
Jorge:
You change gears. C’mon, we’re not hothouse flowers. We can do it…
Jacob:
I watched all fourteen thousand episodes of The Mahabarata.
The only part I have a difficult time understanding is where you say that writers contribute until “the movie premieres.” I mean, once photography is done and things are in editing and post, doesn’t the editor and director take over? How can we as writer’s contribute further when it’s down to the splice and patch? Were you active in the movie’s editing suite? (Kudos if you were).
“All services deals are only relevant once you get the green light.”
That’s my point. What I’m trying to understand is, when/how does the all-services deal come about? Say my current project lands a director, gets setup at a studio, gets cast and is given a green light (all miraculously without the director or star or studio bringing in their favorite A-lister to do another pass).
At that stage, how do I go about securing an all-services deal to ensure that I remain involved on the project? More specifically, how did you first do that?
Michael,
What we’ve done is negotiated a standard step deal that kicks into an all-services deal once the movie goes into pre-production, which has to be initiated by something very specific, like the lead actor is cast and production offices are open for business.
In those deals, you lay out payments for each rewrite and polish during development and then another payment (the all-services) when pre-production starts.
Studios are usually motivated to make these deals because paying weeklies are soooo much more expensive in the long haul.
My two cents.
Oh, I should’ve said:
Make sure the actor is pay-or-play before your all-services kicks in.
Otherwise, you could get stuck doing rewrites for a wishy-washy star who backs out in the end.
A big opening weekend to you, sir.
Ted:
I was in the editing room every day, but that was in my capacity as producer.
As writer, as long as the sound is still be re-recorded and actors are being looped and off-screen lines are still being mixed in, you have the ability to contribute
Marianne, thanks for the insight. That’s exactly what I was looking for.
Greetings from Russia!
If anyone is ever thinking of doing a movie in Russia, let me offer you this piece of advice:
Don’t.
Anyway, having a Writer around for post is such a crucial and smart thing. I have 3 movies in post right now. one of them, I wrote and directed so it was kind of a no brainer but the other 2 benefitted greatly from having the writer present. Especially during ADR. It’s amazing how many times ADR isn’t just about recording a voice for better sound but more for rewriting a line of dialogue to help the editing process.
Believe it or not, Writers are also great to have around when cutting a trailer; especially if it is an Independent Film in which a pre-distribution trailer is crucial.
I didn’t even know we were invited> to the premiere.
Hey, What about rookie writers ? I thought you were done after you got the check (and they hired someone more experienced ) to do rewrites and polish . Thanks for the great site.
I take it the lack of response to this question means that new writers can forget getting one of these “all service deals” and being on the set?
I take it the lack of a response to Jack Rogers’ question about newbie writers indicates that an “all services deal” and being on the set is outside the realm of possibility for newbies?
Sorry, you should only take it that I’m busy. :)
New writers can absolutely get all services deals if they are trusted by the powers-that-be to deliver the goods. Does it happen frequently?
No.
Did it happen to me on my first movie?
Yes.
So it’s possible. Not probable, but possible.
How can you show the powers that be that you can be trusted to deliver the goods? Like, be open to feedback?
Anon:
Well, basically…you please them with your writing. Simple, and hard, as that.
Graig, you just gave away my secret. That’s exactly why I became a post supervisor: so I can influence the film and be a part of the creative process right till the MO Disk gets transferred to optical. Many times I have actually written bits of dialogue (since no writer was around), contributed voices, grunts and groans and even visuals such as stock footage, opening and end titles.
And we have something else in common, I also have worked with Leslie Nielsen on a spoof called 2001: A Space Travesty which has the honor of being in the IMDB top 100 worst films ever made. Watching SM4 last night brought back many happy memories along with some pretty painful ones.
The thing I’m most proud of was that during the two test screenings we did, there was only scattered tittering during the screening. When the end credits started the audience came alive and started rolling in the aisles. I was responsible for the joke end credits a-la Monty Python and Naked Gun. The producers wanted outtakes but we didn’t have any decent ones. I suggested the lame “fart sound effects outtakes” at the end of the title crawl which unfortunately for the film was the funniest thing about it.
So, yes, being part of the post process supports your “work leads to power” adage right to the point where the original neg gets threaded through the printer for the IP (NB: This was the pre-DI era).