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After film school I ran out of options and money. I wrote and wrote and wrote, and placed in semifinals of @TheAcademy Nicholl Fellowship. A friend who was an assistant at the time and much more connected than I then used that Nicholl stat to intro me to managers. https://twitter.com/MuttsPresents/status/1285337116520730625
I had a few scripts written, none particularly good, but my voice was clear and one manager in particular saw potential. He signed me, and I continued to write. And write. And write.
I was not making any money, and this manager could've shrugged me off at any point in time, but he was young and starting his career as well, so I was an easy investment.
Over 18 months of working with him and not selling anything but going from "writer with potential" to "maybe actually a good writer" I wrote a script called BOY. It placed on the 2015 (I believe?) Annual Black List. Producers became involved. Noomi Rapace attached.
I figured I had made it! This was it! My big moment! Right?? Nope! Despite everyones considerable efforts, the movie ended up not getting off the ground. Happens. All the while, I continued to write. At this point, I had a little street cred. My name in the press once or twice.
Went on probably close to 100 general meetings. No work immediately came from them, but they created half a dozen strong relationships with producers/executives that are still among my strongest. At this point I'm optioning some stuff, selling some pitches.
I could go on and on here, but eventually my first really big, legitimate out of this world sale was Project Power. That's when the game started to change in a more tangible way for me.
Ultimately specifics are sort of useless because it's not something that can be easily replicated. My path is my path, and it's not matter of this contest/festival/script/director/whatever.
A lot of it was right place/right time/right people saw me when. A whole lot of it was hard work. But a lot of it is the fact that system is designed to benefit straight white guys. You're a sucker if you can't acknowledge that.
At the end of the day, there are tactics that I think are useful and ARE something a person can replicate. Chief among them is not putting all of your eggs in one basket. I look at Hollywood like betting. You don't go to Vegas and make one bet expecting to get rich.
Every project is an incredible investment of time. An incredible investment of energy. And, if you're doing it right, an investment of soul. For me, a huge component was doing the best work I can as frequently as possible. LOTS of material, but it had to be STRONG.
So my advice, while it sometimes sounds glib, is not meant to be. WRITE. Keep writing. Finish what you start. It's not that "the best material rises to the top" (that 'Hollywood is not a meritocracy' tweet is spot on) Hollywood is a casino. Every script is a bet. Bet often.
