A reader question from Alistair Kaley:
Do you think it’s worth aspiring screenwriters spending some time (like a year maybe) in LA?
Admittedly, my motivation has been low and my work irregular, but I also can’t help but feel that I’m somewhat handicapped by the fact that I live in the Middle East, and as such am completely out of touch with that industry and milieu.My first (and thus far only) completed script placed in the quarter- and semi-finals of about 5 different contests including the Nicholls, and I’m just wondering whether being in LA might afford me some opportunities to push it.
What I’m thinking of is maybe signing up for the UCLA professional screenwriting program… I know it’s available online, but the point for me would be both spending time in LA, and being obliged to focus on producing two original scripts. Best of both worlds, or so it seems.
I’d appreciate any feedback you can give me. This is still just an idea for me, with many, MANY logistical obstacles I’d have to deal with…
My thanks for an amazing website and your invaluable guidance and advice.
Alistair, my first question to you is this: What is your goal? If it is to write and work within the Hollywood movie system, then there are significant advantages to spending at least some time in Los Angeles, everything from networking opportunities to meeting other writers to getting a good sense of how the filmmaking community operates.
I hear good things about the UCLA screenwriting program (I invite GITS readers who are more familiar with it to provide more feedback in comments) and anything that compels a writer to generate scripts is a good thing.
However if you are interested in working where you live, while a stint in L.A. could be an enjoyable and even helpful one, it’s certainly not necessary. It’s probably more important for you to develop story sensibilities that will help you craft scripts marketable for your country of origin.
Finally while there are benefits to spending time in L.A., the fact is you can be a screenwriter who works within the Hollywood system while not living there. So much of what a screenwriter does is in an office alone and you can do that anywhere. Notes meetings? Meetings with your reps? You can accomplish that virtually via teleconference or video conference. Yes, if you want to be active in the OWA (Open Writing Assignment) market, it behooves you to live in Southern California because you’ll need to take a lot of meetings. But there are plenty of writers who not only break into the film business while living outside L.A., they also sustain their careers, too.
Having lived in L.A. for 15 years, I can vouch for its uniqueness. There is no other place quite like it. And if you’re passionate about working in the film business, there’s a good case to be made for you to relocate at least for a few years. But is it absolutely necessary? No. And if you’re goal is to work outside the Hollywood system, there’s no need to live in L.A. at all. In fact, you stand a better chance of developing your own unique voice living elsewhere than L.A..
GITS readers, what’s your opinion? How about those of you who have relocated to L.A.? Have you found the move to be beneficial to your career in the entertainment business? Any advice for Alistair?
Heck, you don't even need a "real camera" to make a movie…
Director shoots first major movie solely with iPhone
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=CNG.77612dcb02a30125065af2ac4103be0a.501&show_article=1
I live in Egypt and I plan on making it big in my country. I wanna be one of those international auteurs with International prizes, then I'd hack into Hollywood. My resume then would respectable and I could be trusted to do projects like rewriting, adaptation and directing and doing my own stuff in HW style.
That's my plan. I don't see L.A. relevant for me now. That's me.
Packing up and getting ready to tackle the coast as we speak. LA bound 2 weeks!! Wooo!!
I highly advise moving to Los Angeles if you're interested in pursuing a screenwriting career.
I moved to L.A. in September to intern at a production company. Given I'm young enough (22) and had saved money to spend, I was able to do this for 3 months, full time, while writing in the evenings.
Networking is key! Interning opens doors and lets you apply for other jobs once you're finished. If you have no baggage and can afford it, moving to L.A. is a no-brainer!
Best with it
I moved to L.A. in September and am currently in the Professional Screenwriting Program at UCLA. It's been a really good experience so far. The lectures are nice but the "meat" of the program would be the workshops where it's only 8 ppl per class and you're able to have table reads and peer critiques of your writing. Plus my teacher is a working screenwriter, which is great.
The other perks of being in L.A. are all of the opportunities there are to really emerge yourself in the industry. I'm about to start my 3rd internship and I've been able to learn a lot about the in's and out's of Hollywood as well as meet people who are willing to read my writing and give me feedback. And of course there's always networking.
So overall, I'm glad I decided to make the move. Good luck with whatever you decide to do.
If you want to work in the Hollywood system and move to LA, and get a job as a reader or a writer's assistant. If you want to work in TV, one of the best ways in is to get work as a writing room assistant.
To get either of those jobs means having to network. But once you have them, you have to keep networking to get jobs. And keep writing – screenplays, theatre, radio, virals – keep writing.
The other option is to move to New York and get work in the TV and film industries there. Same thing applies to networking.
As usual Scott is right. You don't need to move to America. You have the option of developing a career and reputation for yourself in the Middle East as a screeenwriter or filmmaker.
Working with reputable or prestigious people or companies and getting your work developed and made, means that you can approach people in LA with a stronger reputation than a writer who's been through UCLA's doors, and has a few scripts.
Also bear in mind coming to LA as a successful, or critically praised, screenwriter or filmmaker from the Middle East, gives you an edge as you're exotic. You will have a different character, voice and style to American writers, in terms of your work and who you are. LA producers like that in new writers – although they'll do their best to beat it out of you. It's also useful when marketing and promoting yourself – which is what part of networking is – as it gives you a hook (such as Diablo Cody being an ex-stripper).
And don't listen to people who say working in Hollywood means you've sold out or you're a hack writer. It doesn't. All it means is that you're working in Hollywood.