Is it true that Hollywood won't buy any big budget movie screenplay...

[aurantaurant]

Chip did you read the script? I agree with you. It has some problems toward the end, but the actions scenes are well written and they're pretty insane. Di Bonaventura bought it because he has all that Transformer money laying around and he's gotta spend it on something. So why not go out and buy a bunch of high concept scripts that he could develop in the future?

I threw a few of my scripts out the window on the 405 and all I got was a littering ticket.

 

[ChipG]

Chip did you read the script? I agree with you. It has some problems toward the end, but the actions scenes are well written and they're pretty insane. Di Bonaventura bought it because he has all that Transformer money laying around and he's gotta spend it on something. So why not go out and buy a bunch of high concept scripts that he could develop in the future?

I threw a few of my scripts out the window on the 405 and all I got was a littering ticket.

Duhho!

I completely forgot about the new Dubai movie which is pretty bad considering I know the guy who is in charge of all the literary acquisitions for paramount and approved the purchase of it.

I was remembering a really bad movie from 2005 called DUBAI that went straight to dvd. That's why I was shocked...

Yea, it's worth more than the $1 million they paid for it, they got a good deal.

Sorry to hear about your ticket

 

[aurantaurant]

I'll eat my shoes if it ever gets made though.

I said the same thing about NowhereLand, which had a ton of problems with the script, (Had the same reservations with Derailed) but they're wrapped on that movie. So I'm dumb.

The funny thing is that anyone with a solid head on their shoulders could fix these problems before they went into production on the projects. That's why a lot of movies are crap nowadays, because if a dumb-dumb like myself can go, "Uhhhh this ending needs work" and then someone at Paramount is going, "Nah don't worry we'll fix it post" then it's completely understandable.

 

[ChipG]

I'll eat my shoes if it ever gets made though.

I thought Paramount fast tracked DUBAI to get the ball rolling on production? Was it put on hold after they announced they are fast tracking it?

EDIT: But I do know they cut back on thier slate from 25 films to 20 per year.

 

[UnknownScreenwriter]

Gotta agree with Lt. Col Wade... Everything I've learned thus far in this business about fantasy is that it's EASIER to sell an established franchise or fan base.

Not saying that it can't be done but I'd bet a MILLION DOLLARS that it's a much harder sell than a regular spec if, for no other reason than budget let alone that particular fantasy world.

Having said that...

A well-written screenplay makes one hell of a great outline for a book... So after you write the screenplay -- go ahead and write the book and expand those areas that you couldn't delve that much into with the script.

You never know...

Unk

 

[aurantaurant]

They just buy stuff sometimes and never make them. It was a fairly hot script and I think it was just one of those "We want it cause everyone else does" type deals. Plus Di Bonavantura is busy with Transformers 2 and G.I Joe and a few others so I don't think they're gonna get to DUBAI very soon.

Dubai is a lot more risky than what he usually does, because there isn't that built in audience and what kind of merchandising can he sell with it? Burkas anyone? It's a 100+mill blockbuster and it's going to be tough to do any kind of merchandising with it. Although the Sheikh would probably fund the movie just to advertise the Disneyland-like country he's created.

They were about to make Edwin A. Salt but that never happened either.

 

[Nektonic]

Gotta agree with Lt. Col Wade... Everything I've learned thus far in this business about fantasy is that it's EASIER to sell an established franchise or fan base.

Not saying that it can't be done but I'd bet a MILLION DOLLARS that it's a much harder sell than a regular spec if, for no other reason than budget let alone that particular fantasy world.

Having said that...

I would first consider what type of fantasy it is. Not everything in the genre consists of high fantasy sword and sorcery epics. There is horror fantasy, urban fantasy, steampunk (which is also part of science fiction), science fantasy (Star Wars), historical fantasy (300), etc. So if the fantasy can be sold as a science fiction script or a contemporary set fantasy then I think that the writer would have a better chance.

If it takes place in space or the future, no matter how fantastical or ridiculous it is, tell 'em its sci-fi. If it takes place in the present day tell 'em its a supernatural thriller or a modern fairytale thriller or something along those lines. What is Lady in the Water but an urban-set fantasy story? It takes place in an apartment complex but also has mermaids, mystical wolf creatures, a giant eagle, and a made up mythology for all these creatures to originate from. Shyamalan and Warner Bros. sold it as a "bedtime story". The marketing never mentioned the word fantasy at all. Probably because they were scared that audiences would then expect something similar to Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings.

Unfortunately it is true that Hollywood is bias against specs that are high fantasy works, even if someone writes an amazing one. I think that fantasy films are still a young entity that will possibly grow to be a stronger staple over time. Eventually studio execs and producers will get past the whole notion that they must be based on a popular novel to be worth buying.

The same thing happened with sci-fi cinema in the late seventies and early eighties. When James Cameron showed executives an early cut of The Terminator, they asked him where the spaceships were. They couldn't understand the story, claiming that it never clearly stated what planet the robots and Kyle Reese came from. Because of Star Wars and Star Trek the expectation for sci-fi was that it had to either space opera or at least take place in space. Look at the diversity of sci-fi films that came after 2001 and Star Wars. I would think the same could eventually happen with fantasy cinema.

A well-written screenplay makes one hell of a great outline for a book... So after you write the screenplay -- go ahead and write the book and expand those areas that you couldn't delve that much into with the script.

You never know...

This is a good idea, and one that I've contemplated as well. However, you do have to be careful. Let's say you can't sell the script. You then write the novel from the script, adding and changing but not so much that it is too different. Then let's say it sells to a publisher. Unless it ends up on the bestseller list or becomes a classic like Lord of the Rings, getting a film produced from this novel is going to be difficult. In fact, if the book doesn't sell well then you can actually hurt the chances of selling the script. If the book didn't do well then Hollywood might feel like the concept has already been tested and proven to be unappealing to the general public.

Please do not feel that I am trying to discourage anyone from the idea, because it is a way that a writer can get their story out there. The whole point of writing is to share our creative visions with the world.