Oh Alex, I always find myself at odds with your posts for some reason. Nothing wrong with that, we differ in opinion and that's what is cool about these forums, right?
Again I find myself following the wise words of EJ up there. If you do not have a strong suite or even mediocre suite for crafting ideas then another line of work might be in order. However I bet he does have plenty of ideas but is simply intimidated by that long diving board ahead of him. We've all experienced it and it does get easier with time. But you must make that initial dive into the deep end, or you will never know if you have the guts (and the skill).
Alex prefers to write for others, and I suppose that's just fine. But first you must try on your own writing shoes and if, after several valiant tries you find your writing terrible, well, write someone else's shlock. But at least try to get something out of it besides a pat on the back and a promise to line their birdcage with it, because 9 out of 10 times when dealing with a 'no pay' gig that's exactly where your efforts will end up.
Keep this in mind, if they are not paying you money to write a script, which usually runs in the thousands to pay a writer, what makes you think this same amatuer filmmaker can afford equiptment, cast & crew? And if he does manage to piece together a cast & crew then I would question the cast & crew's experience level, as they will be bringing your first endeavor to the screen.
Not to mention the 'story' is clearly not that filmmakers priority if he's willing to hand it over to a writer that has never written a script, or anything for that matter. I question the priorities of any filmmaker that does this and would run the other way before crewing up with them. I know that's all a little extreme and of course there are exceptions, but its important to point out how vital the script is in the process.
I don't remember the old quote about making a good film but it goes something like, "You can make a good script into a great film, you can make a good script into a bad film, but you can never make a bad script into a good film".
Good luck.
Again I find myself following the wise words of EJ up there. If you do not have a strong suite or even mediocre suite for crafting ideas then another line of work might be in order. However I bet he does have plenty of ideas but is simply intimidated by that long diving board ahead of him. We've all experienced it and it does get easier with time. But you must make that initial dive into the deep end, or you will never know if you have the guts (and the skill).
Alex prefers to write for others, and I suppose that's just fine. But first you must try on your own writing shoes and if, after several valiant tries you find your writing terrible, well, write someone else's shlock. But at least try to get something out of it besides a pat on the back and a promise to line their birdcage with it, because 9 out of 10 times when dealing with a 'no pay' gig that's exactly where your efforts will end up.
Keep this in mind, if they are not paying you money to write a script, which usually runs in the thousands to pay a writer, what makes you think this same amatuer filmmaker can afford equiptment, cast & crew? And if he does manage to piece together a cast & crew then I would question the cast & crew's experience level, as they will be bringing your first endeavor to the screen.
Not to mention the 'story' is clearly not that filmmakers priority if he's willing to hand it over to a writer that has never written a script, or anything for that matter. I question the priorities of any filmmaker that does this and would run the other way before crewing up with them. I know that's all a little extreme and of course there are exceptions, but its important to point out how vital the script is in the process.
I don't remember the old quote about making a good film but it goes something like, "You can make a good script into a great film, you can make a good script into a bad film, but you can never make a bad script into a good film".
Good luck.
You're right I was not looking from the perspective of the writer and as far as the writer is concerned I think everything you said should be taken into consideration at the very least.