Thank you for exposing some truths; no doubt you will earn no friends with this one. To be fair, Nichol and Blacklist are in bed together now. Most screenwriters wouldn't qualify for Nichol anymore; it's shall we say, 'exclusive'. For someone like me, with 37 years of experience in filmmaking (which has zero bearing according to both groups; imagine if they included IMDB filmmaking credits...but that would be a free earned pass, wouldn't it). So for someone like me, our only 'in' is to pay BL for a good review. Pay to play; este es no bueno. Most if not all recognized screenplays on the BL are signed writers; at the end of each year, they throw a token unsigned writer into the best of list. And even that token writer seems suspect, honestly. So perhaps let's put an *asterisk next to BL and Nichol moving forward please; it falls under the "Who Do You Know" category. Next question would be about our darling query superstar Sophie, her screenplay was never produced, she has one IMDB credit for said film. Google her and the road starts and ends at 2020 with 'Headhunter', further research reveals she doesn't work as a screenwriter or in filmmaking... Not a good hero for our story, there is no second or third act. So we are back to square one. Which is zip code, friends group and family? Luck for sure. But overall if we read between the lines of your wonderful study it's more dismal than the ray of hope exposes. Yet it still points to make your own quality film, somehow, someway.
The Nicholl Fellowship severely compromised its prestige by aligning with the Blacklist. I would expect future industry studies to reflect a steep decline in its standing.
Thank you for exposing some truths; no doubt you will earn no friends with this one. To be fair, Nichol and Blacklist are in bed together now. Most screenwriters wouldn't qualify for Nichol anymore; it's shall we say, 'exclusive'. For someone like me, with 37 years of experience in filmmaking (which has zero bearing according to both groups; imagine if they included IMDB filmmaking credits...but that would be a free earned pass, wouldn't it). So for someone like me, our only 'in' is to pay BL for a good review. Pay to play; este es no bueno. Most if not all recognized screenplays on the BL are signed writers; at the end of each year, they throw a token unsigned writer into the best of list. And even that token writer seems suspect, honestly. So perhaps let's put an *asterisk next to BL and Nichol moving forward please; it falls under the "Who Do You Know" category. Next question would be about our darling query superstar Sophie, her screenplay was never produced, she has one IMDB credit for said film. Google her and the road starts and ends at 2020 with 'Headhunter', further research reveals she doesn't work as a screenwriter or in filmmaking... Not a good hero for our story, there is no second or third act. So we are back to square one. Which is zip code, friends group and family? Luck for sure. But overall if we read between the lines of your wonderful study it's more dismal than the ray of hope exposes. Yet it still points to make your own quality film, somehow, someway.
The Nicholl Fellowship severely compromised its prestige by aligning with the Blacklist. I would expect future industry studies to reflect a steep decline in its standing.
These are truths many of us in the industry know inherently!
Thanks for putting them into words and clarifying.
Ooh, I can answer this one!
No.
As always, the people selling the pickaxes, not the prospectors, were the ones who actually struck gold. Thanks for quantifying it.
A hard dose of actual data and well-formed questions is the only defense against predators that circle creatives at every turn. Thanks for this!
The Nicholl was never open to all, it always had earnings caps.
No. It just means somebody read your script.