How to pitch to Hollywood?

Question

Hello. Today is the Oscars, so I thought I would ask this question: how to pitch to Hollywood?

To me Hollywood seems a 'closed shop', where very few get a look in. Even the scriptwriting seems to be done by only some people. Of course this is understandable, yet with the majority of movies being mediocre (IMO), surely they need new blood.

Essentially, how does someone get an actual producer/director to casually read their script? In the hope they will contact the writer.

Also, how to pitch for non-Hollywood movies, TV films/dramas and to the likes of Netflix? I personally prefer these to the big name Hollywood movies, but I doubt they will earn me very much.

Thanks for any answers....

Something Blue · Accepted Answer

Like you said, it's a closed shop. And that hasn't changed, even though the industry is hungry for freshness. Stupid logic, I know. But it's still very hard to break in. How do you go about TRYING to break in? You work hard. You need talent and skills. If you don't have the talent, there's no point. If you do have the talent, learn the craft and hone the skills for a while until you're at a professional level. With several well-polished scripts in your portfolio and armed with at least one great(!) concept + amazing script, you try to land a manager. Only then you will be able to pitch. But even with a manager it’s never easy to sell a screenplay. It’s never gonna be easy. And you need an agent for that. No one will speak to you without an agent. The industry uses that as a filtering system. If you’re good enough, you will land an agent/manager. If you’re not, you’ll be wandering forever.

Sometimes there are ads from production companies looking for specific material. Not the big studios, but much smaller ones.

The process of pitching to TV networks, no matter what kind, is not that different. You still need an agent. The filtering system is still a apart of it. But new writers rarely get to actually pitch their own ideas. You have a better shot at getting staffed. After you gain enough experience there, you will be able to pitch your own show. Maybe.

Anyway, hope this helps.

Sometimes there are ads from production companies looking for specific material. Not the big studios, but much smaller ones.

The process of pitching to TV networks, no matter what kind, is not that different. You still need an agent. The filtering system is still a apart of it. But new writers rarely get to actually pitch their own ideas. You have a better shot at getting staffed. After you gain enough experience there, you will be able to pitch your own show. Maybe.

Anyway, hope this helps.

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How to pitch to Hollywood?

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