Tag: Spec Scriptacular Contest

WGA Probing Producers’ Use Of “Paper Teams” to Short-Change Writers

Why We Need the Writers Guild of America, West Dept:

Always looking for the crooked angle, some unscrupulous film and TV companies have found a way to hire two writers for the price of one. Taking advantage of young, mostly inexperienced writers, these companies pair them up to form what’s called “paper teams” – two writers who are forced to work together for half the pay. Even some older experienced writers have caved to the companies’ demands that they work as a team. It’s a violation of the WGA’s contract, but so far nobody’s been caught doing it – not that the WGA West isn’t trying.

“That’s the scam — to get two writers for the price of one,” a guild source told Deadline. “It’s one of those areas that in hard times, writers, in economic self-interest, will say, ‘I need a job so bad, I’ll take it even if it’s half-scale.’ It’s been going on as long as unscrupulous producers have been taking advantage of hard-pressed writers.” read article

Rerun Century is the Classic TV Site We’ve Been Looking For

rrc-w7oRerunCentury.com
Free Videos and Twentieth Century Television

We got this email just the other day and found it fascinating:

Dear TVWriter™,

I run a site documenting free classic TV videos in the public domain. The videos are those in the massive catalog at Internet Archive. Videos are browsable by title chronologically and by genre, with thumbnails & episode summaries. EZ to binge-watch the classics! read article

11 Things You Learn In the 1st Season of Your Own TV Series

Stephen Falk has written for ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK and WEEDS, and is the creator of YOU’RE THE WORST, an FX comedy series that’s – well, it’s genuinely funny is what it is, and that’s a rarity. Here’s what Stephen has to say about his experiences on his new show:

youre-the-worstby Todd VanDerWerff

Stephen Falk first became known to TV fans for his work on two of Jenji Kohan’s series — Weeds andOrange Is the New Black, writing episodes for both. But those who get really into following the careers of TV writers might have known him for Next Caller, a sitcom he created that was to star Dane Cook. NBC picked that show up and produced four episodes, then declined to finish out its six-episode order or ever air said episodes. Falk wrote a semi-famous, blisteringly funny Tumblr post about the experience that made the TV fan rounds.

But this summer, he returned with his first “created by” credit to make it on the air, FX’s brilliant You’re the Worst. And to commemorate the end of the show’s first season tonight, Falk talked with us about some of the things he learned over the course of making that first season. What follows is in his words, which have been lightly edited for length and clarity. read article

Comic Book Critical Mass: Inside TV’s Biggest Bet

This Fall, TV has opened its arms wide to comic book characters, especially superheroes, as much as – if not more, in our humble opinion – films have. So, um, what’s that mean for the medium anyway? Oh, and for us?

by Lesley Goldberg

comic_book_critical_mass_illoFor years, superheroes have reigned supreme over movies. Now they’ve set their sights on dominating TV, too.

This fall, the broadcast networks will feature five first-year shows based on DC and Marvel comics characters: Fox’s Batman prequel Gotham; NBC’s Constantine, based on the Hellblazer comic about a demon hunter from DC’s Vertigo label; The CW’s Arrowspinoff, The Flash, and iZombie, based on another Vertigo comic; and ABC’s Marvel adaptation Agent Carter. They join a roster that includes AMC’s hit The Walking Dead, ABC’s Agents of SHIELD and Arrow. read article

Leesa Dean: Adventures of a Web Series Newbie 76

THE WEB SERIES IS DEAD. LONG LIVE THE WEB SERIES
by Leesa Dean

rip-spokeo-info-bubble-copyRecently there was an article in The Guardian about the future of web series that’s been causing a bit of an uproar in the indie web series community.

It says that web series are in decline because Hollywood has stepped in and indie creators can’t compete with the big guns: Netflix and Amazon.  It goes as far as saying that aside from a few established talents/series that have managed to sustain themselves, everyone else seems to have “packed their bags and gone home.”

Wow.  Harsh!  I agree.  And disagree. read article