I know the answer, still ... (screenplay options)

[charlieearp]

I probably know the answer to this already, however, it never hurts to check and get 2/3/4 or whatever opinions. Plus as this is an English agent based in London it may differ a little. I got a guy who wants to option my screenplay for 2 years without payment. My first reaction is to tell him to *&^% off! In fact, I am still going to do that. Have any of you ever heard of something like that? At best I may go 6 months but 2 years is totally inappropiate. Does anybody have any thoughts? Thanks, Charlie

[dpaterso]

Hmm, I recall screenwriter Bill Martell (http://sex-in-a-sub.blogspot.com/) wrote an article about this... quick search... No money options (http://www.scriptsecrets.net/tips/tip287.htm).

-Derek

[icerose]

Oh yeah, there are a ton of people who want something for nothing. If you do want to go ahead with a zero dollar options say "You got three months."

[nmstevens]

I probably know the answer to this already, however, it never hurts to check and get 2/3/4 or whatever opinions. Plus as this is an English agent based in London it may differ a little. I got a guy who wants to option my screenplay for 2 years without payment. My first reaction is to tell him to *&^% off! In fact, I am still going to do that. Have any of you ever heard of something like that? At best I may go 6 months but 2 years is totally inappropiate. Does anybody have any thoughts? Thanks, Charlie

I've worked for a development company and usually, you'd have a standard option that you'd pay for (like ten percent of the purchase price) and the option would be for a year (some places do eighteen months), and an option for another year or eighteen months.

But there would be a few occasions when we'd ask for a free option but that would only be under very rare circumstances and it would always be the same circumstances.

It would be in a case where we'd get a script that we knew we could only take to one place, or maybe one or two places.

And if those places passed, there'd just be no place else we could take it. It would just be dead.

So they'd be projects that would, from our perspective, be very marginal. You don't really want to spend ten or fifteen thousand dollars on an option, take it to one place -- sorry, it's not for us -- and you've blown fifteen grand of your development budget and you've got no place else to go with the project.

That being said -- on anything like that, it would always be a very short option, as you said -- like a three month option. Because that's all it would take to go to the one or two places. Then it would either sell, or it wouldn't and we'd be done. We'd have a sale, or it would go back to the writer and he could go on his merry way.

That's about the only reason that I can think of when there would be a valid busines reason (as opposed to simply screwing the writer) for a dollar option.

NMS

[Plot Device]

A dollar???? A whole dollar??

What's wrong with a dollar? That'll last most people for two whole years.

[MrJayVee]

Two years for zero money? Don't waste your time. They'll need to put down some respectable cash to tie your script up for that period of time. That said, if they want 3 or 4 months for a dollar option, that might worth considering (but only if you feel these guys are truly legitimate).

Something to think about: There are producers who will get a free option on ten scripts and hope that they can get at least one off the ground and into production. One lucky writer scores; the other nine...well, they get a whole dollar for their wasted time.

Good luck!

[8thSamurai]

Agreed. No money, no option.

[ComicBent]

I only want to repeat the link that Derek posted to Bill Martell's article (http://www.scriptsecrets.net/tips/tip287.htm) on options.

It is really worth reading.

[mario_c]

Sounds like a skeezy membership plan - try it free for 3 months, after which you agree to pay $2000 every x months...you may cancel at any time. No refunds. :ROFL: