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If
You Cannot Take Rejection, Then Get Out I
have always been a "say what you mean, mean what you say" kind of
person, so this article may a bit disturbing for some of you. Now, I am not like
some of those 'Holly-wood' people - I tell it like it is. And what it is, is
this: If
you cannot take rejection, then get out of 'the business.' For
that is what it is-- a business. And the one thing I
cannot stand is whiners. Those artists who e-mail us, outraged by the fact that
their entry was not selected by our festivals. Well, the fact is: Not
all artists submitting materials to festivals can
be selected. While
their entries maybe good, there are other entries (from all over the world) that
may be even better. And just because they have been selected by other festivals
does not mean they will automatically
be accepted by yet other festivals. Entries
submitted to different festivals are
different-- and that is simply another fact. Think about playing the lottery.
You may have some preferred numbers you play frequently. Do you always win
the lottery? No, of course you don't. A few do, and most do not. Now, I am not
saying that luck plays any part for an artist to be selected for a festival.
Talent is the key. However, there just may be others
who have more talent than you do. Or, it could be that a festival's preview
staff member does not appreciate your material as much as the next person (on
that staff). That is why festivals give each entry at least two previews (at least, we do)-- so as not to rely on just one person's opinion. However,
in Hollywood, talent agency and
production company staff members do have
an agenda. And that agenda is:
covering their backsides-- because if they say "yes" (to a screenplay,
for example) and their bosses say “no,” then their jobs
are on the line! With
festival preview staffs, there is no hidden agenda (at least, again, not with our festivals).
Entertainment value is the primary consideration when we select entries for our
events. For that is what it really boils down to.
Will an audience enjoy this material? Remember:
You (the artist) are participating in the entertainment
business. Even if it is a documentary, an audience must either be entertained,
enlightened, and/or appreciate the documentary. That is why Michael Moore's docs
are so popular! Besides having talent, his documentaries are all of the above--
plus very controversial-- and that is why a lot of people enjoy his docs. In
closing, I say this: If you cannot accept rejection-- and whine about not being
selected into festivals, then don't bother entering. I produce our festivals
because I am one of you-- an independent filmmaker and screenwriter. And, I do
seek to help the independent artist succeed, because that is the world (the independent world) where inspired,
uninhibited, and fresh, new ideas are born and breed. However, and I mean this,
I would rather receive fewer entries than deal with a lot of whiners. Michael
Carr is a published author, a professional screenwriter, an independent
filmmaker, the director of the internationally acclaimed independent film and
screenwriting festivals (Telluride IndieFest and Key West IndieFest), and
executive producer of Queso Productions (http://www.quesoproductions.com).
Email: mc@quesoproductions.com. |
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