1. Brigitta Manthey

2. successful
RUN, LOLA RUN by Tom Tykwer (1998)

3. successful
GOOD BYE, LENIN! by Wolfgang Becker (2003)

4. successful THE LIVES OF OTHERS
by Florian Henkel von Donnersmarck (2006)

5. successful
RABBIT WITHOUT EARS
by Til Schweiger (2007)

6. successful
THE WHITE RIBBON by Michael Haneke (2009)

7. Wanna be successful?

8. …but what is a good script?
there are three rules to a good script - but nobody knows one of them (Paul Schrader)
„nobody knows anything“ ! ?
everything is subject to individual taste ! ?
a good story is an original story ! ?
dramaturgical craftsmanship or anti-structure ?
identity or meaning ?
…and what is it about the communication with an audience???

9. 8 reasons for rejection
beginning is unclear, complicated & does not get you into the story
protagonist is too passiv
sagging second act does not advance to the third act
ending is too sudden or too explicative or still open
facts are lacking research
story is too complex, overcharged, wants to please everybody & everyone
 dialogues – too many / too bad
 nothing new - ‚we had it all before!‘

10. nobody knows anything…
with lack of competence & waiver of quality check…
…. what do we get?
 misconceptions or pseudo-communication about filmprojects
absence of talks about optimization of a script
wrong diagnosis of a script with financial risk
a product left to mere chance
let‘s get the opinion of funders…

11. …so what is a good script?
a good script is not everything, but without a good script everything is nothing! (unknown author)
is emotional
is locigal
knows it‘s rules
works with people!
a good script

12. some facts in business filmstories are
the raw-material & the key currency of the film business
a promise to a latter film
not exclusively artistic, but also an economic product
no product is offered to a market without a quality-check!
products with quality-check sell better!

13. … and some more facts there is no routine in the filmbusiness
filmmaking is teamwork, but business-people‘s know-how is heterogenious
the relation of scripwriter & producer is important
there is a interlocking of development & production processes
money is the foodstuff of film  let‘s think strategically!
what is quality? - it can be planed!

14. here we have a nice script!
is it a good idea & a strong concept for a filmstory?
is the story logical & emotional?
does it follow rules?
is it standard or something else?
does it communicate?
can it be summarized it in two or three sentences?
potential for cinema or television or both?
potential for larger or smaller audiences? (best represented by the theme)
is it a good script?
 the quality of a script can not be objectively measured or ultimately prooved
 to determine the quality of a script is far reaching & difficult, but also with all chances

15. check and double check you have been working for long on a script?
writer, co-writer, dramaturg, producer know exactly what they want & know their project by heart?
but there is this uneasy feeling …
have a bird fly over it & have a good look on the whole!

16. the reader‘s report – what is it?
first & most objective, easy attainable assessment of a filmscript at a certain point of time
quality check & decision aid along professional standards, applied to individual materials for a script
3 to 4 page-expertise of an independent reader
with a
summary
examination & evaluation
final rating

17. 3 to 4 pages

18. for whom? writers directors producers dramaturgs editors financiers
funders
distributors
banks
agents
(audiences!)
on the desks of producers & editors usually unsolicited sent in scripts pile up…
financiers & distributors want to sort out the promising idea sketch from an only feasable skript…
actor‘s agents look for leading roles in quality-scripts – strong, cool, hipp & relevant 

19. at any step to a final script
idea
story outline
treatment
step outline
first draft
further drafts
director‘s draft
final script (shooting-script)

20. front page

21. résumé of content

22. detailed commentary

23. reader‘s standard questionnaire

24. reader‘s standard questionnaire

25. types of reader‘s reports
second opinion
reader‘s report in comparison
reader‘s report for legal purposes
Story-Notes
advanced reader‘s report

26. reader‘s standard for story notes
max. 5 Pages
no synopsis
a technical listing of things – no elegant prosa
clear structure, easy reading
What decision-makers want to know:
not only identification of problems, but rather radical solutions
how does the film work in the head of scriptwriter or producer
what is his vision for the film?

27. 10 chances of a reader‘s report
avoids blindness to the shortcomings in one‘s work & possible disappointment
triggers necessary irritation
initiates discussion & new directions of thinking and developing
considers the marketability of a project
serves as argumentation aid
best at the intersection of writer, producer, editor & funder
safety net for decisions in a company or institution
ready made information – also for subsequent use
saves money & life-time
easy to get & for little coin!

28. last not least: 3 truths
If you have 10 readers read your script , you will get 10 different opinions !
(unknown)
Personal choices and feelings are the elements of the creative process, which is unique to every screenwriter, and to each and every screenplay and filmproject!
(Philip Parker)
You are an artist now and then, but you have to be a craftsman all the time!
(Andrej Wajda)

29. contact