In the old days, script writers had a very difficult time pitching their scripts in Hollywood. One had to not only move to Hollywood, but jump through many hoops to get their script in the hands of an agent or producer just for it to get thrown in the trash over and over again.
There’s the inspiring story of Sylvester Stallone, where he was flat broke and tried to have his script taken by a producer, only to be rejected repeatedly until one finally took the plunge and believed in him. Stories like this are a common occurrence among the greats, like George Lucas with Star Wars, which ran on a tiny budget and had several setbacks that made it nearly impossible to film and finish. The studio didn’t believe it would be much of a hit, but it turned out to break records with an over $350 million return in box-office sales. This is the challenge that most writers have faced when trying to have a breakout with their scripts and make it into actual production. It’s a wonder that most of these writers stuck with it so long without giving up.
Now, instead of moving to Los Angeles, there’s an option that’s available via the use of the internet. There is a new platform that is making waves, allowing script writers to pitch to sponsors on the website, getting noticed in a much easier fashion and a very niche pool of writers. There are some reviews surfacing about the effectiveness of Virtual Pitch Fest, and how, despite some possible negatives, it allows writers access to the Hollywood group that they so desperately fought to get in front of over the last several decades. It lets writers focus entirely on the creative content that they’re producing and not worry so much about how they can get it in front of executives. Their energy can now be redirected to what their strengths are — writing, which in turns benefits everyone that its geared towards. More energy put into the writing means more energy into how creative these scripts can get, which can arguably give us better ideas on the big screen, plays, and TV shows, instead of having re-hashes of old movies and shows.
For more information, check out this Virtual Pitchfest Q&A with the founder, David Zuckerman, that goes over some of the goals and neat benefits to using VPF. You can also check them out on twitter.