The document provides an overview of the role of a scriptwriter, outlining the key stages and considerations involved. It discusses the commissioning process, including the roles of commissioning editors, producers, directors and others who contribute. Writers must meet various demands such as professional presentation, developing communication skills, and managing their time well. When writing scripts, legal and ethical issues around copyright, bias, censorship and watershed restrictions must also be addressed to avoid problems.

1. Chaz Zalesinski
Exploring the Role Of A Scriptwriter
As manypeople know,there are manydifferentroleswithinthe mediaindustrythatcontribute toa
productionof a givenproduct.Anoften-overlookedrole withinthe productionof amediapiece is
the role a scriptwriter,whichcanbe simplifiedintothreemainstages:commissioning,the demands
and requirements,andlegal andethical considerations.Inthisreportwe will take acloserlookat
each of these stages,aswell asdivingdeeperintotheirsubstagesandlookingintohow eachof
these impactsthe productionprocess.
Commissioning
Before a writercanbeginanysort of workon a project,theymustfirstbe employedtodoso,which
iswhenthe commissioningprocesscomesintoplay. Manyaudiencesare oftenunaware of the
processof productionknownascommissioning,evenif theydon’trealisethatthisishow each
productionstarts.The commissioningstage canbe describedasthe permissiontobeginworkingon
a project,or the ‘greenlight’tobeginworkingona production.Thiscanalsomeanthe authorization
of a certainbudgetor the approval of a particularplotor storyline,buttoa writerit isessentiallythe
permitted‘goahead’toletthemknowthattheyhave beenpermittedtobeginwritingbasedon
theirsuccessful initial pitchof agivenidea.
There are six mainjobroleswithinthisstage,eachof whichwe will now consider.Firstly, comesthe
role of the CommissioningEditor,whichcanbe simplifiedtosomeone that chooses(orinsome
casespurchases) aninitial ideafora commission,aswell asallocatingfundsforitssupport.A
CommissioningEditorwilloftenspecialise withinaparticulargenre of a productionandwill have
creative inputaswell asoversee the project’swritingprocess. Toputitsimply,itisthe
CommissioningEditorthatobtainsthe original ideafora productionandthenhasit sentto a later
stage. Withoutthisrole,there wouldbe nobodythere tofindthe talentthatoriginallyproposesthe
ideafora production,meaningthatthe role of a CommissioningEditoriscrucial to the
commissioningprocess,whichinturnmakesitcrucial to the entiretyof aproject’sproduction
process.
Next,we will considerthe role of the producer.Again,alotof people are oftenunaware of justhow
importantthisrole iswithinthe mediaindustry.The Produceroverseesthe areasof productionthat
are notcoveredbythe director,e.g.the financial andlegal considerationsof aproject,therefore
makingthe Produceran essential partof anyproductionacrossthe differentTypesof media.
The Director,on the otherhand,overseesalmostall of the creative aspectsof aproduction.They
provide the visionwithinaprojectthatthe editors andtechniciansthenworkfrom.The Directorwill
be givena scriptwrittenbythe screenwriter,andwill theninterpretitastheysee fit,givingthe
writerlittle ornocontrol overthe processfromthispointonward.A good example of someone that
has workedbothas a Directorand ProducerisStevenSpielberg,specificallywithinthe ‘JurassicPark’
franchise.While he maynotbe involvedwithinthe moderntrilogyasthe Directorlike he didwith
the original films, he isstill involvedwithinthemasanExecutive Producer,givinghimareasonable
level of control overthe productionbutalsogivingareasonable amountof free reigntoTrevorow,
the newdirectorof the franchise.
Anothercrucial role withinthe commissioningprocessisthe role of aScript Editor. Thisperson
servesasa type of guide forthe Screenwriter, analysingthe productof theirworkand thenhelping
themto strengthentheirscreenplaybyprovidingcritique andoutliningvisible problems,without
providingthe solutionstothem.The ScriptEditorsteersthe Screenwriterinthe rightdirection
duringthe writingprocess,allowingthemtooptimisetheirscreenplayandgai a betterchance of
havingthat scriptbeingselectedforthe final production.
Anotherimportantrole withinthe commissioningprocessisthe role of anAgent.Itis the Agent’s
responsibilitytofindworkfortheirclients aswell asorganise theircontractsandnegotiate

2. Chaz Zalesinski
appropriate dealswhentheirclientisofferedaparticularjob. AnAgentalsohelpstheirclientbuild
relationshipswithindustrydecision-makersaswell asguide themintheircareers.
Finally,the mostpivotal role withinthe commissioningprocessisthe Screenwriterhimself (or
herself). The Screenwriteris responsibleforwritingthe initial screenplayfora projectand isalso
responsible forthe researchthatgoesintothe screenwritingprocessaswell asstickingtoa waythat
meetsthe brief inthe appropriate format. MostWritersworkfreelance,althoughsometimesthey
are putin teamsto workon specificprojects,allowingforpeerinputandahigherrate of efficiency.
All of the job roleslistedabove contribute tothe commissioningstage,butitisalsoimportantto
note the act of commissioning itself.
A commissioncanbe made throughseveral differentgroupsknownas‘commissioningbodies.’
These bodiesprovidedifferentkindsof opportunitiesfordifferentkindsof writersindifferentstages
of theircareerstoget themselvesnoticedandpossiblyselectedforaprojectand takenon board.
There are five majorbodiesthroughwhichawritercanfindwork:Corporations,Independent
ProductionCompanies,IndependentDirectors,OrganisationsandCompetitions.
Takinga closerlookat commissioningthroughCorporations,one cannotice thatmanyCorporations
such as Sony,DisneyandFox have a pitchingformatthatgoesthroughestablishedrelationshipswith
a certainCorporation,sothat whoeverisbeingconsideredtobe broughton-boarda projecthas
alreadyworkedonothersuccessful projects,therefore ensuringa‘safe bet’whenhiringthemfora
project. AnimportantthingtoconsideraboutthiscommissioningbodyisthatCorporationshave full
control overthe entiretyof theirproduction,includingfunding,marketing,distributionetc.This
meansthat theyhave almostcomplete creativefreedomintheirproduction,therefore allowingfor
a unique experience foranyone thatworksonthese projects. Forexample,bigUKCorporationssuch
as the BBC allowforwritersto submittheirscriptstothemon theirwebsite,andif a particularscript
isenjoyedbythe staff andalsopopularamong the public(asthe scriptscan oftenbe publicly
accessedanddownloaded) itmaybe commissionedbythe BBCto produce the givenscriptintoa
program forone of theirchannels.
IndependentProductionCompaniesworksimilarlytoCorporations,howevertheydonottake
ownershipof theirworkfully,insteadstrikingdealswithothercompaniestohave theirworks
producedi.e.broadcastingsomethingonanothercompany’snetwork. Withinthiscommissioning
bodywriterscan submittheirscriptsdirectlytoIPCs,allowingforasimplercommissioningprocess
and movingonto productionmore smoothly.
Organisationsaimtheircommissioningtomore prospectivewriters,helpingthemtokick-starttheir
careersand move onto highercommissioningbodies,howevertheyare justasimportantas all of
the othercommissioningbodies. Organisationssuchasthe BBC Writer’sRoomand The Writers’
Guildof Great Britainalsosupportwritersacrossdifferentmediaplatforms,including television,
radioand evenvideogames.
Competitionsare alsoa goodway fora writertoget theirscreenplaynoticed,thoughwinningone of
these Competitionsis notanimmediate tickettosuccess.However,winningone of these
Competitionsprovidesahigherprobabilitythatyourscreenplaywill getnoticedbypotential
managers,agentsandproducers,possiblyallowingforakick-startinone’scareer. Oftenafter
winningthese typesof competitions,writershave beenknowntohave beenable tosell theirscripts
and start theircareersstrongly,sothisparticularcommissioningbodycanalsobe consideredagod
wayto get noticedbyimportantindividualswithinthe mediaindustry.
Demands and Requirements
Workingas a Writercan prove to be verychallenginginsome aspectsof the job.Inthissectionof
the reportwe will take acloserlookat the demandsandrequirementsof awriter’sjob.

3. Chaz Zalesinski
One keyfactor within awriter’sjobisprofessional presentation. Whenwritingascript,a writermust
formattheirworkappropriately,takingintoaccountthe document’sfont,textsize,adequate
captitalisationetc. If ascriptis notformattedcorrectly,itwill likelynotevenbe readbya
commissioningbody,whichiswhere the role of aScriptEditorbecomescrucial to a writer’scareer
as it istheywhosteerthemon the rightpath and helpthempresenttheirworkprofessionally,again
solidifyingtheircrucial role withinthe mediaindustry.Infact,manyScriptEditorscommenton the
fact that presentationisthe mostcommonissue amongwriters,whichagainshowsthatprofessional
presentationhasapivotal role eveninthe hiringof awriter.
As discussedearlier,anAgentcanalsobe a crucial assetto a writerseekingtoworkwithbiggerand
more establishedcompanies,asmanyof these large companieswill notacceptanyone thatisnot
representedbyanagent. The Agentlooksafterthe salesandworkloadof theirclient,aswell as
seekingoutjobopportunitiesandstrikingdealswithwell payingproductioncompaniesandother
commissioningbodies.The mountof paythat an AgentreceivesvariesfromAgenttoAgent,
howevertheyusuallynegotiate arate between10-25% withtheirclient,meaningthatthiswouldbe
the fractionof theirclient’spayona certainprojectthattheywouldreceive. Havinganexperienced
Agentthat hasestablishedrelationshipswithbigcompaniesisahuge advantage fora writer,asit
opensupmany windowsof opportunityforthemtofinda well-payingwritingjobandbuild
relationshipsthatwill helpthemastheircareerprogresses.
Whenworkingasa writer,averyimportant thingthat one mustdevelopistheircommunication
skill.Whetheritbe intheirpitchorwithintheirscriptitself,theirworkmustalwaysbe able to
communicate clearlywhattheirintentionsandideasare sothat whoeverislistening,be itan
audience memberoran industryprofessional,mayfullyunderstandwhattheyare tryingtoachieve,
howtheyare tryingto achieve it,andwhethertheyare worthfinancinginthisendeavorornot.
Developingcommunicationskillscouldmake the difference betweenbeinghiredorrejectedfora
writer.
Duringthe scriptwritingprocessitself,anotherimportantskill thatawritermustdevelopisagood
level ortime management. While writingascript,itisimportantthat a writerdoesnotbecome
distractedandthat theydo notwaste any time,aspostponingthe writingof ascriptwill notonly
delayitsfinishingbutcouldalsocause the writertolose interestinthe narrative andgive up
altogether.Whenworkingwithanextendedteamof writers, whichalreadyrequiresagooduse of
communicationandcollaborative skills, gettingdistractedcouldmeanputtingeveryone else behind
schedule andnotmeetingthe properdeadlinesforthe finishingof a script,whichwouldputthe rest
of the productionbehindscheduleandcouldleadtomoneyloss.Hence whytime managementisa
crucial skill foranywriterwhentheyare workingona project,whetheritbe individuallyoras a team
as it ultimatelywillbe amajorinconvenience foreveryone involved,includingthe writers
themselves.
Once the script iscomplete andhasbeenviewedandperfected withthe helpof the ScriptEditor,
the writerwill thensell the screenplay,andreceivewhat’scalled‘royaltypayments’ whichnotonly
consistof the paymentprovidedforthe scriptitself butalsoforthe salesof the writtenfilm, book,
game etc. These paymentswillbe splitbetweenthe writer,theirAgentandthe Producers,andmay
vary dependingonthe commissioningbodyandsalesof the final product.Afterthe scriptissold,the
writerwill onlyholdthe rightsthatwere agreeduponitspurchase. Once the scriptissoldthe writer
doesnothave any creative control overwhathappensnextduringproduction,unlesstheyare
broughton as an advisoror are rankedupto produce the screenplay. Whilemanyscreenplayscan
be purchasedwithinthe mediaindustry,thisdoesnotguarantee theirproduction,asstatisticsshow
that more screenplaysare purchasedthanthere are available directorstoproduce them.Because of
this,manyproductioncompanieswill ‘option’ascript,meaningthattheywill purchase the rightsto
it fora certainamountof time (givingthemthe optiontoproduce it) andwhile thisperiodlastsno
othercompanieshave the righttouse thisparticularscriptwithintheirprojects.Afterthistime
passeshoweverandnothinghasbeenproduceduponitsbasis,itwill thenonce againbe up for
purchase to give someone else the optionof producingit.

4. Chaz Zalesinski
Legal and Ethical
Whenworkingona script,a writermustnot onlyconsiderthe topicsthatI have formerly discussed
but mustalsotake into considerationthe legal andethical issuesthatmayarise withinthe content
that theyare creating,includingcopyrightinfringements,ethical representationsandthe content
that theyare includingwithintheirnarrative.
One of the mostprominentof acknowledgementsthata writermusttake intoaccount isthe ideaof
copyright.While theirownworkwill alsobe copyrightprotectedif itisanoriginal idea,theymust
alsobe cautiousof steppingintothe territoryof anotherperson’scopyrightedconceptand
infringingtheircopyright.If thiscopyrightinfringementoccurs,itcouldleadtomany legal and
financial problems,includinglawsuits,thatwouldthenleadontoa possible resolutiontothe
problem.Aninfringementlikethisisknownasplagiarism, anditisa problemthatwritersmustbe
aware of and be verycautiousof avoidingit.
Anotherthingthata writermustconsiderwhenwritingtheirscriptisLibel andBias.Libel referstoa
maliciousmisrepresentationof acertainindividual within the piece of media,whichiswhere a
writer’sresearchskillsprove tobe veryimportantanduseful.Biasonthe otherhandmay not deal
withmaliciousmisrepresentation,butwithabiasedview onacertainindividual orgroupof people.
A piece of mediamaypresentone kindof individualorgroupas superiorandanotheras inferior,
whichwouldbe a verywell-knowncase of a biasedmediaproduct. Thisiswhy,whenwritinga
script,the writermusttry to stay as neutral as possible (consideringthe nature of theirproductand
whetherornot itis possible toremain100% unbiased).
Anotherthingthatmust be takenintoaccount duringthe creationof a script iscensorship.Thisissue
can be summarizedbythe ideaof eachproductioncompanyhavingitsownvalues,andeachtarget
audience havingtheirownsetsowndo’sanddon’ts.If a writeriswell aware of theirtargetaudience
and knowswhattheyare andaren’tallowedtoinclude withintheirpiece,thencensorshipshould
not be a problemforthem,again showingthata writer’sresearchskillsare keytoa successful
career.Censorshipusuallycoversthingslike druguse,sexualcontent,violence,discriminationand
language,andif a writerdoesnottailorthe latterappropriatelytofitwithinthe demandedtarget
audience thenthese thingsmayneedtobe cut or evencensored.A goodexample of extreme
censorshipcouldcome fromChina.Asa whole,the Chinese mediaindustrytake the censorshipof
violence andcertainotherpractices(oftenculturallyoriented) veryseriously,tothe pointwhere,in
some extreme cases,entire scenesare prohibitedfrombeingshowntothe Chinese publictoensure
the safetyandwell-beingof the national audiences.
Stayingonthe topicof sensitive contentwithinthe media,whenwritingascript,a writermay want
to take intoaccount the watershed.The watershedreferstoaspecifictime duringthe evening
(usually9pmthoughinsome casesit can be 8pm) afterwhichsensitivecontentmaybe shownon
publictelevision(thiscanalsoapplytoradioand otherbroadcastingnetworks).The rule of the
watershedcanbe appliedtobothmediaproductionsaswell asadvertisements,meaningthatthe
timedcensorshipaffectsall withinthe mediaindustry.The mediathatisairedafterthe watershed
oftenincludesadultthemes,andthe broadcastsstartwithfilmsrated12-15 while slowlyeasinginto
the more extreme R-ratedproductions.Inthe UK,the watershedbeginsat9pm andendsat 5:30am,
meaningthatthe more extreme contentwouldlikelyairduringthe very earlyhoursof the day.
There isno watershedonPIN-protectedbroadcastingchannelssuchasSky,howeverthese are of
course PIN-protectedandwouldtherefore require apasscode toaccess,againensuringthe safetyof
youngerviewersthatmayviewthese typesof channels.
As I have shownthroughoutthisreport,whenproducingascript,a writerhas manydifferentthings
that theymusttake intoaccount in orderto make sure that what theyare producingisadequate
accordingto the companythattheyare producingitfor, as well astheirtargetaudience.Ihave also
shownthat itis importantfora writerto be knowledgeable onthe formattingof theirworkaswell

5. Chaz Zalesinski
as theirtime managementandothersuchskills.The writermustactprofessionallythroughoutboth
the commissioningstage andthe writingstage of theirscreenplay.Theymustalsoacquire the
appropriate assetssuchas an Agenttoensure theirworkisas effectiveasitcan be. To putthings
simply,if awriterisseeking tobe chosenbya specificcommissioningbody,theymustfirstuse their
researchskillstolookintowhattheywill needtoappearadequate tothisbodyandwouldthen
againneedto use theirresearchskillstoavoidanyfurthertrouble duringandafterthe writing
process.Inotherwords,in a writer’scase,knowledge ispower,asitallowsforan optimum
presentationaswell asaneffectivewayof working,all of whichare essential tobeingasuccessful
writer.