Hot Topics to Help Sell a Script

If you are exploring writing and selling a script, you might research which types of films are winning awards in various industry festivals or contests. For example, for the third year in a row at the January 2008 Sundance Film Festival, a movie about immigrants claimed the top prize. So, three years running film watchers preferred stories about the struggles of immigrants. That gives you an indication about what producers or directors may be interested in, and if you can write a similar story, perhaps the odds will increase in terms of selling your script.

“Frozen River” is the first feature from director-writer Courtney Hunt, adapted from her own 2004 short of the same name. It’s a film about a struggling single mother in upstate New York who teams with a Mohawk woman to smuggle people across the Canadian border. Another top Sundance winner, “Trouble the Water,” is a documentary about the survival of a New Orleans couple through Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath. Stories about hot news topics of the day also could prove enticing to script readers and also improve your chances of selling a script.

Selling a Script by Name Only

Then there’s what you call your story. At Sundance in 2008, jokes were made about the titles of some films, such as “Downloading Nancy,” or “The Wackness.” Ultimately Sony Pictures Classics bought “Frozen River” for just under $1 million. “Man on Wire” won the world cinema jury and audience awards as a documentary about French artist Philippe Petit’s illegal 1974 wire-walk between the twin towers of the World Trade Center. A small Swedish production called “King of Ping Pong (Ping Pongkingen)” also claimed not one but two honors, for Grand Jury Prize for Best Dramatic Feature (world cinema), and the World Cinematography Award (dramatic competition). Granted, the films indeed may have had great stories and polished production. But a story’s name just might give you a bit more kick in terms of selling a script. Festival director Geoffrey Gilmore noted directors at Sundance in 2008 included 11 first-time filmmakers.

There also are hot themes to think about, such as water, as two 2008 Sundance winners included large bodies of water in the titles. Or science fiction, as Alex Rivera’s “Sleep Dealer” won the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award, and the Alfred P. Sloan Prize for a film with science or technology as a theme. The world cinema screenwriting award went to France’s Samuel Benchetrit for “I Always Wanted to be a Gangster.” Unique film titles just might prove attractive to script readers as you’re trying to sell a script.

Other Hot Topics When Trying to Sell a Script

Other topics hot at Sundance in 2008 were, according to audience awards, teen comedy, the oil crisis, airplane crashes, a heavy metal band, and a minor league baseball player from the Dominican Republic. It seems topics are aplenty that can be attractive to directors, producers, and audiences alike. You may very well have experience or knowledge of the topics noted above, and if so perhaps you should give a shot to writing such a story and trying to sell your script.

On a broader scale, the Salt Lake Tribune noted that “Stories of desperate people in poverty were the big winners at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival.” One film about poverty, “Ballast,” won awards for directing and cinematography. The movie is set in the Mississippi Delta, and deals with a man’s suicide and how his twin brother, ex-wife and son come together. “The Wackness” is a comedy about a teen marijuana dealer and his pot-smoking shrink. Talk about unusual topics to write about. But in the end, readers and viewers desire something different. This may indicate that you need to stay away from overdone or cookie-cutter stories when trying to sell a script.