Options (Re: [UA] The Screenplay (was Re: [UA] Dream)

[John Nephew]

>     I'm not saying I want to buy an option right now (actually, I'm
looking
> forward to being able to buy myself dinner again sometime soon), but what
do
> you think the cost would be?

Well...I wouldn't actually suggest a cost unless I was speaking to someone
who was definitely interested and able to make a deal.  And then it would
depend on a number of factors.  The first option deal I signed, I was
willing to settle for a very small dollar amount, mainly because the whole
process of negotiating it and getting all the details involved was a big
educational experience that I wanted to go through.  Understanding the
reality that most options expire unused, and most projects go nowhere, I
would be more inclined to simply ask for a bigger chunk of money to make it
worth my time to negotiate the deal -- and to brush off people who don't
really have the resources to do anything with it.  But who knows?

------------------------------------------------------
John Nephew    voice (651) 638-0077 fax (651) 638-0084
President, Atlas Games             www.atlas-games.com



>

> Kevin Mowery________________profbobo at io.com
> "'Jaws' is the warmest, tenderest, lovingest movie of
> the year.  I give it four coconuts."               --Idi Amin
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "John Nephew" <john at atlas-games.com>
> To: <ua at lists.uchicago.edu>
> Sent: Tuesday, June 20, 2000 11:26 AM
> Subject: Options (Re: [UA] The Screenplay (was Re: [UA] Dream)
>
>
> > > Lastly, in a backwards-from-the-norm step, if someone were to write a
> > really
> > > >cool UA screenplay, what would it take to get the Atlas stamp of
> > approval?
> > > >(Obviously, this last is a question for people who actually work for
> > Atlas.)
> >
> > Sorry, I hadn't been following the thread closely...
> >
> > If you are completely serious and you want to have an official Stamp of
> > Approval(tm), what you need to do is actually buy a movie option, which
> > gives you an exclusive right to develop and shop a script based on the
UA
> > property over a specified period of time.  Most properties that are
> optioned
> > never become movies (or TV shows or whatever), but that's the way it
> works.
> >
> > The problem about NOT getting an option is that you're even more on spec
> > than you are normally when you write a script on spec -- not only might
a
> > studio not like your work, but they won't even consider it unless you
have
> > an option sewn up...and if you didn't get the option nailed down before
> > writing the script, you might find that the intellectual property holder
> has
> > already sold an option to somebody else.
> >
> > Then again, if you're not in a position where you already know all this
> and
> > are making some kind of living doing screenwriting...you probably don't
> want
> > to throw money or time into getting an option anyhow.  But there would
be
> > nothing to stop you from working on a script for fun, and if it turned
out
> > to be fantabulous and you wanted to be able to shop it to studios, then
> you
> > could see if the option was available (or when it would be, if some
other
> > option had been purchased but looked likely to expire unused).
> >
> > Does this make any sense?  My brain feels a little addled today so I
hope
> > I'm making sense...
> >
> > If someone IS interested in optioning the UA property for motion picture
> > adaptation, they should contact me directly.
> >
> > ------------------------------------------------------
> > John Nephew    voice (651) 638-0077 fax (651) 638-0084
> > President, Atlas Games             www.atlas-games.com
> >
> >
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> > UA mailing list
> > UA at lists.uchicago.edu
> > http://lists.uchicago.edu/mailman/listinfo/ua
> >
>
>
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