Why do some screenplays get green lit, while others never see the light of day?

Join us this week for some behind-the-scenes intel from a studio script reader, a self-described "first gatekeeper" who's been part of the process of getting stories from page to screen for over two decades.

"One of the first things you learn as a reader is, even on the worst script, you have to say something nice. And that is partly so the execs can get on the phone and have your coverage in their hands and be like, 'We really like the character of, uh... "Joe," but unfortunately we already have something similar in development.'"

We discuss the method behind the apparent Hollywood madness of what gets made, including how some scripts improve through the development process, while others end up getting... ugh... "noted to death."

"I've seen stuff in development where it was like, there was something special about this script, and you killed it."

Listen in to hear stories of how films you've definitely heard of made it from the reader's desk to the screen... including one that almost didn't. And hear how our confessor stumbled onto this hard-to-find career path... and discovered, against all odds, that it was actually their dream job.

Have you had experience as a Hollywood script reader? Confess! Send us a DM @fessuphollywood or leave us a comment. We'd love to hear from you!

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Check out some of our favorite shows:

• Screenwriters' Rant Room
• Screaming into the Hollywood Abyss
• It Happened in Hollywood
• The Secret History of Hollywood

Hollywood Confessional is a Ninth Way Media production, produced by Meagan Daine and J.R. Zamora-Thal.

Sound Effects and Music provided by Zapsplat and Pixabay.

Keywords: filmmaking podcast, film podcast, screenwriting podcast, entertainment podcast, Hollywood, filmmaking, writerslife, actorslife, setlife