This week's rebroadcast from 2008 walks writers through the structure of a general meeting.
Itâs a bit of a time capsule, because since the start of the pandemic, most general meetings have been taking place on Zoom. Still, the priorities remain the same regardless of the format. As a writer, you want to make a good impression while carefully listening for what opportunities might present themselves.
Meetings are a crucial part of a professional screenwriterâs job. Even when youâre not pitching a specific project, youâre basically pitching yourself as someone worth hiring in the future. So youâre right to be thinking about what you should say, do, and wear. (In fact, Iâve already addressed that last point.)
Let me briefly lay out the structure of every first meeting Iâve had in Hollywood.
The meeting is set for 10 a.m. You get there at 9:55. An assistant asks you if youâd like anything to drink. The proper answer is, âA water would be great.â1 This phrasing makes it clear that the request has been heard and appreciated, and that you havenât mistaken them for a server.
The assistant will bring you the beverage, then inform you that the agent/executive/producer is running a few minutes late. This is completely expected. Entertain yourself with your iPhone or copies of Variety laying nearby. If the assistant is nearby and doesnât seem particularly busy with some other task, engage in conversation. Thereâs a pretty good chance this assistant will run Hollywood someday, so it never hurts to be friendly.
When the agent/executive/producer calls you in to their office, try to figure out which seat they like to sit in. Generally, youâre safe sitting on the couch. If itâs a two-chair situation, you might as well ask, âDo you have a favorite chair?â Because if you sit in his spot, youâre just starting the meeting off on the wrong foot.2
The first topic of conversation will be about one of four things:
Something they read of yours that they liked
A mutual acquaintance
The office: either the view, or how they just moved in
A movie that came out this past weekend.3
This is a warm-up period, and is not scored.
While engaged in this conversation, listen for the word which signals the end of the period: âSo.â
As in, âSo, tell me about the kinds of things you write,â or âSo, let me tell you a little about our company, and the movies weâre trying to make.â At this point, judging begins. If itâs mostly a listening exercise, be ready to restate their points in different words, preferably with insightful analogies to successful movies.4
If they ask you to talk, say three smart things. Then get them talking again.
EXEC
So, is that the kind of thing you mostly want to write, is thrillers?
YOU
Thanks. Yeah, I love thrillers. I mean, I love all genres, but whatâs great about thrillers is you get to do the character work setting up motivations, you get the puzzle aspect of plotting, and real stakes. With comedies and dramas, you get one or two of those, but thrillers are the whole package.
EXEC
I hadnât thought of it that way.
YOU
You take a movie like Collateral, and it can be funny and tight and dangerous.
EXEC
I worked on Collateral.
YOU
I love that movie. How did that come about? Was that a book?
This process will continue for ten to 20 minutes, at which point they may pull out a buck slip5 listing all of the companyâs open writing assignments. (Or in the case of agent/managers, a list of studios and development companies.) After a little more discussion, they thank you for coming in.
This is your signal to stand, shake their hand, and leave. Say goodbye to the assistant. Remember to ask if you need to validate.
If thereâs any specific project you talked about, follow up the next day with an email. If you donât have their email address, itâs fair to call the assistant and ask if you can email the assistant something for the boss. You donât need to send thank you notes and such.
When I first signed with an agent, he sent me out on 15 meetings. I was meeting junior executives at companies that had never made a movie. But it was smart of my agent to set those meetings, because it gave me a lot of practice â which I needed, because I was terrible. By the time I was taking meetings for Go, I was pretty unflappable, even in the face of egregious behavior.
My overall advice is to not freak out over any given meeting. Pretend itâs just having coffee with somebody who went to your same school. Unless youâre pitching a specific project, donât approach it with any particular expectation, and itâs likely to go fine.
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You may also ask for a Diet Coke. These are the only beverages you can be reasonably assured will be on the premises, and not a hassle leading to frustration or extra work. Back in the day (say, 1999), you could also ask for a âSnapple-type beverage.â But no one drinks Snapple anymore.
Meeting with multiple executives is an extra-credit situation, and generally necessitates asking about who sits where.
Only appropriate if the meeting is on Monday, and the movie did significantly better or worse than expected.
Bonus points if you can include movies they've worked on. Box-office disappointments are okay, particularly if there are praiseworthy aspects.
A buck slip is a piece of heavy paper cut down to roughly 4Ă10 inches, which is often attached to a script in lieu of a typed letter. Iâm not sure they even exist in other industries.