The 5 paths to Hollywood success.

The Entertainment Industry is cutthroat and chaotic. But there are clearly outlined paths to success. Some are easier than others. None are guaranteed. Read on to determine which one is for you.

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One of the most frustrating parts about the path to being a professional screenwriter is that it isn’t a clear ladder.

This is why many writers seek film school degrees, assistantships, and literary managers. You want to be told “Do X and it will result in the career that you seek.” Unfortunately, it’s not so clear cut as this. There is no meritocracy in Hollywood, and those who seek to be rewarded for time, effort, dedication, desire, or loyalty will find themselves sorely disappointed when decades of work do not return the favor.

Although the paths are winding and not guaranteed, they are there.

You have choices.

If you’re just starting out, it’s important to know which path is right for you. If you’re in the middle of your journey, it’s important to know where you currently are so that you can be honest about what is working for you and what you’re missing.

So read on, and I will break down the five paths to screenwriting success so you can decide which one to pursue.

We’ll go in order from easiest to hardest.

#1 - Have a famous relative

Unfortunately, the most guaranteed path to success is nepotism.

It might be silly for me to include this on my list because it’s not actionable for you. But I think it’s essential to remember that this is an option for many people. Whether you're trying to get hired, sell a script, or chase a specific opportunity, the person you lose out to is probably related to a big shot.

Don’t let this get you down.

It means you have to try even harder to stand out.

Examples: Max Landis, Ishana Shyamalan, Zelda Williams, Sam Levinson

Photo by Aman on Unsplash

Steps:

1. Be born to the right family.

2. Attend fancy private school for years.

3. Shadow film sets at an early age.

4. Learn the craft by creating your own art.

Pros:

• It’s playing Hollywood on Easy Mode.

• Lots of connections open themselves up to you.

• You get a jump start on learning from a young age.

• Proximity to all aspects of the business.

• If you observe closely, you can learn from the mistakes of others.

Cons:

• People are mean to you sometimes.

• You do still have to actually do the work of writing a script.

• Insecurity that comes from wondering if you would have been able to make it without the extra help.

• Pressure of constantly being compared to your parents.

This path is available to only a lucky few. If you’re an outsider, you’re going to have to choose one of the other four below. That’s okay, that’s what I had to do too, and I blame my parents for it every day.

#2 - The Film School to Assistant to Executive pipeline

Those of us who had no other path into this industry often started at film school.

At age 18, sometimes it’s the only option that makes any sense. We are taught by society (and by our parents) that college is essential, and these programs pour tons of money into recruiting hopeful writers and filmmakers. It can feel validating to be admitted into a prestigious film program, but once you graduate, the work has only just begun.

From there, you need to get a job. Since writing and/or directing for money is still a pipe dream to many recent graduates, the next step is to get a job as an assistant while continuing to work on your own script samples on the side.

This route is a slog. It’s painful, poorly-paid, and full of abuse.

It’s not guaranteed to result in writing success. Many would-be writers end up climbing a different ladder and becoming Development Executives.

But it does give you proximity to the kinds of projects you want to write, and it gives you access to a vast Hollywood network that you can build from the ground up.

Examples: Joe Russo, John August, Matt & Ross Duffer, Christopher Markus & Stephen McFeely

Steps:

1. Get either a BFA or MFA in film (optional).

2. Get a menial assistant job at a Hollywood production company.

3. Write scripts and/or produce short films on the side.

4. Write that one amazing script that gets attention as your calling card.

5. Eventually sell a script, get an agent, and quit your job.

6. Sell the next project and the next one until you earn a career.

Pros:

• Proximity to the entertainment industry.

• You learn a ton about how the business works.

• Create a vast network. Your fellow assistants go on to become studio heads and Showrunners.

Cons:

• Assistant jobs are criminally underpaid.

• The work is soul-crushing.

• Unless you’re careful, you’ll find yourself without a lot of time or inspiration to write.

• Exposure to potential sexual assault and/or harassment.

• There is no guarantee of success. If you fail, you’re stuck in a very low-paying career with little marketable skills and therefore unable to ever transition out of it.

At first, this route sounds easy because the steps are clear. You are given a starting point in exchange for parting with a substantial amount of money (or taking on 5-figures in debt). You are given guides who will teach you in exchange for your labor and sanity. You get to see the industry up close, and you will gain access to a ton of knowledge. In exchange, that knowledge will bring you cynicism as you learn more and more about how the sausage is made.

The hours are grueling. You might work 50-70 hours a week in exchange for a weekly salary of $650 (pre-tax) with little to no benefits.

You’ll come home at the end of the day too tired to write.

Many creatives think this is too big of a trade-off. Or for whatever reason, they aren’t ready to handle this lifestyle at this point in their lives.

If that’s the case, your material has to be everything.

#3 - Amazing Script + Networking Hustle

If you don’t want to start at the bottom of the ladder as an assistant, your script has to be so good that it does the work for you.

This is the most common advice screenwriters hear. It can be frustrating, but it’s true: Write something undeniable, and doors will open for you. If the doors aren’t opening for you, it means your concept isn’t there yet, and your execution isn’t there yet.

Yes, you need both.

You can do all the networking and general meetings in the world that you want, but if your script isn’t magic, then you won’t break in.

By “magic,” I mean that in one sentence, your listener is intrigued by your pitch and wants to read it.

From page one, they are gripped by a desire to know what happens next, and this emotional investment escalates until the very last page, on which you deliver a satisfying ending.

Once they read it, they want to send it to their friends and family inside and outside the industry, just because it’s that good.

That’s where the bar is.

Examples: Quentin Tarantino, Diablo Cody, Vince Gilligan, Karen McCulluh Lutz

Steps:

1. Learn the craft of screenwriting through study and practice.

2. Write a bad script.

3. Write more bad scripts.

4. Finally, write a good script.

5. Query agents, managers, and anyone else you know who is even remotely related to Hollywood.

6. If they love it, one of those people will send your script to other people who might be able to do something with it. All you need is one “Yes!”

7. Write the next script. Make sure that you snowball your opportunities.

Pros:

• This approach fits any lifestyle and you can do it from anywhere while raising a family or having a comfortable day job.

• If you don’t succeed at it, you can stick with your more lucrative day job without any sacrifice.

Cons:

• Being far removed from the industry means you lack the proximity necessary for developing a vast network and daily motivation.

• You will learn slower because you won’t have as much input to sponge up.

• You have to be ruthlessly intentional about carving out daily time for your writing.

• The bar is higher. Your work must be the top 0.001% of ALL writers (yes, better than the people who are working consistently right now) in order to break in because you can’t rely on “who you know.”

• When you aren’t immersed in the industry, it’s easy to get distracted by life, let writing fall by the wayside, and allow others to progress faster than you.

There is a reason the examples given in this section are household names.

They have to be *that good* in order to turn themselves from outsider to success story. This path has the lowest rate of success because it’s easy to give up on your dreams when you haven’t “burned the boats,” so to speak. Writers who live in Los Angeles and live and breathe story day in and day out won’t forget to prioritize their craft.

The best way to become a professional writer as fast as possible is to spend every waking moment focused on it.

Those are the people you are up against.

You don’t have to move to Hollywood to break in. But if you choose to stay in your life and write as an outsider, you need to be relentless about your focus on the craft, and you need to consistently remind yourself to prioritize it.

If you don’t, you’re going to be left behind and your dream will remain exactly that:

A dream.

Photo by Carli Jeen on Unsplash

#4 - Workhorse Writer

Most “overnight successes” you read about in the trades have been working on mediocre projects under-the-radar for decades.

When I tell writers what the industry is looking for, many of them are eager to point out projects that broke the mold. These projects invariably come from writers who have been consistently working on small jobs that impress no one but allow them to make a living writing until they develop the skills and the goodwill from buyers to break out and take a chance on something big.

This takes dedication.

It requires taking any job you can at the beginning and showing up as a professional, no matter what that job is. It requires the resilience necessary to not burn out, even when what you’re writing doesn’t go on to be as successful as you hoped.

And it requires finding your voice and nursing passion projects for the long term.

Because that breakout hit won’t happen if *only* focus on the writing day jobs.

Examples: Scott Frank, Mike White, Jesse Armstrong, Justin Marks

Steps:

• Write a script or shoot a short film good enough to get you hired.

• Deliver professional work that gets you asked back.

• Rinse and repeat for 10-30 years in anonymity.

• Develop your breakout idea passion project.

• Develop strong relationships with executives.

• Have your agent negotiate a blind script deal, or get executives to agree to take a chance on your passion project.

• Produce your passion project and collect the Emmys as an “Overnight Success.”

Pros:

• If your goal is to become one of the top writers in the world, the best way to do this is to spend all day every day writing. You can accomplish this by either working as a professional screenwriter or having another source of passive income that you can live on. But it’s only the professional screenwriter route that will allow you to get feedback from producers and studios on a consistent basis.

• When your script is finally ready, you’ll have high-level professional contacts who like you. You’ll have no problem knowing who to send it to.

• If you want to take bold risks with your storytelling and/or write big budget projects, you need to have an extensive resume of credits that show you can be trusted with a production.

• Bold risks well-executed are the kinds of projects that audiences get excited about. These are the kinds of projects that attract cultural conversation and win awards.

Photo by De'von wellesley on Unsplash

Cons:

• This can take forever, and the business of Hollywood can be soul-sucking. It’s not for the faint of heart.

• Just because you’re a workhorse writer doesn’t mean you’re going to break out and become the famous creator that you dreamed of being. You still need to level up your skills and creativity or you risk trading your life for other people’s priorities indefinitely.

• There’s a version of this career that results in golden handcuffs and a series of jobs that are ultimately unfulfilling.

At the end of the day, writing professionally is something to be proud of, no matter how you do it.

But that doesn’t mean you need to be complacent either.

#4 - Get famous a different way

Studios and buyers are unlikely to take a chance on an untested writer.

The exception: When that writer is already famous or already has a devoted audience.

Everyone in this town wants to find a “sure thing” (even if that objective is literally impossible). Hence, the outsized focus on IP. But if you can create heat around your name, personality, or creative work in another capacity besides screenwriting, the studio will consider you to be the IP because they assume that you will bring that audience with you.

Maybe you have better connections or previously established skills in another area. If you lean into those, you can transition that into your screenwriting career too.

Examples: Nick Bilton, Ben Stiller, Aziz Ansari, Gillian Flynn, Lilly Singh

Photo by Ben Stein on Unsplash

Steps:

1. Pick another career adjacent to screenwriting to pursue at the same time (prose writing, non-fiction writing, acting, stand-up comedy, sketch comedy, digital video producing, blogging, etc.)

2. Develop that skill and cultivate an audience as you continue to learn screenwriting.

3. Sign representation in this other area.

4. Become famous for the work you do.

5. Use your reps and your network to make inroads in the screenwriting business.

6. Use your work as a springboard into screenwriting: adapt your own book, star in something you write yourself, market your movie to your online audience, etc.

Pros:

• If you fail to break into screenwriting, at least you have success in this other area.

• You get more immediate feedback and success in areas that give you a direct connection to your audience without gatekeepers.

• You have control over your own hours.

• In creating your own business, you learn about other valuable skills like marketing and negotiating.

Cons:

• Juggling multiple unreliable creative careers can be stressful.

• Your success could put you in platinum handcuffs if this isn’t what you want to do long-term.

• Lots of attention means lots of scrutiny. You could face backlash or cancelation if you say/do the wrong thing.

• You have to learn a whole other craft/set of skills, which takes time away from learning screenwriting.

• “Getting famous” is just as hard (if not harder) as screenwriting, so this is by no means an easy path to success.

This is one of the harder inroads into screenwriting. I don’t recommend pursuing it unless you have a specific idea for another creative pursuit that you’re passionate about.

But if you’re already interested in pursuing multiple artistic paths, it’s helpful to know that they can support one another when it comes to getting financiers to take a chance on you.

#5 - Indie Hustle

Perhaps the only path to success for wannabe Writer/Directors, the best way to build a body of work is to get out there and make something yourself.

With all the technology and resources available for cheap or free, there is no need to go to film school. If gatekeepers won’t give you the time of day, figure out how to make a short film yourself. Put that short film into reputable film festivals. Repeat until you get enough attention that someone wants to turn your short film into a movie.

This path isn’t easy. It requires having the strongest networking abilities possible. You need to get people to agree to give you their time and/or money because they believe in your creative vision. You also need to have the courage to put yourself and your work out there.

You need to have the energy and the time to experiment with actually producing and directing your own work. But if you can pull this off, you won’t need to convince financiers that you can do it.

They will see that you already did, and they will fall all over one another to get to be the one who finances your next thing.

Examples: Damien Chazelle, Emma Seligman, Sarah Gertrude Shapiro

Steps:

1. Write a short film.

2. Write a feature length screenplay to use as a calling card sample.

3. Read books and articles about directing independent shorts.

4. Pull together a cast and crew.

5. Pick a weekend to shoot it.

6. Shoot your short.

7. Edit your short.

8. Submit it to film festivals.

9. Repeat the process as you continue to refine your storytelling and directing skills. As you find collaborators you love, keep working with them. Return the favor on their projects.

10. One of these shorts will start getting tons of attention.

11. Write a feature pitch to go with it.

12. Sell your feature pitch or write the feature adaptation on spec if necessary.

13. Secure financing for your feature.

14. Shoot your feature.

15. Distribute your feature either through studios or in film festivals.

16. Repeat the process with your next film.

Pros:

• Producing a film yourself is a crash course in film production. You don’t need to go to film school. You will learn so much.

• Putting together a cast and crew will introduce you to collaborators. If you like them and they do good work, you’ll work with them again and again for the rest of your career.

• You get to create your own opportunities and be the architect of your own career.

• You don’t have to bend to anyone else’s vision. You can take a chance on your own.

• Film festivals are amazing networking opportunities.

• You can get attention for your creative work by putting your name out there.

Cons:

• As any independent producer or director will tell you, this process is hard. It takes time and energy and is full of unexpected problems that will arise. It will be stressful.

• Directing is a completely different skillset than writing. Just because you want to be a screenwriter does not mean you will enjoy the other aspects of filmmaking: pre-production, production, post-production, etc.

• It can be expensive. All that financing has to come from somewhere!

• Without feedback from industry professionals, you risk spinning your wheels, stubbornly sticking to your guns when you could have benefitted from guidance.

Make sure you seek advice on your script and your film before you start sending it out to festivals or distributors. When you’re in charge of every aspect of the creative process, it’s easy to remind blind to what you don’t know you don’t know.

This is the hardest, most exhausting route. It’s not for everyone.

But if you decide to pursue it, it will equip you with the skills you need to become the kind of Writer/Directors that builds a body of work that creates loyal fanbases for decades to come.

No matter which path you pursue, you need to have a solid understanding of screenwriting skills and an ability to execute them.

Knowing the paths available will help you decide which one is for you.

They all have their trade-offs, and none of them are easy. But the fact that this career isn’t easy means that you can break through and differentiate yourself if you’re willing to stay resilient, take risks, outwork everyone else, and have the courage to pursue your art.

Which path are you currently pursuing? What challenges are you coming up against, and what are you doing to overcome those obstacles?

Let me know in the comments.