The BBC Writersroom has opened its regular window for unsolicited scripts – between 5pm on Monday 10 December 2018 and 5pm on Monday 7 January 2019 for Drama scripts (TV, film, radio, stage or online). Read below for more information on this opportunity.
BBC Writersroom Drama: What We Are Looking For
The Writersroom looks for what the script tells us about the writer. We see all scripts as a calling card to showcase a writer’s talent, ability, and voice. Especially valuable are distinctive voices – and scripts that express those voices. This project does not look for more of the same, but rather for the writer’s ability to pull an audience into a world and hold them in it. It’s not necessarily about finding ideas that have ‘never been done before’ but having an original take on stories that have the potential to have wide breadth of appeal. A sense of storytelling ability – handling of pace, climax, mood.
Aim for the best possible draft you can achieve. We are not looking for early/first/rough drafts of scripts. Only submit to the Script Room when your script is ready, even if it means waiting for a later Script Room submission window. We are not looking for competent, run of the mill, well-structured pieces. We are looking to unearth the treasures, the page-turners, the new perspectives, the engaging dialogue, the surprising character creations.
BBC Writersroom Drama: Outcome of the Script Room
At the end of the process, a group of writers (usually between 10 and 15) will be selected to join the BBC Drama Room writer development group for 2019.
Script Room is not a competition but a means by which the BBC seeks out the best writing talent. We want writers with the strongest potential to be developed and produced for BBC broadcast. You could be new to writing or new to the BBC but equally, you may be a playwright looking to write for TV, or you’ve written for radio and would like to try your hand at writing for CBBC. We understand that carving a career as a writer takes time and that each writer’s development needs will be different.
There will also be great consideration as to whether scripts have real potential to be developed further towards production. If we believe a script could be developed further by a BBC department, we will send it to them with the writer’s knowledge. Original scripts written on spec’ are produced extremely rarely, and writers should not send them in with the expectation that they will be produced. However, original spec’ scripts are the means by which writers get noticed, so you should always write your script with the same level of commitment as if it were for production.
For more details on this opportunity, visit BBC Writersroom’s site.
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