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If I wrote a script for a movie and sent it off to a studio or whatever. What prevents the person who recieved it from claiming it as their own?

⁨49⁩ ⁨likes⁩

Submitted ⁨⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago⁩ by ⁨Patnou@lemmy.world⁩ to ⁨[deleted]⁩

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  • beliquititious@lemmy.blahaj.zone ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    The classic “poor man’s copyright” is to mail the script to yourself in a sealed envelope and put it somewhere safe unopened. Then if anyone steals your idea you have a dated postmark on the envelope to prove when you created it. You definitely don’t have to worry about the studio stealing your idea though. They have systems in place that keep the people who read spec scripts isolated from other creative employees at the studio for that exact reason. Lawsuits are way more expensive that low balling an option offer.

    Other people have pointed this out but the major studios don’t really buy spec scripts anymore. They want something that comes with an audience already so you either need to build that somehow on social media or write for existing IP (but you’d need to license it yourself). Before a good apec script might have been adapted into an existing IP like your spy being rewritten as Jason Bourne, but since VC money bought out the studios they want more than a good script to produce a film these says.

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    • terranoid@lemmy.cafe ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      A body horror story about a pregnant woman who starts to think her unborn child might be the anti christ, and has terrifying dreams of the apocalypse, and seeks the aid of the Catholic church

      They want something that comes with an audience already

      … But with Minions!

      Image

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      • beliquititious@lemmy.blahaj.zone ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

        That’s Rosemary’s Baby, minions and all. The minions in the movie just looked more like satanic cultists.

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  • andrewrgross@slrpnk.net ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    I think you’re asking the wrong question. The better question is ‘How do I get my screenplay produced?’

    I’m not an expert, but my understanding is that movie studios don’t really produce unsolicited screenplays anymore. You really need to produce it yourself, or be a known screenwriter who has prior relationships with producers.

    If you don’t already have writing credits and an agent, you likely either need to produce it yourself – which means finding a director and actors and raising the money to pay for things – or you should try to publish it as a novel that becomes groundshakingly popular like The Martian or Dungeon Crawler Carl.

    But the good news is that you can rest assured that having it stolen isn’t a risk you need to worry about.

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  • Battle_Masker@lemmy.blahaj.zone ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    Make a cheap website and publish it there with your name as the copyright. THEN send it in. That way. You got automatic records that can back you up in a legal dispute

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  • melsaskca@lemmy.ca ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    Do the old “mail it to yourself and leave it unsealed with a postmark” gambit.

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    • Patnou@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      That actually work.

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    • spacegoat@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      Email

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  • ohulancutash@feddit.uk ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    Because they would have to invent a writer and pay them anyway to pass WGA scrutiny, and a first time writer’s script is literally the cheapest thing the studio can buy.

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  • fibojoly@sh.itjust.works ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    That’s why magazines and other such media organizations usually have a mention not to send manuscripts and such, because they don’t want the legal hassle.

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  • skeezix@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    Nothing. Happens all the time. Your best bet is to file a copyright in the work and subtly state that in the script

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    • adespoton@lemmy.ca ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      Of course, if you do an official copyright filing, they’ll likely reject the script and then generate one using AI that extracts the most interesting bits but in a totally non-infringing way.

      Welcome to scriptwriting in 2026.

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    • ohulancutash@feddit.uk ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      It categorically does not happen all the time.

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  • corsicanguppy@lemmy.ca ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    Nothing. Now go watch Matrix again.

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  • mkwt@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    Put some “Copyright © Patnou, [year]” notices in prominent places on the manuscript.

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    • ohulancutash@feddit.uk ⁨2⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

      This screams I AM A CLUELESS AMATEUR and no-one wants to collaborate with a suspicious rookie.

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  • bridgeenjoyer@sh.itjust.works ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    Well you’d need to paint him blue and have eiffel65 do the soundtrack of course.

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  • Grimy@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    From what I’ve seen happen with short story and poem competition, I bet any address you find online to send your script to is already getting flooded with automated junk.

    I also don’t trust Hollywood to not steal it.

    That being said, I don’t think we are very far off from being able to generate proper tv. I’m expecting to see stuff pop up very soon because of the new minimax model. Needs a lot of know how currently to make something that isn’t garbage though.

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  • NuanceDemon@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    Keep lots of logs of the writing and the sending, pray this actually happens so you can sue and settle out of court.

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  • ApollosArrow@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    People have mentioned a few ways, but you can’t really stop it. They can change it enough to claim it was someone else’s idea. It’s also why you used to see similar movies of the same concept coming out around the same time. An idea people deemed good floated around and studios would race to be the first ones out.

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  • anon_8675309@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    Happens often. Be careful.

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  • FreshParsnip@lemmy.ca ⁨3⁩ ⁨weeks⁩ ago

    My strategy would be to share it with multiple people so I have witnesses to attest that I wrote it

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