ScriptGenius is a new script consulting company and website founded by Charles Vignola, former Director of Development for Jerry Bruckheimer Films and professional screenwriter, and designed to help aspiring, intermediate and working screenwriters improve their material and get it in the best shape possible for the marketplace. The ScriptGenius website offers a way to purchase various services, as well as offering original articles about screenwriting, resources to connect to other useful websites, and a “Writers’ Room” allowing screenwriters to meet, chat, network and collaborate within the site, helping to foster a supportive community of likeminded screenwriters and filmmakers.
I was the Director of Development for blockbuster movie and TV producer Jerry Bruckheimer, and spent over 30 years working with some of the most talented screenwriters in the industry to develop some of the popular and financially successful movies of the last three decades — movies like Bad Boys, The Rock, Con Air, Armageddon, Pearl Harbor, Black Hawk Down, the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, National Treasure, and the upcoming Top Gun: Maverick. My professional experience developing screenplays is unparalleled, my credentials are impeccable, and my recommendations include some of the biggest producers, directors and screenwriters working in Hollywood today.
My clients run the gamut from aspiring screenwriters new to the business and looking to get their material industry-ready, to intermediate screenwriters with some options and deals but no produced credits, to major screenwriters looking for a fresh set of eyes on their latest project. For example, my first client under ScriptGenius was a former Nicholl Fellowship winner who’s created an original TV series, served as a show runner for a major IP, and has several produced movies featuring such stars as Nicolas Cage and Sylvester Stallone.
“If you’re looking for the best in the biz, look no further than Charlie. He is a voracious reader, has a keen eye for that next piece of hot IP or spec script, but most importantly — he truly cares and wants to make your writing better. Charlie will elevate your script!”
— Michael Brandon Guercio (screenwriter/producer on ABC’s Quantico, USA Network’s Treadstone, and Netflix’s Messiah)
Unfortunately, you don’t need a license to claim you’re a script consultant, and the vast majority of people calling themselves that have little to no actual experience in the film industry. Too many are just taking advantage of new screenwriters, charging them for services they’re not qualified to perform, and which will do little to advance their writing and careers. That’s why script consultants have always had such a terrible reputation, and rightfully so. To be honest, this has always pissed me off, and is one of the major reasons I decided to start ScriptGenius — to offer a legitimate alternative to the con artists and amateurs preying on vulnerable writers.
As mentioned above, I’ve spent over 30 years working for one of the biggest movie and TV producers in the world, developing scripts with some of the most talented and successful screenwriters in the business, helping to create some of the most popular films and franchises in modern movie history. In addition, I’m a professional screenwriter myself, having set up nearly a dozen original feature film projects at studios like Disney, MGM, Sony and Spyglass. I’ve been on both sides of the desk, and that gives me a more comprehensive perspective of the entire development process. I know I can help you improve your screenplay dramatically, because that was my day job for over three decades — a track record with few equals in Hollywood.
I’ll be very clear upfront: no one can guarantee you that, no matter who they are — and if they say they can, it’s the surest way to tell they’re a fraud. Just like no coach can guarantee that you’ll be recruited onto a pro sports team after they help train you, no script consultant can guarantee you’ll be able to sell your material. Nor am I making claims to be able to get your material to anyone in the industry — that’s the job of a manager, agent or entertainment attorney. But I can promise you this: after we work together, your screenplay will be far better, tighter, stronger, more commercial and marketable than it was before. Because you’ll have access to the kind of one-on-one, personalized development experience that’s only been available to the top screenwriters in the industry. And yes, that can help increase your chances of success in this incredibly competitive business.
“In my 50 years of experience in film, I spent 15 of those working closely with Charlie Vignola at Jerry Bruckheimer Films. During that time, Charlie constantly impressed me as a multi-talented, multi-faceted, passionate and wholly professional dynamo. I observed Charlie working with screenwriters and filmmakers to help develop their creative material into blockbuster films at JBF, and now he is ready to share that knowledge, know-how and experience with others.”
— Michael Singer (Publicist/Unit Publicist on Natural Born Killers, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Jerry Maguire, Top Gun: Maverick, and author of A Cut Above: 50 Film Directors Talk About Their Craft and Bring Me That Horizon: The Making of Pirates of the Caribbean)
The reality is most screenplays fail right out of the gate because the writer has picked a concept that’s just not strong enough to attract the attention of agents, managers, major studios, production companies and stars. The most important decision you’ll make early on, the key to your project’s success or failure, is choosing the right idea to focus on, the one that will immediately stand out and make people want to read it — and since finding and developing those ideas was what I did for a living for over 30 years, I can definitely help you with that. In addition to script consulting, I offer a number of services for writers just starting out and trying to decide what ideas they should concentrate on. In Hollywood, concept is king, so if you’re serious about writing a script and you want to make it as appealing as possible to potential buyers, let me be your personal guide and help you zero in on and develop your strongest movie and TV ideas.
This is definitely a newbie concern. Do ideas ever get stolen in Hollywood? Sure, it’s happened — but it is also extremely rare. The reality is Hollywood has plenty of money at its disposable, so if it likes your idea, they’ll just buy the darned thing rather than risk a costly lawsuit. For over 30 years, I heard pitches and read material from new screenwriters, and not once was my company ever asked to sign an NDA. An NDA is what you’d be asked to sign if you read the latest Spielberg project or if you had a meeting at Marvel Studios — it’s not something an amateur writer asks people to sign for the “privilege” of reading their screenplay. In fact, it’s a great way to guarantee your material won’t get read, as it telegraphs your inexperience and paranoia and warns people you’re too much trouble to work with. Should you copyright your script or register it with the WGA? If it gives you peace of mind, go for it. But it doesn’t really matter: if you’re writing your script on a computer, and you email back-up files to yourself, then your material is automatically digitally timestamped and exists in the cloud, and if anyone was stupid enough to try to steal your material they’re be dead in the water since you’d have incontrovertible proof the material originated with you. In short, worry less about getting ripped off and worry more about coming up with the best movie idea and best script possible. Fortunately, I can help you with both.
I’m sure there are many, and I’m happy to answer them. Please use the “Contact” option on the main page to submit whatever questions you have, and I will personally answer them as soon as possible.
Thanks, and I look forward to hearing from you!
“Charlie has the sharpest sense of story of anyone I know, so I always turn to him when I’ve hit a wall or better yet, when I (smugly) feel like I’m done with a draft. He’s a truth-teller, but his criticism is always constructive and delivered with one goal — to make your script better. Spending three decades developing films with any producer is unheard of, but doing that with Jerry Bruckheimer, arguably Hollywood’s most successful blockbuster producer ever? That’s nuts! Trust me, there are many reasons Jerry has turned to Charlie for so long.”
— John Zaring (producer/screenwriter of The Pursuit of Happiness)