My name is Caleb Dillon. I am forty-four years old, and I am a screenwriter.
It’s important to celebrate the victories in your screenwriting endeavors. Sometimes, it only ever feels like you get some flavor of rejection, which is why it feels nice to finally have some good news. I had not one but TWO scripts advance at the AFF this year, and it feels like a double rainbow kind of day.
This is especially satisfying since, as a reader for Austin, I know how subjective readers can be; it would have been just as easy for my scripts to get passed over as any others, and just to be perfectly clear, neither was a semifinalist, but still, HUZZAH!
Deplorable is a pilot I wrote last Fall during my Masters Program at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts under the guidance of playwright Janet Allard.
The story is a modernization of Cyrano de Bergerac, but instead of a love story, it follows a controlling public relations adviser who is hired to rehabilitate the public-facing image of the egotistical head of a multi-armed Fortune 500 company. Rather than whispering love messages from a bush, she is whispering into an earbud to try to keep the stock prices from tanking every time the CEO opens his big, dumb mouth. The idea was kind of born from cancel culture and my negative response to it. This idea that people can be ‘canceled’ is baffling to me, and so I wanted to dramatize it through a medium where the ‘Deplorable’ person is striving to be a better person.
My other project is called Husky, and I’ve spoken about it on or off this blog. The basic story follows an aspiring e-sports athlete who, in the event of an elite E-sports competition with a million-dollar grand prize, has his E-sports privileges revoked until he joins a physical sport and proves that all kids, regardless of athletic ability, can be champions. If you think that sounds like a kid’s movie, that is 100% true. I miss those kinds of movies from growing up, so… I wrote one.
After receiving a few accolades, I didn’t know quite what to do with them at first.
I was surprised when a few industry types turned their noses up at them. Did you do well in a contest? Did you win? Then why are we talking about it? Oh, you did win?! That’s great. Was it a recognizable contest? No? Then why are we talking about it? See my point? The film industry is weird.
Personally, my take on Accolades is…
They look great in a lookbook/pitch deck; I’ve dabbled with either an accolades page on the cover of the deck or, more recently, on the final THANK YOU PAGE, including the accolades like stamps in a book. That way, it’s the least amount of bragging possible.
They are worth noting on your website; a website is literally a central database for you and your stuff, so if they belong anywhere, they go on your website.
They are an excellent thing to post on social media. Likewise, be sure to congratulate others when THEY win or place in something. I try to keep it simple and factual: “My script won an AWARD in the CONTEST… good luck to all the entrants.” or some version of that. Hard to call a fact a gloat.
It’s a natural icebreaker if you want to talk to someone about THEIR work. “Tell me about your script, Second Rounder.”
They are great on a creative resume, which I’ve been experimenting with. More on that later, but it’s just like a regular resume. Instead of listing jobs, you list your accomplishments, be they films, scripts, etc.
They are great small talk in a meeting; the less important the contest, the less you should dwell on it. “Yes, this script did well in a few contests.” or “This script was a finalist in FANCY CONTEST.” etc.
My new thing is stamping accolades on a script poster
Check out this incredible writer's first-rate example: Kathryn is a great role model for how to present yourself as a writer. She is accurate and amicable, and she has the accolades to prove it, but she doesn’t rub it in your face. She’s humble, not a braggart. See how great those accolades look on her poster! So official.
Even if I can’t read all the accolades, or if the festivals aren’t recognizable to me, it still shows me she is putting herself out there and that people are responding to her work; so, in a way, the accolades are vouching for her, and they say lots about her ability. Her site is like an aspirational goal for my own website, which needs TLC. And yes, I realize my site is a little out of date; I have a few new updates to load up.
Be sure to Maintain your various Script Hubs
The thing I love about Coverfly is how they maintain your script accolades for you (for the most part). You even have the ability to claim placements on their dashboard.
That being said, I also maintain a presence on the ISA, and that means every time I win an award, I have to claim it each time. That can be a hassle to remember, but it is worth the effort. Like pulling weeds, if you do it in small increments, it’s not so bad.
It is easy to lose track of these things, especially if we are being proactive about contests, so my rule of thumb is anytime I win anything, I immediately update all appropriate media channels, update my resume, update my script covers, all of it. Is it time-consuming? Yes. But it's a better alternative than forgetting about them.
I also keep a folder with all my accolades, and I’ve been sorting them by script. So, the better you keep it organized, the easier it will be when you want to utilize those accolades for a purpose later.
Accolades are great, but don’t let them be the only way you validate yourself.
This was a hard lesson for me to learn, and it sank in slowly. When I’m really sinking my teeth into a script, like when I’m really trying to make it the best it can be, it’s easy to get discouraged if readers aren’t responding to your work.
I’ve had plenty of scripts I loved that the reader didn’t seem to get. And while, yes, in the early drafts of scripts, it can be ascribed to a clarity problem, in later drafts, when your vision is clearer, and the reader can see what your script is trying to do if they still don’t like, I’m telling you that’s okay; you can’t please every reader, full stop. In my writer’s group, I’ll see a writer refine their vision to the point it’s really working, and despite their best efforts, it may still not be my sort of script or the sort of show I’d ever watch, despite their best efforts.
After writing more than forty scripts, I’ve never won anything, and I’ve made my peace with that. There are lots of amazing writers in the world; some of them work harder than I do, and their ideas are easier to digest. I work hard on my craft; I apply myself and put my work out there, and that’s all I can do in the end.
It can be hard to measure your success if the only metric you use for growth is ‘winning’. You can be a great writer and never win an award, sell a script, or find an agent. Don’t let others validate you. YOU must validate yourself. I’ve read many writers whose scripts were great, and they still didn’t find the success they might have deserved. That doesn’t mean their script wasn’t ready, but just that there are too many of us fighting for too few opportunities. And that means you're in good company.
My name is Caleb Dillon; thanks for reading, but you should be writing!
P.S. Regarding my short film Good Behavior
If you read this far, let me add that I am currently in pre-production on a short film called Good Behavior, which will be shooting in early December. Below are some links to our various social media, as well as our crowdfunding campaign, which isn’t live yet but will be in less than a month, so click, follow, like, and when the campaign is live, contribute if you can. And if you can’t, just spread the word! We’re trying to raise 10K-20K via crowdfunding, so the more we can raise, the better a film we can make.
The film will star the incredible Valeria Tannuzzi in the starring role, as well as Jack Wooton and Jude Michael Rodericks in supporting roles, and many more faces.
Did you know that starting at the $25 level of contribution, you will receive a space WANTED POSTER, personalized with your picture and sent directly to you after your contribution? That way you can share that you helped support our project. Preview Below! Perfect for sharing on any Social Media Platform.
IMDB: Forthcoming
INSTAGRAM: https://instagram.com/goodbehaviorshortfilm
FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61565202386021
TWITTER/ X: https://x.com/shortfilmgoodb
CROWDFUNDING PREVIEW LINK
ONCE ACTIVE, CROWDFUNDING: https://seedandspark.com/fund/good-behavior
