This past week, I received dozens of emails and a couple of phone calls regarding pay-to-play websites and my concerns about them.
To put it succinctly, I think they're a scam and I hate them.
Today, I wanted to expand on that idea for you.
Let's dive in.
The Hope Machine
It involves sites that promise you access to managers, agents, and producers, so long as you pay a fee.
That fee is usually a lot of money to someone trying to break into the arts and, therefore, represents a financial burden to follow their dreams.
We've even seen websites soliciting a monthly fee for ongoing connections.
I believe that is exploitative and wrong.
But some contests and websites collect these fees without actually trying to make good on the promise from the money collected.
Instead, they often wait for the aforementioned tastemakers to use their website and proactively reach out through it. This creates a bit of a rock and a hard place.
What do you do if you want to get noticed, live outside of Hollywood, and have no access? Is it worth paying for access to these places?
'Adaptation' CREDIT: Columbia Pictures
The Writing Process
Let’s be real for a second.
As a writer, you know the feeling of pouring months, maybe years, into 110 pages that you truly believe is your ticket into Hollywood.
Now what?
The gatekeepers of Hollywood feel a million miles away. And right there, glowing on your screen, is a website. It has a slick interface and a promise that feels like a warm hug. For a small fee—$50, $80, maybe $100—they’ll put your script in front of “industry professionals.” They'll be the middleman and make the introductions that could change your life, or give you the paid coverage that will show you the way.
Wow, what an opportunity for the beleaguered writer! All you have to do is part with your money, and they'll get you where you need to be. They may even promise to get it made!
Those places are all disgusting and manipulative and wrong.
They hurt Hollywood, and they prioritize making money over actually helping you. There's a reason Hollywood has systems set up to get writers paid and not to take writers' money.
These "disruptors" are changing the paradigms to help themselves, not you.
Greta Gerwig on the set of 'Little Women' Credit: Sony Pictures Releasing
Why I Hate Pay-to-Play Websites
Let's be clear: the purpose of any company is to make money. I’m sure the people behind these sites don’t think what they’re doing is actually exploitative (or they try to justify it)—most businesses convince themselves they’re operating for the right reasons.
But there's a fundamental, broken logic at the heart of their business model.
If writers are paying you, instead of you paying the writers, you’ll always end up with a slate of projects you don’t truly believe in. You’re a service, not a production company.
Your financial incentive is to get more writers to pay you, not to find the one script you’d bet your career on.
And producers with projects they don’t really believe in… don’t make those movies.
This business model, even if unintentionally, is incentivized to keep you paying them.
It's a drug they want you on -- you might have a good call or a good meeting or get feedback that tells you that you're oh so close to the finish line...if you pay for another month, or year, or more lessons, or another read.
They want you to give them money. It needs your recurring fees to survive.
To me, that's a big red flag, and it's the clear definition of The Hope Machine that I truly hate in Hollywood. In my opinion, it's shady and exploitative.
'The Monkey' CREDIT: Neon
The Illusion of Access
The core promise of these sites is access. But here's the first hard truth: real access in this town isn't bought with a one-time fee.
If you're paying for access, it's just wrong.
Real producers don't ask for your money; they believe in your project and shepherd it accordingly. If they really wanted your script, they’d PAY YOU to option it.
Think about it from their perspective.
A manager gets hundreds of queries a week. They get scripts from their trusted agents and current clients. Where on that priority list do you think a script forwarded from a hosting website lands? You might get some meetings, and sure, some movies backed by these services might get made, but there are absolutely no guarantees in this business. It's a numbers game where the house always wins.
You want to work with people who want to work with you, and not those who want to charge you.
Look, I have made movies, TV shows, and web series. I have paid dues to the WGA and my agent, manager, and lawyer.
But you don't pay any of those up front. You pay them once you have been paid. And what you get back is legal advice, networking, reading, notes, and health shares! Even a pension!
These other websites are asking you to pay up front for it all, even if it never sells.
And they sure as hell are not offering you a pension or healthcare.
The Reader Conundrum
“But Jason,” you say, “what about the feedback? I need to know if my script is any good!”
I get it. Feedback is gold. But you have to question the source. Who is reading your script for $80? Is it a seasoned development executive? Or is it more likely an overworked, underpaid assistant trying to make rent, plowing through ten scripts over a weekend?
And what site are you using?
Are you paying for extensive notes like at Stage32, or using a site like The Black List, which is not designed for feedback; that's a courtesy/additional service. It is designed to give a snapshot of how the script would be received in Hollywood.
Those sites you pay once....I don't know of any subscription-based site that I would trust.
This life is hard enough. Save your money.
'Breaking Bad' Credit: AMC
So What’s the Alternative?
This isn’t a counsel of despair. It’s a call to redirect your money and your brain. Our website is filled with free screenwriting advice. So are things like John August and Craig Mazin's Scriptnotes, and even the WGA.
Getting recognized and getting your movie made is not easy.
They call it "breaking in" for a reason—you're supposed to network and work your way in, not buy your way in.
And I'm sorry, but that is still the best way to do it.
So in the meantime, here are a few things you can do:
- Write Another Script. Your best calling card isn't a high score on a website or paid introductions; it's a body of work. When you do get a meeting, the first thing they’ll ask is, “What else you got?” Be ready.
- Do It The Old-Fashioned Way. If you can, move here. Come to Los Angeles, get a job as a PA or an assistant, make friends, and learn the business from the inside out. Be in the ecosystem.
- If You Can't Move, Strategize. If you're older or this is a second career, that’s okay. Hit up a major film festival once a year, like Sundance, TIFF, or Austin - use your money on that instead of subscriptions. Network online or in person. Go watch movies, go to panels, talk to people, and try to make genuine connections there.
- The Query Letter Grind. A smart, targeted query letter to a junior manager at a boutique company who reps writers in your genre is a thousand times more effective than a blast from a hosting site. Do your research. Personalize it. Be professional. Subscribe to IMDbPro to find their emails, again, for less than a contest!
No One Gets It More Than Me
I have been there, gang. I am constantly trying to network, package, have new ideas, and write better specs. I totally get what it feels like to be kept out.
They’re telling you the way in is to pay the bouncer, when the real way in is to build your own damn bar.
Your currency isn't cash. It's talent, persistence, and a stack of incredible scripts.
Stop paying to play and start working to win.
The work is the only thing that's ever mattered.
And anyone who would try to exploit that is the real villain.
Now, go back to writing.
