Why sending your script to 200 random producers is sabotaging your career?
Every week, I receive emails from frustrated writers asking the same question: "I've sent my script to dozens of producers and haven't heard back from anyone. What am I doing wrong?"
The answer is almost always the same: You're using the spray and pray method, and it's killing your chances.
The Spray and Pray Trap
Picture this: You've just finished your thriller screenplay. You're excited, confident, and ready to get it into the right hands. So you compile a list of 200 producers from IMDbPro, craft a generic query letter, and hit send on mass emails. Three months later: crickets.
Sound familiar? You're not alone. This approach—what we call "spray and pray"—is one of the biggest mistakes writers make when trying to break into the industry.
Why Spray and Pray Fails Spectacularly:
1. You're Not Standing Out
When you send the same generic email to hundreds of producers, you become noise. Industry professionals can spot mass emails immediately, and they go straight to the trash folder.
2. Wrong Targets = Wasted Effort
Sending your intimate family drama to a producer who only develops action tentpoles is like trying to sell ice to penguins. It doesn't matter how good your script is—if it's not what they're looking for, it's a guaranteed pass.
3. You're Burning Bridges Before You Build Them
Here's the harsh reality: when you send irrelevant material to an executive, you're not just getting a "no" for that project. You're potentially damaging your reputation for future opportunities. Industry professionals remember writers who waste their time.
4. No Follow-Up Strategy
Mass outreach makes meaningful follow-up impossible. You can't build relationships when you're treating people like entries in a database.
The Stage 32 Approach: Strategic Precision Over Volume
At Stage 32, we've watched thousands of writers navigate their careers. The ones who succeed don't send to more people—they send to the right people.
Do Your Homework: Research Like Your Career Depends On It
Before you send a single email, become a detective. Here's your research checklist:
Company Deep Dive:
What projects have they produced in the last 3 years?
What's their budget range?
Do they work in your genre?
What's their current development focus?
Executive Intelligence:
What's their specific role in development?
What projects are they personally passionate about?
Have they spoken about trends they're following?
Do they have a particular creative sensibility?
Market Timing:
Are they actively developing in your genre?
Do they have first-look deals that might affect their needs?
What's their release schedule like?
Quality Over Quantity: The 10-Target Rule
Instead of sending to 200 random producers, identify 10 perfect matches. These should be executives who:
Have produced similar content in the past 2-3 years
Work within your script's budget range
Are actively developing in your genre
Have shown interest in the themes you explore
Are currently seeking new material
Look for executives who have:
Recent releases in your genre
Announced development deals
Spoken at industry events about current needs
Been quoted in trades about their slate
Step 2: Understand Their Ecosystem
Who do they collaborate with regularly?
What budget ranges do they typically work in?
Do they prefer established writers or seek emerging voices?
What themes consistently appear in their work?
Step 3: Position Your Project Strategically
Frame your script in terms of their specific needs and sensibilities. Show how your project fits their established pattern while offering something fresh.
Building Relationships, Not Just Sending Scripts
The spray and pray method treats outreach as a one-time transaction. Strategic writers understand that industry success is built on relationships.
The Long Game Approach:
Follow Their Work:
Stay updated on their projects and celebrate their successes on social media.
Add Value:
Share relevant articles, introduce them to other talent, or offer congratulations on recent wins.
Be Patient:
The right executive might not be ready for your project today, but could be perfect for your next one.
Professional Persistence:
Follow up strategically—not desperately. A well-timed check-in can keep you on their radar.
Maintain real-time intelligence on what executives are actively seeking
Connect writers directly with decision-makers through pitch sessions
Provide ongoing market insights through our Writers' Room community
Offer targeted Open Writing Assignments from companies with specific needs
When a Stage 32 executive requests your script, you're not interrupting their day—you're responding to their active need.
Your Action Plan: Making the Strategic Shift
Ready to abandon spray and pray? Here's your roadmap:
Week 1: Research Phase
Identify 15 potential targets
Research their recent projects and current needs
Narrow down to your top 10 perfect matches
Week 2: Intelligence Gathering
Read recent interviews and trade articles
Follow them on social media
Understand their creative sensibilities and current priorities
Week 3: Craft Targeted Outreach
Write personalized emails for each target
Reference specific projects and explain your strategic fit
Prepare customized follow-up strategies
Week 4: Strategic Deployment
Send emails in small batches
Track responses and engagement
Adjust approach based on initial feedback
The Bottom Line: Precision Beats Volume Every Time
The entertainment industry isn't a numbers game—it's a relationships game. The writers who succeed are those who understand that one perfect connection is worth more than 100 random contacts.
Stop playing the lottery with your career. Start being strategic.
Your script deserves to be read by someone who can genuinely champion it. But first, you need to do the work to find that person.
The right executive is out there. Now you know how to find them. And when in doubt, email us: success@stage32.com.
3 people like this
Must-read post, Geoffroy Faugerolas! I used to use the spray and pray method, and I don't think it ever worked. I stopped using it, and I also started making my query letters more catchy.
4 people like this
This is an excellent post. I agree with its contents and Maurice Vaughan.
4 people like this
Thank you for your insight!!!
2 people like this
This is amazing insight. I'm bookmarking this one. Thank you!
2 people like this
Oh wow! This is a gold mine of information! Thank you so much Geoffroy. Im preparing for the long game. The success team are great for match making. Ive had a couple of script requests from the match making service. Thank you Geoffroy and Stage 32 - we are all in this together!
4 people like this
Good word. I appreciate the advice.
2 people like this
This was a truly insightful and inspiring piece. However, I wonder—what are the real and practical ways for someone like me, living in Afghanistan under very limited conditions (in terms of freedom of expression and access to global industry networks), to connect with producers or development executives?
I’ve been working on several screenplays—most of them inspired by global cinematic styles, particularly the works of Kubrick and Fincher—and I hope to share them with people who share a similar artistic vision.
I’d truly appreciate any advice or suggestions for filmmakers and writers in restricted environments like mine
4 people like this
fabulous article!
Geoffroy… these are very useful insights, but you’re leaving out one brutal truth.
“Dear Amy Pascal, Ryan Murphy, Jerry Bruckheimer, I wrote this script just for you.”
You know what happens — if you even have their email? Nothing. Or worse: an automated disclaimer saying they don’t accept unsolicited submissions. Doesn’t matter if it’s a project you slaved over for years just for them, or if it’s a perfect fit — still nothing.
And if you aim lower? Search for lesser-known names?
Same story — except now you’ve got a whole new set of problems.
Sure, maybe you can hack the system, pull off some guerrilla stunt, lurk outside offices, drop pitch decks in elevators — if you live in L.A. But seriously, how much more is expected of writers?
Write brilliant scripts, somehow stay alive, and go hunting down execs who are already sick of being stalked by a million starving screenwriters?
Because that’s what we are — starving screenwriters.
And the whole process? Welcome to the real-life Hunger Games.
Stage32 is a great platform. So why not have a transparent, honest, always-open marketplace here?
Let projects have price tags.
Not every script is a $3 million tentpole — but they’re not worthless either.
No need to “build a relationship” or “gently nurture interest” if an exec needs a thriller by Wednesday and has $50K or even $20K — they can buy it, or option it, done.
It’s not like Amazon products go door-to-door begging buyers to please take them. You put it on the shelf, and the buyer grabs what they want.
And hell, you could even allow for upgrades — once the buyer develops it further, they relist it at a million-dollar level.
I know there have been some platforms trying this model — but who knows if producers are even really present there?
Here, they’re supposedly active, right?
Because me? I sure as hell wouldn’t want to wade through thousands of starving writers just to find a killer project for tomorrow. I’d want to browse, click, and know I’ve got 20 solid contenders lined up.
And here's a next-level idea:
A logline market.
John buys a sharp logline cheap.
Nancy, a hungry writer, throws in a test scene and says she’ll write the script for $30K.
Producer picks whose voice fits best.
Boom — project delivered under $100K.
And then?
The juicy stuff: premium loglines and screenplays go up for weekly auction.
Let the Hunger Games begin — but this time, at least there’s a price tag.
3 people like this
Love this. Thanks.
2 people like this
Muhammad Abed Baryal I'd focus on finding producers, perhaps also from Afghanistan who live in other parts of the world, and research their work, what they say or want to say and reach out. It often works if you are personal and let them know why you reach out (or why you reach out to them). Not exactly similar but I worked last year with a writer who was in Iran and we put together a list of Persian filmmakers who shared their sensibilities. He reached out to 3 of them with very short but impactful (personal) emails and one of them replied and offered to read their feature. They're still taking and are discussing writing a project together. Success rate is hard to predict but doing your homework and your research is everything.
1 person likes this
Patrick Kovács It's great if writers know what budget ballpark they write in. Certainly something worth mentioning. And yes, I wouldn't recommend reaching out to uber producers. But this is why it's important to network. A junior exec, a coordinator or another writer may be connected to another exec at the place that's a good fit for your script etc. If you build a network of advocates (with pure intention, not just to leverage their connections) - this is how you get closer and closer to the yes.
1 person likes this
Thank you Geoffroy Faugerolas
Geoffroy, thanks for the reply.
What do you mean by “with pure intention” when building relationships?
Because if I’m building one, and it’s not just friendship, how is it still pure?
Let’s say I somehow meet an assistant (who, by the way, already has access to my work, just like the producer), and one day I ask: “Hey, would you consider passing my script to John?”
If I add something like “we can share the credit,” will they get offended because it suddenly becomes clear I didn’t write the script to become their friend — I wrote it to get a film made?
I’m asking because where I live, this mindset has destroyed everything.
They’re not looking for great ideas from someone overflowing with them — they fear those people, because it exposes that they don’t have ideas themselves.
So they’d rather quietly make garbage and hope the real creatives just disappear.
And I’m not exaggerating.
Sure, if your neighbor happens to be a decision-maker at Paramount, things might move. But should that really be the foundation?
Sneaking a project to the right person? Sounds great in a movie.
3 people like this
I understand the principle, but at the same time, it can be hard to follow. A year ago I went through several lists on the internet with production companies. Perhaps a total of 3,000 companies. I deleted those which don't accept unsolicited mail. And I deleted those who clearly were the wrong companies. But those I were left with were largely small companies. And if a company has created just a few earlier films, it is hard to tell if they are interested in a screenplay like mine.
When it comes to the result. After emailing about a hundred companies, today I finally heard something which is possibly encouraging. After waiting four months.
1 person likes this
Congratulations on hearing back from the company, Göran Johansson! Hope it leads to a script request and more!
1 person likes this
Querying is not easy, but with patience, strategy, goals, and research, you can succeed. Geoffroy Faugerolas, you've stated everything we need. It is not limited to this industry, but the strategy is always the same for everyone. And don't forget to network. This is our most valuable asset. Carry on. Your match will come.