Compendium Submission Requirements

Submitting your screenplay for the
Compendium review

 

To help promote our members’ screenplays, any General Member of the Northwest Screenwriters Guild may apply for Compendium Membership.

 

• Compendium-level Membership qualifies a person to pitch to Guests of the Guild who are willing to hear pitches.
• General Members who are not Compendium Members may not pitch.
• Compendium Membership is not assured, nor is it necessarily permanent.

 

Send the screenplay as if you were submitting it to a producer. It should be properly formatted and free of mistakes.

 

• Send your screenplay submission to: compendium@nwsg.org
• Submit your screenplay in PDF format.

 

We want to see how you will represent yourself in the industry. The quality and presentation of your writing is the first step.

 

Note: You must be an NWSG general member in good standing to submit a screenplay for Compendium consideration.

 

 

After you send your screenplay

 

Once your screenplay is received it will be placed in the queue for review.

• If approved, you will be contacted with information about the next step in the process.
• If not approved, you will be given a short assessment as to why and will be invited to resubmit at such time as those issues have been addressed.

 

Once the screenplay is accepted, the Compendium Committee will schedule an appointment to hear a pitch from the prospective Compendium Member and discuss the expectations of the Compendium.

 

We have no guidelines currently regarding how often a member may submit to the process.

 

We are looking for professionalism throughout this process, and we will be busy with a backlog of submissions, so a potential Compendium candidate should bear this in mind when deciding how quickly or often to resubmit.

 

Screenplay standards for the Compendium

 

There are three standards that a member must meet to qualify for the Compendium:

1. Writing Ability
   A member must submit a script to the Compendium Committee for verification that they write at a professional level.
2. Pitching Ability
   A member must demonstrate the ability to effectively pitch their screenplay to potentially interested parties. This verification will be made by a pitching demonstration to the Compendium Committee and will be scheduled after a successful script submission.
3. Decorum.
   Compendium Members must represent the Guild professionally at all times.

Verification of this standard starts at the pitch demonstration but is an ongoing process.

 

Additional minutiae

 

All members of the Compendium should see themselves as part of a greater whole. The actions of an individual member should reflect well on the entire Compendium. A producer who has come into contact with one of our members, whether at one of the NWSG events or a pitch fest or any other venue, should come away with a sense they were dealing with a level of quality and professionalism that they rarely encounter.

 

A huge part of becoming successful in the film industry is, as we’ve all heard so many times before, “who you know.”

 

We are not in Hollywood. We are not as likely to have friends or family in the industry as people in California. What we do have to start with is each other. The more Compendium Members who find success through our efforts, the more people we will know in the industry. The more success we experience with our screenwriting, the more opportunities we will have to recommend other screenwriters for various projects that we personally are not right for, have no time for, or just aren’t interested in. If the best and most professional screenwriters we know are in the Compendium with us, who else would we recommend?

 

The goal of the Compendium is to assemble an impressive group of talented, creative individuals who know how to maintain good working relationships that don’t tolerate trash talk, back-stabbing, and gossip. Trash goes in one kind of bin, dirty laundry in another. In no circumstance should any member invite one of our guests on a tour of those bins.

 

A note about the competition

 

Compendium Members will often find themselves competing, whether through pitching spec scripts to the same producers, securing work on an established property, or participating in a screenwriting competition. There must be no friction or animosity evident as a result.

 

We have come together to support and encourage each other in our chosen craft. We believe we can expand our opportunities for success to a greater degree by working together. As such, there is no place for jealousy in our ranks. If you find yourself frustrated at the success of those around you, jealousy will act as an anchor tied around your middle. Rather than wallow in negativity, cut yourself free and let the achievements of your colleagues raise you up. A rising tide lifts all boats, except for those chained to the seabed.

 

If you do not agree with this philosophy, Compendium Membership may not be for you. That doesn’t mean you won’t be successful in your own right. Every path is different. The Compendium path, however, is strictly one of support and celebration from like-minded professionals.

 

Removal of Compendium members

 

If it becomes apparent that a Member is not living up to the expectations of the Compendium, said Member may be removed from membership by a majority vote of the Compendium Committee. Removal from the Compendium does not constitute removal from the larger NWSG, although depending on the circumstances this may be a consideration as well.