Breaking Into Hollywood – How Do I Get A Job As A Story Analyst / Script Reader?
One of my first jobs in Los Angeles was as a story analyst at a major production company. If you’d love to spend long nights and weekends reading and analyzing the future hits (and not-so-much-a-hits) of Hollywood, here’s how you go after this fascinating, funny and frankly high burn-out entry-level gig.
THE JOB
As a story analyst, it is your job to read and summarize scripts then analyze them for structural soundness, story, dialogue, character development, creativity and more. That is called “generating coverage,” and you will do that for your creative executives (CEs) on fairly tight deadlines.
THE PROCESS
When you apply for a job as a reader, you will be handed a sample script and asked to analyze it, using the company’s coverage template, in a set period of time, FOR FREE.