SlagA
Tuesday 8th July 2008 3:25am
Blackwood
5,335 posts
I've been trying to hold back on interfering but can I say that Marc P's detailed crit in Critique was excellent and went beyond the call of duty. Saying that 'a joke is needed here' isn't a diplomatic or deceptive way of saying 'this is unfunny', it's alerting the writer to the pacing and distribution of humour within a scene. Even some professional writers still have to subject their work to an overseer who'll comment and request amendments. Making TV or radio is often a collaborative effort and the scriptwriter sometimes has to accomodate the views of several people within the hierarchy. Collaboration means compromise means admitting the possibility that someone else's way may be better. To be honest, I want product on the TV, so if someone's input makes it stronger, I'll incorporate it.
To see a script editor's comments in detail would have been a great eye-opener and free tutorial to many of us here. I'm unafraid to put myself in that category, I'm always willing to read and learn.
I can honestly say that I've read very little on Crit that had no redeeming features that I could point to. This may mean my ability to judge good / bad comedy is deemed crap. But comedy is subjective, and subjectivity hinges on personality. To suggest that a script is deserving of nil points or 100% totally negative comment means that the poster must have failed on every single aspect which is as unlikely as finding the perfect script.
When a person subjects their work to professional criticism (by sending to a production company) then they can have no complaints about being judged amongst the Linehan's and Curtis's of this world. But this is a public forum, not a producer's desk. The crits should reflect the fact that our opinions count for jack shit as to whether the work gets commissioned or otherwise. Producers will decide that. The experience of the poster, the stage at which they are at, the seriousness behind the piece are factors that vary and are often unknown to us. I've read stuff here that I considered weak, that has attracted attention beyond the forum, and vice versa.
I'm not saying hold back on negs but don't hold back on positives either. Our opinions on this forum affect nothing but our attitudes (percieved or otherwise) and the way we treat other people extends far beyond that.
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