Building a Strong Screenwriting Portfolio

What should you think about when building a strong screenwriting portfolio? What even is a screenwriting portfolio? As an amateur screenwriter, the only thing you need to have in your “portfolio” are great scripts. These are commonly referred to as sample scripts. A lot of people think they need to have a pitch deck ready, costumes all picked out, and music selected for the opening scene. You don’t need any of that when you are starting out. You just need quality scripts to showcase that you understand how to tell a story in the medium of TV and Film. You want as many samples as possible, so when the opportunity presents itself and someone offers to read your material, you have a variety of scripts to choose from that might match the tone they are looking for.

In this article, we will dive into why having many sample scripts is important, as well as the different types of sample scripts that exist in the world of TV and Film. We will also go over some of the best ways to get your work noticed and how that has changed from 20-30 years ago vs. now, given what social media has become.

What Is a Screenwriting Portfolio?

Your screenwriting portfolio is literally just how many sample scripts you have to showcase your talent. You don’t need a fancy binder to keep it in. No one is going to care about that. It’s just a compilation of what you think your best-written scripts are. Your screenwriting portfolio is NOT just one script that you wrote 5 years ago, and you have just kept rewriting and tweaking it in hopes of selling it. You need to have a catalogue of scripts that all have different stories and different characters with different goals, so that you can showcase the specific genre and style you write. And as time goes on and the more you write, you will notice that the scripts get better and better. That’s the key to all of this. You have to keep writing script after script. Don’t just focus on the same one. 

For TV purposes, there are basically 3 different styles/format/tone of scripts that you can write for. You have your Single-Camera Drama, Single-Camera Comedy, and Multi-camera Comedy. The big difference is that multi-cam comedies are shows filmed in front of a live audience and usually don’t go on locations. Single-camera drama and single-camera comedy are the ones that tend to go on location more and do not film with a live audience. From a formatting POV, Single-Cam Drama and Comedies are going to look exactly the same on the page. Multi-cams will look different. So whichever you are thinking about writing, make sure you are using the proper format. Final Draft has templates that will do 99 percent of the formatting work for you. I want to make this point that the story structure and the way the story is told is the same in all 3 of these. The tone and writing style are really the big thing that is different. 

The multi-cam shows typically have a lot more jokes and a lot more comedic timing. A good rule of thumb is that you want a joke on every single page. And this makes sense because multi-cams are almost like little mini plays that happen. And because there is a live audience that is watching, they are expecting the jokes. Whereas the others aren’t necessarily like that. If you have watched enough of all these types of shows, you will understand what I mean.

Your portfolio should really consist of as many versions of what you want to write as possible. If you consider yourself more of a drama writer, great. Then have many many drama scripts written. If you are more of a comedy writer, great. Have those comedy scripts ready. This industry isn’t really about people who are “Well, I can write it all, I am pretty good at comedy and pretty good at thrillers and pretty good at horror.” Pick one and become the best at it. Showrunners want someone that is really good at one thing. They don’t care if you are okay with thrillers. If they are hiring you for a comedy show, then you want to be the best comedy writer there is. 

I would say that if you do want to write comedy, have samples of both multi-cam and single-cam comedy scripts ready. Even though the tones are slightly different, comedy is comedy, and a lot of comedy writers can go from one to the other. On the other hand, it is much more rare for someone who writes comedy to go off and be a drama writer. Later on in your career, this might be possible, but for the time being, just focus on the one genre that you want and become the best at it.

Essential Elements of a Strong Writing Portfolio

Back in the day, “speculation” scripts, AKA “spec scripts” used to be what was the calling card for TV writers. A spec script is an example of a script for a show that already exists that you have written. This is how you got work. You proved to people that you can write for a show that is already on the air. It has now changed to more “original pilots” because there is just so much content out there to keep track of. You could write an example of an existing show, and there is a chance that the Showrunner has never heard of it because of how much is out there. So, having an original idea and an original script is what is used for calling cards now. But you still have to show and prove that you can actually write.

Like anything, you want to make sure your scripts look as professional as possible. You’d better make sure all of the elements are labeled correctly. You’d better make sure that the formatting is the correct style. You’d better make sure there are no spelling mistakes or anything like that. And luckily, if you have Final Draft, it will catch a lot of these issues for you. It won’t catch them all, but it will catch a lot. 

Where to Showcase Your Writing Portfolio

You can literally showcase your portfolio anywhere, and here is what I mean by that. No, there is no real website where you can upload your “portfolio” and people will look at it. But you do have the ability to write something, film it on your phone, and blast it out on social media. And if it is great, you will be able to tell because people will follow you and ask for more. This didn’t exist 15-20 years ago. You can take advantage of this and build your own audience, and Hollywood will come find you. But again, you always want to have scripts ready to be able to show people, regardless of whether you have filmed it and put it on social media.

Now, if you are working on a TV show and you have the chance to talk with the writers and build relationships with them, chances are they might talk to you about your writing. On a show, you’re lower-level writers (Staff Writer, Story Editor, Executive Story Editor), those would be the first ones I would want to talk to to try and build relationships and get advice and guidance. They were where you are currently, not too long ago, and probably still remember the grind. Ask them to coffee, treat them to a lunch, and pick their brain. Most writers I have met like talking about their careers and how they got there. And especially if you can offer some sort of service for them, helping them with their social media, or offering to proofread any of their scripts, do it. Build that relationship, but be genuine about it. Writers are writers for a reason, and most can tell disingenuous intentions when they see them. They get paid to figure these things out and understand human conditions. But eventually, after the relationship is strong and they realize you are serious, chances are that they will offer to read your scripts and give you some feedback. And this could be such an amazing way to showcase your work.

How to Get Noticed with Your Portfolio

The simple answer is to write something that is so good that it can’t go unnoticed. But I think in reality, it comes down to your storytelling abilities. If you can study the craft and learn it so well, your storytelling ability will stand out from others who think they can write a script. And that’s really the key. You have to study the craft. Take courses from repeatable people. Get closer to people who work in the industry and learn from them. Try to get work on a TV show, and you will be amazed at what you can learn. Your chances are going to come along in the industry, and you just have to be prepared. And honestly, you don’t necessarily have all 40 pages of your script to get your work noticed. Professional screenwriters can tell within the first few pages if the script is at a professional level or amateur level. And the more you understand story structure and unpacking the story, the more you can get noticed. 

You are at the beginning stages of your career. Your hope is to prove to other writers that you can write, so they will hire you. The,n once you have years under your belt of doing that, you can start focusing on trying to get your own scripts produced at the Studio/Network level. And if that really isn’t your timeline, then great. You can still write scripts, find some friends, and film it. Post it on YouTube, and then if it gets a lot of traction and Hollywood comes looking for you, congrats! I would consider that to be a professional screenwriter. But getting noticed all starts with the foundation and studying the craft, and making the script so great that it would be dumb for someone to ignore your writing abilities.

Conclusion

Again, the term “portfolio” sounds a lot fancier than what it needs to be. All you need are examples of great scripts that you have written. Don’t use AI. That’s cheating. If you are already wanting to use it to accelerate your writing, just don’t. You might be able to fool someone one time, but when you actually have to put in the work at a professional level and you fail, you will know why. All of that pitch deck, music, and costume stuff will come into play so much later. Don’t worry about that right now. Focus on that one genre you like as you are starting out. And if you don’t know what genre you want to write for yet, that’s okay. Just think about the shows you like watching. Chances are that is probably the genre you want to write for.

The ways you can get noticed in today’s world are unlimited. Social media can have an impact on that in a major way. But I would say, wait until you have something written that you truly believe is good, and other people have confirmed it, before you throw it out there in the public eye. But on the other hand, I will encourage you to ask friends or peers to read your stuff first and get their feedback. Sometimes, as writers, we may get too in our heads about something and make it too complicated, and it confuses the audience. If you have good friends, they will tell you. And as Michael always says, “As long as you want to keep turning the page on the script you are reading, it’s probably a good script.”

Michael has some free lessons you can watch, so you can start your journey and learn more about story structure and the storytelling process.

I encourage you to sign up. It’s free! Literally no excuse. It’s free! And just in case you don’t know what “free” means, “free” means “FREE.” Do you know what ISN’T free?

Having regrets.

But what IS free is Michael’s free screenwriting lesson.

Sign up and start your screenwriting journey today with a lesson from Michael Jamin at michaeljamin.com/free.

Did I mention that these free lessons are FREE?

Read More From This Series

How To Become A Screenwriter
Understanding The Role Of A Screenwriter
Do You Need an Apprenticeship to Become a Screenwriter
Essential Skills For Successful Screenwriting
Networking And Industry Connections For Screenwriters
What Are Strong Goals In Screenwriting
How Do Screenwriters Contribute To Society