Test-screening service OTX is to offer a script evaluation service. Daily Variety reports:
"The timing could be perfect for OTX considering studio chiefs and film financiers are more cautious than ever about greenlighting projects -- hence the emphasis on studio fare with built-in brands. Yet OTX's process of relying on past releases as a guide could also result in still more cookie-cutter fare bowing at the megaplex.
OTX's new division will essentially compare a script to other pics in its genre and identify its target demographic and box office potential, as well as potential marketing messages. Creative elements are analyzed and compared with similar pics to suggest how audiences might react to scenes, based on a database of research OTX has assembled over the years. Recommendations are made to address any negatives. The scripts are also pitched to 1,500 moviegoers to gauge their interest in wanting to see the film. Each report costs $5,000." Would OTX have recommended "The Hurt Locker" or "Up" or any other scripts that stray from the path of the predictable? How about "Harry Potter" had that originated as a script instead of a novel? I bet they would have been enthusiastic about this summer's crop of sequels and remakes, most of which have been disappointments at the box office. My recommendation to producers: pay $100 to Madame Esmerelda, your local psychic, and give $4900 to the charity of your choice. You'll get equal value and feel better about yourself.
