If you’re a screenwriter ready to pitch your script to a studio, agent, producer or director, you should be aware of how a well-planned pitch can capture the interest of filmmakers.

First, you have to have a great script. The screenplay should be 110 to 120 pages in length, be easy-to-read and follow all of the conventions of industry writing. The characters should be well developed, the plot should be clear and the situations should be so interesting that the reader will be unable to put it down.

The script should be exciting, well written and appeal to a wide variety of people. There should also be unique components to the story that prevent it from sounding like a recycled idea (even if it is similar to scripts that have already become films). The main goal is to prevent the filmmaker from putting your ideas into a generic pile that could be lumped in with other projects and ignored.

Below are some examples of possible scripts and how they could be pitched in an exciting, compelling way.

If you have a script about a prison inmate who boosts the morale of his cellmates through music, consider bringing a recording of an actor singing a song as if they are that character. Use your logline to demonstrate the life changes that could occur in this situation if the character were real. Make the filmmaker believe that somewhere in some prison this very event could be taking place. Tell the filmmaker about why your main character is in prison and why the audience will root for him. Is he unjustly imprisoned? Or is he a charismatic, cold-blooded killer? Make the filmmaker want to ask you these questions based on your pitch.

Shifting gears, say you have written a script about unrequited love. Let the filmmaker know how much pain both of the lovers are in every moment they spend apart. Invite the filmmaker to become emotionally involved—tell them about how the characters met, what obstacles stand in their way and how badly their hearts ache because of circumstance. Light a candle. Shed a tear. Be as passionate about your star-crossed lovers as you want the filmmakers to be about your script.

If you’ve written a script based on a true story, bring articles and video or DVD footage of the actual events and present those during your pitch. If your screenplay is about war, bring messages that soldiers have taped for their loved ones from faraway lands. If it’s about a missing person, make a scrapbook of newspaper clippings, magazine articles and books on the subject to prove the interest your script will generate.

Whatever your ideas, the keys to script pitching success are a strong screenplay and a demonstrated passion for your work.