I got this question recently:
“I reviewed your site pretty thoroughly and while it was very helpful there is still one thing I’m unclear on: Is a query letter to an agent different than one you send to a production company? If so, what do you change?”
As a rule the query letter to agents and managers is basically the same as the one to producers. The only thing I might change is the opening sentence. I might change the opening sentence to make it clear that you are looking for representation. It’s basically assumed if you’re submitting to an agent you’re looking for representation so it’s not necessary. I recently sent out a few query letters to some agents and managers and the opening sentence was this:
“My writing partner and I are produced writers and we’re seeking new representation with our latest comedy spec, Script Title Here.”
This obviously wouldn’t work for producers but it’s a littler more clear for agents and managers.
I’ve written a ton of stuff on query letters which you can view here: https://www.sellingyourscreenplay.com/tag/query-letters/.
Click here to view my main blog post on query letter writing, How to write a professional query letter for your screenplay.