Stage 32 Screenwriting Lab: Write Your Female-Driven Feature Film Script In 8 Weeks
Other education that may be of interest to you:
TV Writing 101
Learn The Fundamentals Of Writing For Television With A Literary Manager Who Recently Staffed Clients On SINGLE DRUNK FEMALE, GINNY & GEORGIA, P-VALLEY, GROWN-ISH, HACKS, UPSHAWS, and more! Last year, a record number of 559 original scripted shows aired on broadcast, cable, and streaming television. From Succession and The Morning Show to Ted Lasso and Abbott Elementary, the most successful TV shows can capture a generation of fans and generate cultural conversations. And every show started with a great pilot script that launched the series. Television pilot structure can be complex but there are several principles that should always be followed. Writers who dream of that coveted “Created By” credit must first develop a sellable concept and compelling characters, then tell a self-contained story in either thirty or sixty minutes that sets up a larger story with an engine strong enough to carry it for multiple seasons. In this exclusive 4-part Stage 32 on-demand class, Audrey Knox, a literary manager at The Cartel, will teach you all of the basic steps required to write a strong TV pilot script so that you can flourish as a TV writer. Audrey has recently staffed her writers on series such as SINGLE DRUNK FEMALE, GINNY & GEORGIA, P-VALLEY, GROWN-ISH, HACKS, UPSHAWS, and more. Whether your goal is to write a pilot script that sells or to write a sample that gets you staffed in the writers’ room of a TV show, the first step is to learn the basics of writing a TV pilot. Many showrunners only give your script five pages before deciding whether you’re worth hiring, and thousands of writers attempt to get their foot in the door in Hollywood every year. Knowing the challenges new television writers face when starting out in TV is essential for building a writing process and knowledge base that helps you overcome them. This class is ideal for feature or novel writers that are looking to write their first TV pilot, TV writers who are looking to take their pilot writing skills to the next level, and new writers who are looking for how to start writing for TV. Praise for Audrey's Teaching: "I can't say enough good things about Audrey. She cares about helping her students and provides very valuable information. I wish she was MY manager!" --Sam R. "I didn't realize how much should go into reaching out to reps until I took this class from Audrey. I was doing it all wrong!" -- Morgan B. "Audrey is one of the best teachers on Stage 32. I can't recommend learning from her enough." -- Sydney M.
How To Write A Query Letter That Gets You Past The Gatekeepers
Learn how to write a query letter that makes people take notice of you and your script so that you can make connections, get repped, and launch your career! Your script is ready. You have a killer logline and an impressive bio. So, why isn’t anyone responding to your query letter? The truth is managers and agents are inundated with daily emails from hopeful writers looking to get their scripts into the right hands. These are “cold queries,” where writers reach out to industry professionals or "gatekeepers," hoping the executive will want to read their script or even meet. Most of the time, these queries are dismissed or ignored, and sometimes can harm your ability to build a relationship with an executive. However, a select few will cut through the clutter and gain attention. So how do you break through? In this exclusive Stage 32 on-demand webinar, you’ll learn what managers are looking for from your query letter, how to find the people to contact, and how to ultimately grab their attention so you can move your career forward. Showing you exactly what representatives want to see in your query letter is Audrey Knox of The Cartel, a full-service management and production company. Audrey has built a successful roster of screenwriting clients who have written for shows including SINGLE DRUNK FEMALE, GINNY & GEORGIA, P-VALLEY, and THE GOLDBERGS, and are writing projects for Netflix, Nickelodeon, Apple TV+, and more. She recently found her client, Heidi Lux, through Stage 32 and produced Heidi’s feature film CRUSHED, which premiered on Tubi this year. Audrey will also show you examples of successful query letters and will provide you with the best format and formula in a handout to keep and use in your future query letters. Don’t miss out on your chance to learn exactly what literary managers are looking for from one of the best in the business! Praise for Audrey's Teaching: "I can't say enough good things about Audrey. She cares about helping her students and provides very valuable information. I wish she was MY manager!" --Sam R. "I didn't realize how much should go into reaching out to reps until I took this class from Audrey. I was doing it all wrong!" -- Morgan B. "Audrey is one of the best teachers on Stage 32. I can't recommend learning from her enough." -- Sydney M.
Stage 32 Screenwriting Class: How to Better Approach and Sign With a Literary Manager to Advance Your Screenwriting Career - With a Query and Writing Sample Workshop
Learn how to approach managers the right way to get the representation you need to further your career from a literary manager at The Cartel, with clients on IT'S ALWAYS SUNNY IN PHILADELPHIA, THE UPSHAWS, LUCIFER, and more! All writers think they have the next great screenplay or series. And maybe you do! But to get the proper feedback, get the script into market shape, and have a confidant on the business side of your pursuits to get your work out there, having a great manager who's plugged in can make all the difference. It’s your manager who often is the key to getting in front of execs, getting staffed on a TV show, and building your career to writing full-time. But as most writers can attest, finding a manager can be HARD. That doesn’t mean it’s impossible, though. It’s more in your power than you may think. Most managers will tell you that most newer writers make the same mistakes when looking for a manager that can prevent them from ultimately finding representation. The good news is that these mistakes are easily avoidable and can be replaced with effective strategies and actions that can greatly help your chances. It’s time to hear from a successful literary manager herself on how she finds clients and what you can do to find the representation you need for your own career. Audrey Knox is a TV literary manager at The Cartel, a premiere management company with clients on shows including the Emmy-nominated IT’S ALWAYS SUNNY IN PHILADELPHIA, Golden Globe winning CALIFORNICATION, THE VAMPIRE DIARIES, BONES, LUCIFER, HAPPY!, BLACK LIGHTNING, STAR TREK: DISCOVERY, and more. For years, Audrey has been helping clients get their work in front of execs and networks and most recently staffed one of her clients on THE UPSHAWS for Netflix. As an established and successful literary manager, Audrey has seen more than her fair share of queries and writing samples and has met her fair share of hungry writers. She knows very well what mistakes most writers make and how the writers she ends up working with find success. And now she’s going to lay it all out for the Stage 32 community. In a special and exclusive 2-part on-demand class, Audrey will give you the tools you need and the strategies you’ve been lacking to put your best foot forward and better your chances of getting a great literary manager for your own screenwriting or TV writing career. In the first session, Audrey will walk you through how to approach managers the right way and explain the proper approach to query letters, writing samples, bios, and loglines. She even dissects brave volunteers’ own query letters and writing samples. After laying out this approach, Audrey will leave you to put these skills to use and actually reach out to managers on your own! The second session will discuss how the new approach worked and then dive into next steps you can take as a writer once you have an interested manager, including signing, how to be a good client that your manager will want to keep on board, and the other members of your team you may or may not need, like agents and lawyers. If you’ve been struggling to find representation, there are likely things you can be doing differently to better your chances. here’s no one better than Audrey to help you adjust your approach and ultimately get the representation you’re looking for. Praise for Audrey's Teaching: "I can't say enough good things about Audrey. She cares about helping her students and provides very valuable information. I wish she was MY manager!" --Sam R. "I didn't realize how much should go into reaching out to reps until I took this class from Audrey. I was doing it all wrong!" -- Morgan B. "Audrey is one of the best teachers on Stage 32. I can't recommend learning from her enough." -- Sydney M.
The Pitch Tank with Special Guest Jonny Perl
During this Pitch Tank, Jason Mirch is joined by Jonny Perl the Associate Producer at Cinemation, a company built by the creative minds behind features and television including Disney's The Lion King, Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid, DreamWorks' & Netflix's "The Mr. Peabody & Sherman Show", Stuart Little. They are currently in production on Open Road Films' animated feature Blazing Samurai starring Samuel L Jackson and Mel Brooks, which releases in 2021!
How to Legally Protect Your Online Content: YouTube, Twitter, Instagram and More
Learn how to protect your content online directly from Jaia Thomas, an Entertainment Attorney who specializes in federal copyright registration and licensing as well as film financing, production and distribution! Content creators are increasingly relying on digital and social media platforms to build their brand. Whether you’re a screenwriter, an actor, comedian, or anything, creating content for platforms like Twitter, YouTube, Vimeo, TikTok, and Instagram can be a powerful way to be discovered, find fans, and give yourself the chance for bigger opportunities. Yet despite the positives, the internet isn’t exactly the safest place, and having your work stolen or plagiarized is unfortunately far too common. Keeping your content protected on online platforms can be complicated but if you put your own work online, it’s crucial you first understand how to best legally protect yourself. Just because your work is posted and widely accessible on platforms like Twitter or Instagram doesn’t mean you can’t take steps to have it protected. The internet can be tricky, but it’s not the wild west it once was. Understanding how to be safe and what happens to your ideas when they’re posted can make all the difference. For instance are your YouTube videos protected under the U.S. Copyright Act? Who owns your tweet or snap? And what steps can you take from the outset to dissuade people from stealing your work? Better understanding the legal side of this world and being aware of the steps you can (and should) take is incredibly important if you’re interested in building your online presence and putting your own ideas out there for everyone to see. Jaia Thomas is an entertainment attorney with over ten years of legal experience who has brokered deals with companies like ABC, NBC, HBO, and Bravo and has been quoted as a legal expert in such publications as The New York Times, USA Today and ESPN. Jaia regularly assists clients with transactional and intellectual property matters and counsels filmmakers and producers on all aspects of film financing, production and distribution. She also regularly assists content creators with federal copyright registration and licensing and has had several works published in the American Bar Association, National Bar Association and multiple law journals. Through her many years specializing in federal copyright registration and licensing, Jaia has become an expert on how creators can keep their work safe, and is going to share what she knows exclusively with the Stage 32 community. In this exclusive Stage 32 on-demand webinar, Jaia will equip you with the tools necessary to protect your work and ideas in an increasingly online world. She will first outline the copyright registration process and how it applies to online content She’ll even go through step-by-step how to get your online work registered with the U.S. Copyright Office. Next she will delve into specific online sites and platforms, discuss their terms and conditions and give you tips on how to protect your work on each. This includes YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, and Faceboook. Jaia will discuss legal issues surrounding the ownership of social media posts. She will also highlight recent infringement lawsuits in the entertainment industry surrounding content being shared on social media platforms. Lastly, Jaia will discuss the requisite steps necessary to remove infringing material from the web. PRAISE FOR JAIA'S TEACHINGS: "Highly informative. Thank you Jaia Thomas!" -Patrick D. "Great webinar with invaluable tips and advice. Great presentation and presenter. Very pleased and satisfied." -Robert F
How to Write & Produce a Successful Christmas TV Movie
It’s the most wonderful time of the year, with mistletoe, tinsel, sleigh rides, and, of course, a boatload of new Christmas movies. Indeed, for millions of families across America and the world, appetite is high for new Christmas-themed content. Hallmark alone is premiering 80 (!!) new Christmas movies this holiday season. That’s on top of the 90 they produced last year. And Hallmark isn’t the only player in the Christmas movie game. Many other networks and streamers have entered this space like Netflix, Hulu, Lifetime, Freeform, and BET, to name a few. With so many networks and streaming platforms hungry for Christmas content, there has never been a better time for writers and producers to bring their own Christmas story to the screen. If you want to write or produce your own Christmas film, there are a lot of opportunities available to you, but you first need to understand what this space is currently looking like and how you can best fit in. Who’s buying and selling? What makes a Christmas themed script successful and how can you best produce and assemble your film to make it marketable, unique, and exciting? Better understanding the context and current landscape can give your own Yule tide project the success you’re looking for. James Crawford is a producer and development executive currently at Fireside Pictures with several holiday titles—and several dozen other pitched projects—under his belt. While at Engage Entertainment, James developed, sold, and produced seven movies to Hallmark Channel over three years, including THE ROOFTOP CHRISTMAS TREE, SLEIGH BELLS RING and A DECEMBER BRIDE. In addition to his feature production experience, James has developed several one-hour television series, pitching to EPiX, WGN America, Cinemax, and Universal Cable Productions, among others. James worked as Creative Executive at Cartel Entertainment, a television and film literary management and production company, and was responsible for identifying, developing, and pitching content for its first-look deal with Entertainment One, including the Stephen King novel The Regulators. At Cartel Entertainment, James developed pitches for Amazon, FX, Hulu, Netflix, Cinemax, UCP, and other major networks. James has a storied background as a producer and executive and is intimately familiar with what it takes to turn a script into a produced holiday film. James will teach you how to write and produce a successful Christmas movie in today’s industry. He’ll begin by going over the market and explaining who is buying and selling. He’ll also outline what stories are popular right now. He’ll then delve into tips for writing an effective Christmas movie, both TV movies and films. He’ll discuss aspects like screenplay format, plotting and structure, themes to lean into and avoid, diversity, characters, and what the holiday film essentials are. Next James will go over how to produce a Christmas movie. He’ll talk about what a successful budget range should be and when to start pitching. He’ll explain how to cast your movie for success and where to spend your money in production. Finally he will go over distribution options for your holiday film and whether it can sell outside of the US. If you’ve always wanted to make your own Christmas movie or have a story that you think could work within the holiday market, let James give you the lowdown you need to take the next steps toward holly jolly success. Praise for James's Past Stage 32 Webinar "James was awesome. Clear, concise, and knowledgeable." --Stephen B. “James Crawford was very informative, and the way he brought the webinar across was entertaining and kept you engaged. I loved every bit of it! I hope he comes back for a round 2” --Imo C. "Super helpful and very clear. Right to the point. Not full of anecdotes but actual teaching." --Helena W. “It was very informative in a practical way. James was great!” --Dave M.
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