Brush Up On Your Performing Skills
“The pitch is a whole other animal…I am much more comfortable writing. That’s what I do. I’m not a talker, I’m not a performer, I’m not an extrovert, but you’ve got to go in there. Even if you have the greatest story ever…it’s a whole other effort to get it into a place where you can communicate it in a short period of time with clarity to a bunch of people who have no attention span.”
- Amanda Silver (writer/producer Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes; producer War for the Planet of the Apes; writer Jurassic World, Mulan 2020)
Give Them the Tools to Sell Your Story
“Keep it short and sell it. And by sell it, I mean give them how they sell it, because if you’re pitching to an exec, they have to go to somebody and tell them about your show, so you kind of have to give them all the buzz words to be able to be like, “Okay, I can easily remember that thing they said, and now I can tell my boss and get my boss excited about it.” Because that’s the person who buys it, not the person you’re pitching to right now…I’m actually just giving them the tools to sell to their boss.”
- Misha Green (writer/producer Underground, Lovecraft Country, The Mother)
Know Your Audience
“That really helps if you’re tenacious and if you can get in there and have conversations with people. Pitch something they maybe want to talk about…know your audience and know your genre, because some things just don’t fit into a neat little package.”
- Kate Petrosky (former Creative Executive, Focus Features)
Stick To the Key Elements Of Your Story
“There’s a way in which world-building can overwhelm the story… a thing I’ve heard from execs is a story where someone comes in with a pitch on something, and they spent 45 minutes trying to explain the sci-fi, and they never got to the characters or what the story’s about. You have to be careful that the world doesn’t overwhelm the other important aspects of the story.”
- Angela Kang (writer/co-executive producer The Walking Dead; writer Terriers)
#pitch #film #tv #writer #director #producer #script
3 people like this
This is fantastic advice, Tammy Hunt! "Give Them the Tools to Sell Your Story." That's something I keep in mind when I'm outlining a script and preparing a pitch. I'll come up with very short, catchy sentences that the people I'll be pitching to can pass on to their bosses, producing partners, etc. Sentences that sum up a script in seconds. Some people call them "nutshells." Sometimes the sentences will have comparables in them. Something like "JOHN WICK on a boat cruise." Thanks for sharing these tips.
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So good advices Tammy Hunt ! Thanks for sharing. I am a speaker person and this guidance will help me :) thanksss
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That picture shows some really happy people.
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I am the same way, I’m an screenwriter, not a talker. I’m very much an introvert and shy at times. Thanks for this. this is something I’m working on to be a better communicator. Pitching a script can be hard if it’s unorganized or all over the place. I think it’s best if you practice first by pitching to friends and family to get their feedback to see what you need to work on or if it’s a perfect pitch.
I’m going to school now at Full Sail university for cinematography. I learned a lot about communicating but I’m still shy.
This is a good post!
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Definitely keep it short. Don't take it page by page or beat by beat. Hit the gist of the story and spend your time/energy on major selling points like character appeal, themes, big set pieces, and relevance to today's world.
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Erika J. Anderson Congrats on the Full Sail work. I did a short awhile back and the cinematographer was a Full Sail alumnus. Great camera skills and instinct.