Volume 3
February 2007

FREE Classes with Special Guests

Ellen Sandler
(Emmy Nominee & Co-Exec Producer of 'Everybody Loves Raymond')
Dr. Linda Seger
(Author of 'Making Good Scripts Great' & 'Creating Unforgettable Characters')
Pilar Alessandra
(Script Consultant & Director 'On The Page' & former Sr. Story Analyst Dreamworks & Radar Pictures)
Michael Hauge
(Author of 'Writing Screenplays That Sell' & 'Selling Screenplays That Sell')
David Freedman
(Agent & Owner of 'Hollywood View Agency')
Kathie Fong Yoneda
(Former Exec with Disney, Touchstone & Author of 'The Script Selling Game')
Karl Iglesias
(Author & Consultant '101 Habits of Highly Successful Screenwriters')

The Great American PitchFest is offering
ALL OF OUR SCREENWRITING CLASSES FOR FREE!

Yes, for free. Nada. Zip. Zilch. And no, there's no catch - This is our gift to you. As the ONLY pitching event created BY screenwriters FOR screenwriters, this is your chance to learn from the best screenwriting instructors in the business. Get a free ticket for yourself and a friend by registering now. For free tickets, register here.

What is a pitch? How do you do it? Are there specific "rules" in presenting a successful pitch?

The answer is: yes and no. Every pitch session is different, but the most important thing to remember is that the point is not to sell your project. It is to build a relationship. A commitment to your project is secondary. Always.

First of all, remember that you are having a conversation, and it is your meeting. You are "hosting" the meeting, and it is up to you to direct the conversation and keep it on track. That doesn’t mean you can’t stray from it, but it is your job to keep the meeting focused and convey or find out the appropriate information.

What follows is an outline of the ten steps you should be familiar with when pitching.

The Steps

1. Give them a business card.
2. Tell them why you want to meet with them. What do you want? To coproduce it with them? For them to acquire your finished show? Development funds? Production commitment? Be specific.
3. Personalize it: tell them why the subject material is important to you. This is important because it connects you emotionally to the project.
4. Give a strong logline. And then expand it to tell about characters, hosts, etc.
5. Tell about the overall concept of project; additional story ideas, etc.
6. Describe your background & key production team (if relevant)
7. Tell them current status of project: idea stage, bible & scripts developed, pilot shot, etc.
8. Repeat what you want from them. Be very clear.
9. Ask if you can send them a proposal or pitch them other ideas in future.
10. Ask when you can follow up, and do it!

Each of these steps is about a paragraph in length, and you should be extremely familiar with your pitch. It is not inappropriate to go into your meeting with the information written out on cue cards or a piece of paper. These are tools, and if they help to make your pitch better, then use them - especially if you are nervous. But the more practiced and familiar you are with your pitch, the less you will need them. The preference is to not use them if possible - especially if your pitch is only five minutes. Some executives will argue that if you cannot pitch without the use of cue cards, then you do not know your pitch well enough, and that you should be able to discuss your project for five minutes without the aid of cue cards. Bottom line, you must know your pitch well to pitch it well - with or without cue cards.

When you meet with a studio or a producer, it is important to know that they are inundated with pitches - lots of excellent ideas and great projects, with experienced people attached. Your pitch needs to be as strong as possible to compete. It also needs to be passionate and enthusiastic. You’re not just selling your idea. You’re selling yourself.

Make sure you have a strong team. Make sure you know what you want - are you looking for a coproducer or a development deal? Or do you want a writing assignment? Without a strong and experienced production team, a studio may not give it serious consideration, no matter how great the idea. Perhaps you should concentrate your efforts on finding a suitable producing partner first. Know what you need. And if you don’t know, find out before having a meeting you may not be ready for.

Is your concept original? If you are an emerging filmmaker, perhaps you want to consider bringing an experienced story editor or other creative individual to help hone your project. Asking for development funds could help you to bring this person aboard.

Do your research. Most studios and production companies have their own websites, which includes specific information for submitting pitches and proposals. Don’t be afraid to ask questions, but only if you cannot find the answer on your own first, or if you need clarification. Find out everything you can about your studio or producer before meeting with them. Watch their programming. Study their website. Know why your project would be a fit with them. This is important because nobody wants their time wasted, including you.

When you meet with a studio exec or producer, particularly in an environment such as a pitchfest, it is appropriate to give out a one-sheet. (Most pitchfest’s do not allow ‘leave behinds’ but I feel really strongly that this is wrong. You are pitching to a professional. Onesheets are tools used by professionals, so why wouldn’t they be used? The Great American PitchFest is the only pitchfest that encourages you to use leave behinds).A onesheet is a one page document, sometimes double-sided, usually glossy with color that gives a quick sell of the project. Generally, it is more focused on the concept and can be compared to a film poster. It is usually regular letter sized and can be helpful to a studio as a reference. It is also helpful to have one because it helps the person you meet with to pitch to will probably have to pitch your project ‘up the ladder’ and it makes their job easier to have an effective and visually captivating onesheet to reference.

What is not usually appropriate to give out is a complete proposal. Most studios and producers get so much material at market festivals that it becomes cumbersome to wade through it all, let alone pack it up and take back to their offices. Ask if you can send a proposal to them at a later date, and then, make sure you do it.

Regardless of what happens during your meeting, be gracious. This is an individual giving you their time. Even if it is a project they are not interested in, accept that for the time being and move on. Perhaps you can pitch them another project, or rework it to make it more suitable. Most studios and producers are very helpful and may suggest other studios you may want to meet and discuss the project with. Even when they pass, it is an opportunity to find out more about their company and what they are looking for. From that meeting, you may be able to develop something that is more of an interest for them.

With every meeting, follow up. Thank them for meeting with you. Thank them for considering the project. Thank them for sharing information about their company and programming needs.

It’s been said that "pitch" is the wrong word for such a meeting. It is almost as if the studio or producer expects something to be thrown at them. But it is essential to learn how pitch well - it is the only way you can expect something to be thrown back to you.

SIGNE OLYNYK is a writer / producer who has Associate Produced two feature films, as well as written/produced several documentaries, tv pilots, and a six part series. She created and founded The Great American PitchFest and The Great Canadian PitchFest. She is President and CEO of Twilight Pictures Inc. in Canada, and Protagonist Pictures Inc. in Los Angeles.

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Michael Hauge's Screenplay Mastery News Greetings - It's my great pleasure to announce that my new book, Selling Your Story in 60 Seconds: The Guaranteed Way to Get Your Screenplay or Novel Read, has just been released by Michael Wiese Productions. This is my first book in more than 15 years, and contains my entire process for getting your screenplay, treatment or manuscript read by agents, managers, producers, executives and financiers. It includes a step by step process for preparing your pitch, researching and contacting potential buyers, and delivering your pitch in less than a minute over the phone, at a writers conference, or at a Pitchfest. It also features templates for pitching a variety of approaches and film genres, and contributions by 45 writers, agents and executives on the qualities of an outstanding pitch. As a special introductory special for friends of the Great American and Great Canadian Pitchfests, I'm offering autographed copies of the book for just $9.95 (the regular price is $12.95). This is the lowest price available in stores or on the web, and will only be good through the end of the year. That way you can make pitching your project one of your New Year's resolutions, give copies to friends as holiday gifts, or prepare for the next Great American Pitchfest in June. Just click here for more details, and to order your copies. As an added bonus, between now and December 31st, anyone who signs up for any of my consultation packages - including my pitch coaching package - will receive a free, autographed copy of Selling Your Story in 60 Seconds. In conjunction with the release of the book, I recently gave what I think is one of the best interviews I've had. Terese Walsh, the cofounder of the Writer Unboxed website, asked some great questions, allowing me to reveal a number of the principles in the book, along with some of my latest thoughts about the craft and business of writing. If you'd like to read the interview, please click here. I'm very proud of the book, I hope you enjoy it. I was approached or contacted by more than a dozen writers at a recent Pitch Event, and had great success using the methods they read in the book. Every one of them had requests for their work from multiple companies. I'm sure you will find it equally powerful. All the best - Michael Hauge Selling Your Story in Sixty Seconds

Giving in to pure inspiration is euphoric. The movie unfolds inside your head. You laugh at lines of dialogue, surprised by them even though they came out of you. You gasp when characters show you that they are infused with depth and complications that you swear you didn't create consciously.

And then... your story turns a corner, and you're in a blind alley. Your fingers hover over the keyboard, waiting for the answer. The projector in your mind slips and makes a horrible grinding sound. Your muse goes to Vegas, gets drunk, and loses all of her savings splitting fives against a dealer showing a ten.

Navigating your way out of a blind alley can be addressed in two ways: Clarifying your characters' goals, and clarifying your goals, as a writer, for the script as a whole.

The euphoria of inspired writing is like sheet lightning. When it flashes, everything is vibrant and clear for an instant. A 360 degree snapshot of a reality that is nearly impossible to resist getting down on paper. But your story needs to be more like fork lightning: a focused, bright, driven entity that has a beginning and an end. Focusing your characters' goals is the swiftest way to narrow that broad flash into a narrow laser, driving your story forward.

In Akira Kurosawa's Seven Samurai, the terrified farmers run to a village elder for advice. They are sure to be attacked by bandits when their crops ripen, and they have no way to defend themselves. They are too poor to hire samurai to defend them. In fact, all they have to offer any samurai they hire is gruel to eat. How can they ever defend their village?

The old man answers matter-of-factly: "Find a hungry samurai."

When you're stuck with a seemingly unsolvable problem in your script, redefine the problem into a specific one your characters can manage. A band of weak farmers defending themselves somehow against ruthless bandits? As important as that is as the ultimate goal, it's too nebulous to drive specific story points. Finding a person? That's a focus. That's a specific destination to work towards. And by narrowing the problem, the story is revealed.

From the screenwriter's perspective, it's an important shift as well. By giving the characters a task that's specific, Kurosawa puts them on a journey with a clear objective. Next time your story leads you into an impossible snarl, ask yourself what each characters' individual story is in the context of the larger script, and consider clarifying the central problem. Instead of "Save the princess", think "Get the enchanted ring from the dragon." Instead of "solve the case", think "Locate and interview that missing witness."

You can meet Bob, and pitch your television or movie ideas to producers, agents, managers, and more, at the Great American PitchFest, June 23 and 24, 2007.

BOB SCHULTZ is a screenwriter and editor of The Great American Screenwriter. He is also one of the organizers of The Great American and Great Canadian PitchFests. When he is not writing, Bob is a millionaire playboy by day, mysterious crimefighter by night.

June 23 & 24, 2007
Sheraton Hotel at Universal Studios
Los Angeles, California

Visit www.pitchfest.com for details

Do you have an idea for an article in The Great American Screenwriter?
Pitch it to us via email at bob@pitchfest.com!