Film Courage: What makes a terrible pitch?
Kelly Edwards, Staff Writer, Author, Producer: Probably not enough preparation, not knowing
your character or your world. There are staples to every pitch everybody needs to know why you're
the one to write the pitch the show. You need to know your character really well. You need to know
what and how they operate within the world. what the conflict is, what's the ensemble around them
and if you can't articulate that it can be a mess
but I don't think anybody ever walks into a pitch thinking it's going to be
a terrible pitch. They don't want to make a terrible pitch, that happens by accident
but when a show and you're passionate about a show showing that passion goes a long way
that can really remedy a lot of ills even if you aren't great at articulating them in the way that
you think is the smoothest way to do it. I think sometimes just your enthusiasm for the material
and knowing that material and knowing what you want to say can be make all the difference
I know it's a it's it terrifies people it's a terrifying thing to go in there and
want to tell a story really well and not wanting to screw up and because you don't want to screw up
you end up screwing up but you have to remember that people have heard a lot of these things
they've heard a thousand of these pitches and you're not bringing anything new it's very rare
that you're bringing in something that's so wholly different but what you are bringing is yourself
and that coupled with the idea is why people want you to write it
and remember they're not they're not creating a show for you to sit and tell the story on
television right that's not the you pitching is not the show the show is what how you're
going to execute it on the page so I think if you can release some of that anxiety
and just go in and tell us and talk about why you love something and why you think it's a great idea
then the details don't matter especially if you if you if you're the person who comes in with a
note card or you come in with your your page and your page is shaking acknowledge it and just go
I'm awful at this there are plenty of people who are terrible pitchers who end up selling things
so if you could just hang a lantern on it and just go look I'm gonna botch this
terribly but guess what I love this so much and I think you should love it so much then
I think you could I could think you could sweep by it sounds like then
terrible pitch isn't nervousness it's lack of enthusiasm well you could be nervous but again
if you're nervous there are so many other ways to mitigate that so bring a partner or bring
your agent or bring somebody who's gonna fill in the blanks think who's gonna be your wingman so
there are ways to do that again you can write it down you can you can have them you can send them
the deck in advance these days it's it's all on a zoom zoom has been the best thing in the
world for people who are terrible pitchers because you can read your document no one's going to know
so there are ways that you can get around it I think barring a flop sweat I think
I think anybody can can muscle through and again it's what you are on the page so if you they love
you on the page and they've already said that they've loved you because you're in that room
whether it's a zoom room where it's in person so you've already got over the
hurdle the biggest hurdle and then you just have to convince them that you have enough
insight into the character and the world really well and there's something to say
that there's a relevancy to what you're saying then you've got a lot of the big pieces but
when someone lacks enthusiasm then it doesn't matter if they're smooth as is butter with their
delivery but it's there's just something it's not convincing well here's the thing who would want
to work with somebody who's not enthusiastic about a job because you are then spending as
we said 12 hours a day on set for 22 Episodes or eight episodes or however many it's a lot of time
it's the bulk of your year right you're CR coming up with a pitch and then getting in the room to
pitch takes a long time to do it so if you're not interested in it why do it what's the point
so you have to be enthusiastic otherwise do something else
if a pitch or screenplay is rejected how does that writer build a relationship with the executives
oh okay when you say rejected though what are you talking about are you talking about somebody that
has already sold something and is rejected or before you even get to the place where you're
meeting for General you're having a general and it's sorry to pass
okay but if it's again if you're sitting in the room with an executive you've already won they
are already on your on on your team right so it's up to you to then give them something that they
that they will like or maybe it's just not for them and maybe it's just the wrong timing so
there are there have always been times when we're looking for a and you're bringing us
B so we really need a family comedy for this slot but you're bringing us an action comedy
and we don't have space for it nor can we afford it whatever it is it might not be the right time
so your past might have nothing to do with you as a human being or your writing your skill or your
or whether I like you it might be a factor of many other things that you have no idea the problem is
is that we always take it personally we think it's us you've said no and I take it personally right
so you have to get past that because again as we said before executives are running a mile a minute
they are managing a lot of things there's a lot of balls in the air and that one thing might
not be right so keep moving let's keep moving because I've already invited you into my space
I've already said I like your writing you you now it's on you to say okay that didn't work let me
here's what I would do if I was in that position you've just passed to me you go I'm sorry it's
not working I go what what are you looking for now there's a whole new conversation or
oh yeah yeah I totally understand that thank you so much for reading it that's so great
let me float another thing by you something I'm working on what do you think about this
and then you've hooked somebody with another I you don't even have to have the idea you could
say what I'm thinking about doing something about mother-daughter relationships or something about
dystopian worlds and how somebody navigates that then again you've then opened up another line of
conversation where then that executive can say oh and you get something more come back and Pitch it
to me that's a conversation now how do you land the plane in that meeting the end of the meeting
hopefully you say what my agent put us in touch I would really love to have a direct line to you
is that okay can I can I share my card with you or can I give my information directly to
your assistant or can I have your number or is it okay if I reach out in a couple weeks there are
ways to have a conversation and particularly if you've connected over something so let's just say
you guys both have kids who are in AYSO hey what I wonder are you going to be at the turkey
tournament I would love to see you let's grab coffee there whatever it is there are threads
everywhere that you can pull that's why being in a room a real room with somebody gives you
all of the other information about that person what are the posters they have on the wall what
shows did they do what's the coffee table book that they have everybody's got a coffee day book
what's the pictures that are on there on their desk there's something that you can then key
into and ask that person about themselves in that way and then connect it back so that you start
a relationship just as though you would do with anybody so there's there are ways to continue the
conversation then too and even if you don't hear back from them it doesn't mean that they haven't
received the information there's many times that I would get an email and I was running so fast
that I didn't think to respond but I still saw the email I still saw that person's name
that person still was on my mind so don't think that a no answer is no answer
so that's the error is thinking that it's rejection when really they've invited you
there they've given you whatever amount of time so that's actually not a rejection yeah and then
you're it's sort of the door is slightly open and then it's up to you to make the next move and to
show that you've made some progress so for and you and we're we're so good as human beings of filling
in the blanks we're like ah they hated me and then you go through down a rabbit hole where you
just you just wonder all the things that you did wrong and I must have crossed my legs in the wrong
place and I know when I took the Sip I choked on my water and oh they just hate me and you go
down this place that has absolutely no bearing on reality because again they are the star of their
own movie and they're thinking about something else they just said oh my God I had a really
great meeting and I wonder what I'm gonna get back and then it's up to you you have to deliver
and remember too again we are the a town of show me something like show me you're moving forward
if you're sitting in stasis if you're locked in a block of ice and you are not moving forward
I don't really have time for you I want the person who's actually out there doing something
so as soon as we show a little as a as a writer as soon as you show a little moment on your own
we will then re-engage so you get into a program oh I'm re-engaging with you or you I don't know
are you with a competition or someone else has brought your name up and then I'm re-engaging
so and you don't know what's happening under the surface so there's a whole network of things that
happen constantly that we are never privy to because no one's saying I did this for you
but there are also many times where someone would come in to me meet with me and have a
great meeting I didn't have anything for them at the time but it didn't mean that I didn't push
that material to the current department or push that material to a friend of mine at a different
network or mention that name somewhere or give a recommendation to that for that writer to a
program so there's a whole other network of things that are churning below the service surf surface
that are happening that are really working in your favor and eventually all those things are going to
line up somewhere eventually there's going to be a critical mass and those people are going
to hear your name a couple of times they're going to go oh my god I've heard that person's so great
and then so when you your little bubble Pops to the top that's when your little
Horton Hears a Who Yap comes out right and all of a sudden we are here we're here we're here.