Screenwriting : TV Pilot Page Length? by Niksa Maric

Niksa, only my opinion, but I believe that 42-50 pages would be considered maximum for a one-hour Pilot script. Mine is 42. I register everything together with the WGA. They do not care about the length of your file, and that way you have all of your ideas "covered" (such as it is) for $20. Best.

One hour pilots should be no more than 62 pages. No less than 52 usually. You would register each separately, but there is NO reason to write a whole season. You only need a pilot, maybe a second episode and outlines for the first season or bible.

There ya go; a professional weighs in. DManus, why separate registrations?

Okay, Here's the problem with this GIGANTIC script which is already 527 pages long and counting, not to mention there are dozens of things I haven't even started writing about. It's too long to make a movie or 3 movies. I know for a fact the shooting script looks different from the spec script, also, sometimes the entire sentence turns into 2 or 3 seconds on screen but sometimes a single word turns into 5-6 seconds. I know this might sound strange coming from me but I think I'm gonna go with the simulation here. I'll try to visualize the action part of the script and play the dialogue in text-to-speech software and simply use the stopwatch. It might sound like the waste of time but I don't see any other option. I'm not trying to direct the script but I wanna avoid sending 60+ pages as a TV pilot which (If anyone finds good) will be cut to 45 pages and the material I wrote will be lost. As for the registration, I'll go with the complete season. If someone wants to turn the script into a TV show or a movie in some distant future, fine by me but if I get turned down, then I'll join the ARMY OF REJECTED WRITERS and I'll keep writing.

Cut your story where it makes the most sense for the story and then adjust page length after. One thing to remember, one hour of time is different depending on the station. Network and cable are around 43 minutes but HBO and Showtime are a bit more. That's why you shoot for a window, 45 - 60.

The STORY structure is similar to Matrix Movies. First part will be about 10-12 episodes and it's separated from part 2 and 3 which should have about 20 episodes so far. It's Sci-Fi Genre but it doesn't have any elements from Matrix, it has similar structure, that's all. Does anyone knows, are there any Industry Professionals who could break and stretch all this into 36 or more episodes, does anyone even do that. I think I've read it somewhere that the writer who wrote EXTANT Series had the same problem and he sold the script as the large file, which was latter on re-written and turned into series. I could be wrong about the last part.

Niksa, If your story is good you may get a mini-series producer interested. Then you need to be willing to work with his team of writers etc, who will turn your work upside down, in and out in order to get it to where it has to be for television and they will be credited for the outcome. Why? Well, no television channel is going to risk millions on a mini-series written by an unknown. They want the tried and true writers etc to work your story over until it shines golden so their sponsors will advertise during its broadcast week after week. You might get some credit for the original story only. You will get paid, most of the time of course. So you have to be cooperative if you want to see your story on the flat screen or any screen for that matter. Register the whole story because you don't know what the sequence of acts will be when the credited writers are finished with it. Your beginning may be turned around to become the last scene or one in the middle etc. Bob

Alle, I am not familiar with the Extant series, but I can imagine a writing room like you described. Terrible place to dwell no doubt, but obviously necessary.

Weeds: 1 10-episode season, 1 12-episode season, 1 15-episode season, 5 13-episode seasons. Breaking Bad: 1 7-episode, 3 13-episode, 1 16-episode (broken into two parts of 8). The Walking Dead: 1 6-episode, 1 13-episode, 2 16-episode. 24: 8 24-episode seasons. I doubt there ever has been uniformity in the number of episodes per season, but there certainly isn't now. Given the state of the industry, it's doubtful that there ever will be such uniformity. Writing out an entire season doesn't strike me as the most productive use of ones's time. Niksa, perhaps you can pull a number of pilot episodes from the material you have. I think selling someone on your grand-unified theory of 500+ pages might be a tall order.

To tell you the truth, this MEGA script is not even my first priority at the moment but as I said earlier, the BLUEPRINT of structure of this POSSIBLE TV series resembles The Matrix movies, I only used it to give you the idea or picture what the series would look like. The "FIRST SEASON" let's say ends after 12 episodes. The second season continues nine months later (in the script) and just like the Matrix part 2 and 3 it will have to be cut in the middle. It can't be longer than 3 seasons since I don't have that much material unless there are people in Hollywood or elsewhere who can actually turn 400-500 pages into 16 episodes.

Okay, for the last time. The Matrix movies was just a comparison. I'm not writing anything in Matrix style. The first movie was The Matrix and it ended. The second movie The Matrix Reloaded and the third one The Matrix Revolutions were too big to be a single movie so the director simply cut them in the middle, If you actually saw the movie. What I have in front of me on the screen right now is the script I'm talking about. It does not have a single element of MATRIX in it and it never will. The first POSSIBLE season has elements of Sci-Fi and disaster movie, there are things described in the script which were never used before. I know this for a fact because I've seen almost everything worth watching in Sci-Fi genre. How did I come up with this idea, I don't know. It came to me and I wrote it down. I do have ALMOST READY SCREENPLAYS to pitch, some of them are SCI-Fi but most are not. As for the Micky Fisher part this is how it happened. 1. Though just 56 pages, it introduces several plotlines and interconnected characters that would be difficult to resolve in a single film. The script is written in five acts and takes place on earth and in a space station. 2. Warner Bros. still made an offer to acquire the project and turn it into a movie, according to multiple individuals inside and outside the studio, but now the studio is talking with Fisher about acquiring a different pitch. The studio declined to comment. 3. Episode 1x13 called Ascension will air on Sep 17, 2014. So, Either Mickey Fisher turned this 56 pages into 13 episodes or someone else did it for him. The fact is: It can be done. Oh, here's something else from that article. "Mickey Fisher, an unknown and unsigned writer until recently, has film studios drooling over his script “Extant” for weeks." Every single writer was at one point UNKNOWN and UNSIGNED.

Hi Alle, I am for team effort and outcomes for all. I was really trying to add a little humor to the discussion by imagining some of the crazy things that would happen to get to the end product. Bob

Is that your personal opinion or a fact? By the way, I'm still waiting for your opinion on this statement and it's been 2 months now. If the number of homeless people is constantly increasing, it can only mean one thing. THE SYSTEM HAS FAILED And as the society and human beings. SO DID WE. Nick Murray

Come on Alle. How hard can it be? Just a small comment from someone like you is one of the sudden a problem? Let's hear it!

wtf does homeless people have to do with anything? but FYI, the film CHE was also cut in half and made into 2 movies because of length. it also made zero money.

Any comment, as you always do.