Mentor Series: Write A TV Bible That Sells

4-Week Intensive Working Writer Lab
Taught by Michael Poisson

$299

On Demand Class - Available for immediate viewing and unlimited access.

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Who Should Attend:

  • Writers of all skill levels
  • Writers looking to give themselves a competitive edge when pitching their  projects
  • Writers putting together their TV pilots
  • Aspiring Showrunners
  • Producers
  • Development Executives
  • Directors

This Next Level Education class has a 100% user satisfaction rate.

Projects:

Class hosted by: Michael Poisson

Producer, Executive Story Editor & Emmy-nominated writer

Michael grew up in Harrisville, Rhode Island during the 1990’s NBC sitcom boom and WB teen dramedy craze, which should explain his obsession with comedic angst. He attended Emerson College in Boston where he majored in Visual and Media Arts with a concentration in Television. Michael’s first industry job was at CAA where he broke the glass ceiling for men everywhere and became their first male receptionist ever (before then, CAA had segregated based on sex: guys in the mailroom and girls in reception). From there he worked his way up to a desk in TV Packaging, before jumping to Ryan Reynolds and Allan Loeb’s TV pod, DarkFire TV. He currently works as the Director of Development at Krysten Ritter’s company, Silent Machine Entertainment, where he works closely with writers to develop their ideas to pitch to studios and networks. On the writing side, Michael co-wrote the comedic-musical stage show: ARMAGEDDON: A Night of Laughs and Pleasant Songs, which enjoyed a sold-out run in the LA Fringe Festival in 2011. He has placed in numerous writing competitions including: Top 5 Sitcom Pilots in the Austin Film Festival writing competition, and 1st Place in TVWriter.com’s comedy pilot competition. Michael is also a comic book geek and wrote the graphic novel The Arcs which was published by Fanboy Comics and premiered at the Comikaze Expo in November of 2013. http://www.thearcscomic.com/ Full Bio »

Summary

Class Space Limited: Maximum 20 Writers

August 13, 20, 27 and Sept 10 from 1pm-3pm.

Your TV Series Bible is an extremely important, and often overlooked tool for selling your pilot in the industry. It’s a document which explains in detail – who your characters are, what they will be up against, where future conflict will come, and what themes your show will be exploring. It gives studio and network executives confidence that you know what you’re doing, and that the show has the story potential to live on for multiple seasons. The problem is that there isn’t a lot of literature out there detailing how to construct a bible. This Stage 32 Intensive is aimed to give you the information and guidance that you need to write a strong bible that can be used when sending out and selling your pilot script.

Each week, your instructor Michael Poisson (Director of Development at Silent Machine Entertainment, Krysten Ritter’s production company that has a first look deal at Universal TV) will be giving a lecture about how to write one section of your series bible, and then you’ll be assigned to write that section for a project of your own. The following week Mike will offer one-on-one skype sessions to discuss your work, give you any notes, and answer any questions that you may have. So, at the end of this Intensive, you will have a strong and well-executed bible that you’ll be able to use as a selling tool for your own TV series.

Mike has worked at CAA, two production companies, and as a showrunner’s assistant on a TV series, and at each job he has seen the importance of bibles and how they have been used to get series sold and on the air. As a writer, Mike has also used them in his own writing career, and a well-written bible of helped him to secure his manager, and get multiple production companies interested in his work.

What You'll Learn

Week 1 – 60 minutes Seminar

  • Introduction to Bibles
    • Basics
    • What are they used for?
    • Who reads them?
    • What do they have to convey
  • Ideal length for different genres of shows
  • Different sections that should be present
  • Importance of Writing Tone
  • Introduction Section
  • Personal Connection to the Project
  • Logline

Assignment

Writers will complete their Bible’s: Introduction, Logline, Personal Connection to the Project sections

Week 2 – 45 minutes

  • Setting & World
  • Tone
  • Characters
    • History
    • Prototypes
    • Relationships
    • Hopes/Goals/Motivations/Strengths/Weaknesses/Fears/Super Powers
  • Pilot Synopsis
    • Twists
    • “Why now?”

Assignment

Writers will complete their Bible’s: World, Tone, Characters, and Pilot sections 

**Consultation: Will schedule 6-minute Skype Sessions with writers to discuss their work from Week 1’s assignment.

Week 3 – 45 minutes

  • Future Episode Examples
  • Character Arcs
  • Season Arcs
  • Series Arcs
  • Theme
  • Ending

Assignment

Writers will complete their Bible’s: Character Arcs, Season 1, Future Seasons, Episode Examples, Theme, Ending

**Consultation: Will schedule a 6 minute Skype Sessions with writers to discuss their work from Week 2’s assignment.

Week 4

Individual Skype Meeting with Participants: Writers send their completed bibles to Mike.

Each participant will schedule a 10-minute Skype session to discuss overall thoughts on their completed Bibles.

About Your Instructor

Michael grew up in Harrisville, Rhode Island during the 1990’s NBC sitcom boom and WB teen dramedy craze, which should explain his obsession with comedic angst. He attended Emerson College in Boston where he majored in Visual and Media Arts with a concentration in Television.

Michael’s first industry job was at CAA where he broke the glass ceiling for men everywhere and became their first male receptionist ever (before then, CAA had segregated based on sex: guys in the mailroom and girls in reception). From there he worked his way up to a desk in TV Packaging, before jumping to Ryan Reynolds and Allan Loeb’s TV pod, DarkFire TV. He currently works as the Director of Development at Krysten Ritter’s company, Silent Machine Entertainment, where he works closely with writers to develop their ideas to pitch to studios and networks.

On the writing side, Michael co-wrote the comedic-musical stage show: ARMAGEDDON: A Night of Laughs and Pleasant Songs, which enjoyed a sold-out run in the LA Fringe Festival in 2011. He has placed in numerous writing competitions including: Top 5 Sitcom Pilots in the Austin Film Festival writing competition, and 1st Place in TVWriter.com’s comedy pilot competition. Michael is also a comic book geek and wrote the graphic novel The Arcs which was published by Fanboy Comics and premiered at the Comikaze Expo in November of 2013. http://www.thearcscomic.com/

Schedule

Week 1: August 13, 1pm - 3pm

Week 2: August 20, 1pm - 3pm

Week 3: August 27, 1pm - 3pm

Week 4: Sept 10, 1pm - 3pm

FAQs

Q: What is the format of a webinar?
A: Stage 32 Next Level Webinars are typically 90-minute broadcasts that take place online using a designated software program from Stage 32.

Q: Do I have to be located in a specific location?
A: No, you can participate from the comfort of your own home using your personal computer! If you attend a live online webinar, you will be able to communicate directly with your instructor during the webinar.

Q: What are the system requirements?
A: You will need to meet the following system requirements in order to run the webinar software: Windows 7 or later Mac OS X 10.9 (Mavericks) or later.
If you have Windows XP, Windows Vista and Mac OS X 10.8 (Mountain Lion): The webinar software does not support these operating systems. If you are running one of those operating systems, please upgrade now in order to be able to view a live webinar. Upgrade your Windows computer / Upgrade your Mac computer

Q: What if I cannot attend the live webinar?
A: If you attend a live online webinar, you will be able to communicate directly with your instructor during the webinar. If you cannot attend a live webinar and purchase an On-Demand webinar, you will have access to the entire recorded broadcast, including the Q&A.

Q: Will I have access to the webinar afterward to rewatch?
A: Yes! After the purchase of a live or On-Demand webinar, you will have on-demand access to the audio recording, which you can view as many times as you'd like for a whole year!

Testimonials

"This was a great webinar. Michael was energetic and very responsive. He worked with his attendees when scheduling conflicted with the times set for assignment deadlines. He gave very solid direction." - Christopher Lovett

Questions?

If you have a generic question about Stage 32 education you can take a look at our frequently asked questions section on our help page, or feel free to contact support with any other inquiries you might have.
 

Reviews Average Rating: 5 out of 5

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