Showrunning 101
Reviews Average Rating: 1 out of 5
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Eric Zimmerman I was very disappointed in this "class" which is actually an extended Q&A session. Lack of onscreen bullet points to introduce topics. Very disorganized and rambling approach. I also did not receive any materials to go with it. Don't believe the hype.
Other education that may be of interest to you:
How to Pitch Your Dream Project with You as the Star
Have you ever wanted to create and write your own TV show that you also star in? Well, that's exactly what writer/actor/producer John Lehr did not just once but twice and now Stage 32 has brought John in to show you how it's done. In this exclusive Stage 32 webinar, you’ll learn how you can create your own star-making television show, how to pitch it, and what it’s like to produce a television series that you also write and play the lead in. John Lehr is an actor, writer and comedian who has sold multiple shows he created to major streaming platforms and networks, including QUICK DRAW on Hulu, 10 ITEMS OR LESS on TBS, and JAILBAIT for Crackle. John is also the original Geico Caveman and has hosted several network TV shows. John believes that knowledge is power and that you too can launch your career as a writer, producer and actor by creating and selling your own television show. He’ll show you what pitfalls and roadblocks to avoid while making your project one that buyers love. John isn't alone. FLEABAG’S Phoebe Waller-Bridge and CHEWING GUM’s Michaela Cole both began their careers more focused on acting before creating, writing and starring in shows that became must-watch television. This webinar covers the whole process including what makes a good show premise, how to pitch your show successfully once you're in the room, and how to even get those elusive pitch meetings. If you’ve been waiting for a star-making role, this webinar will show you how to stop waiting and take control of your own career today.
The Four Steps To A TV Series Order: From Concept To Green Light
4-PART IN-DEPTH CLASS (OVER 8 HOURS OF EDUCATION) Learn from John Lehr, a top showrunner who's worked with Hulu, Sony, TBS, Norman Lear, the creators of FRIENDS, and more! Plus! John leads a mock network executive meeting! When you have an idea for a TV show, the goal is always to have it "ordered to series" so you can see it on air and have a large audience experience it. However, in order to actually get your show onto air and see it on TV, you need to be prepared and know everything that goes into not only developing and selling a series but how to navigate it all the way to an actual series order. Whether you’re a brand new writer, an experienced producer, or someone working their way up the ladder, the big question is always: How do I develop my show and make it stand out so that it can sell and get a series order? In this exclusive Stage 32 on-demand class, television series creator and showrunner John Lehr will teach you the entire journey from crafting a stand-out idea to selling your show to developing it with a streamer or network and, ultimately, getting the green light for a first season production order. Over four intensive sessions, John will take you through the steps of developing and producing a marketable show. You'll start by nurturing your concept into a well rounded show idea and then learning the best way to package it, pitch it, sell it and navigate the development steps with your distributor to get a first season order. John will teach you how to work with network executives to achieve your goals in a way that they also achieve theirs. John has successfully created, pitched, sold, and executive produced shows for TBS, Hulu, and Sony/Crackle. He has also created and produced pilots for Fox and Comedy Central and has pitched, sold and developed shows for HBO, NBC, MTV, and Sony/BBC. Along the way, he's worked with legendary television creators, including Norman Lear (ALL IN THE FAMILY) and FRIENDS' creators Kevin Bright, David Crane, and Marta Kauffman. Plus, John will lead a mock network meeting so you can be best prepared to work with executives and take the best advantage of your opportunities. John is sharing his 25 years of entertainment business experience with you exclusively through Stage 32. This is a rare opportunity to learn from a top showrunner to see how professional television series creators take their ideas all the way to your television screen. Testimonials from John's Previous Stage 32 Education: "John was energetic and very positive and encouraging. I appreciated his perspective and advice." "John is great - emphasizing the sizzle reel was very helpful to hear." "[John's] information about the pitch deck, sizzle, and experiences were incredibly helpful."
How You Can Use Gap Financing From A Bank To Complete Your Movie
A New Exclusive Webinar Hosted by the Senior Manager at the Creative Industries Group, with 18 years of experience in helping filmmakers finance their projects. You’ve raised money to produce your project but you’re still coming up short. Did you know that there is money available to you at the bank to help you fill in the “gap”? You just need to know how to get it. Gap financing is a bank instrument for filmmakers that fills the “gap” in funding between the money you’ve already raised and your estimated film production budget to completion. In this exclusive Stage 32 webinar, you’ll cover the essentials of accessing gap financing. No one knows the ins and outs of gap financing better than your instructor, Lina Ghandour. In her role as Senior Manager at the Creative Industries Group, Lina focuses on film and television motion lending at the international level. She specializes in gap-presale financing with all other financing components needed to support producers. It’s more than making sure you know every aspect of your film or television package and meeting with a bank rep. It’s about knowing how the bank operates, who the people are that you’ll be working with, the insurance you’ll need, and how to choose the right sales agent for you. You’ll find out what makes a production look like a worthy investment to a bank vs. one that’s too risky a bet. Plus, you’ll learn about the documents needed to close the deal. Lina regularly travels from her base in Montreal, Canada, to Los Angeles and London to meet with partners, producers, and key players in the industry. She also attends the biggest festivals and markets worldwide, including Cannes, TIFF, Berlin, AFM, C21, SXSW, and more. Lina is giving you what she’s learned working with productions just like you over the past 18 years all over the world. You'll walk away from this webinar with the knowledge you need to get that last bit of funding to make your project a reality.
Adapting IP: How Do I Know if My Idea Should Be Written as a Film, TV Series or Podcast?
Over the past few years, studios, independent production companies, networks and streamers have been turning to stories based on IP (Intellectual Property). Often times screenwriters, filmmakers and producers find great source material based on a book, article, life or public domain and the next part is struggling to figure out how to adapt it. You want to make sure that you are able to tell your story in the best possible way. Could it make a good movie? Or, do you have more elements that could make it extend longer into a full TV show? Or, what about creating a podcast that could sell? Making this crucial decision on how to adapt your story can help accelerate your path toward success. When embarking on a strategy to figure out how to adapt your IP, it's important to understand the potential and the limitations within the material. This includes considering many variables including the genre, budget, and story beats. Although you may have begun with a specific format in mind, sometimes you may find that your material may inherently lend itself to one format or another. So, how do you truncate a story into a 110 page script? Should you include more characters and write a pilot that can serve multiple seasons? Could you write a podcast to help your characters come to life? Understanding your audience and where that audience consumes content today might alter your thinking. And, most importantly, you must be paying attention to the marketplace - what's selling, who it sold to, where it will live - so that you don't waste time and navigate the landscape in a productive, more successful manner. Jim Young of Animus Films is a leading independent non-fiction producer, with almost two dozen films under his belt. Jim has created a successful career producing true-story films such as THE CATCHER WAS A SPY with Paul Rudd, LIFE OF A KING with Oscar-winner Cuba Gooding Jr., THE MAN WHO KNEW INFINITY with Oscar-nominee Dev Patel, LOVELACE with Oscar-nominee James Franco and Amanda Seyfried, and the upcoming film, THE PEOPLE VS. VEGAS DAVE. Jim has a long history of producing critically acclaimed features and documentaries including YEAR OF THE BULL at Showtime, THE WORDS with Oscar-nominee Bradley Cooper and Zoe Saldana. Almost all of Jim's projects are based off of IP and he has a clear grip on what adapts best to what medium and what the marketplace is currently looking for. Jim will go over how determine your objective for your project whether you're a director, writer, actor or a hybrid. He'll go over what is important to you in the overall process in order to help you be clear on what you want to get out of adapting your IP into a film, television pilot or podcast - whether it be creative satisfaction, financial gain or proof of concept. He'll go over what the flow of your story is - open ended or single climax, event vs. character driven and visual vs. storytelling. He'll help you determine your writing style to help cater to which format will work best for your project, discussing comparisons between X-FILES, DIE HARD, STAR WARS and STAR TREK. You'll learn how different genres and budgets play into a project based off of IP. And, most helpful, Jim will go over the current marketplace in terms of popularity of projects based on IP, and break down the pros and cons of working in each medium - film, television and podcast. You will have a clear direction on which format will work best for your project. Like what you heard from Jim from during this webcast? Send your script to Jim and speak with him for an hour by clicking here. Praise for Jim's Stage 32 Webinars: "This was my first webinar and I learned so much. I thought Jim was thorough in his descriptions of what each medium has to offer regarding IP" -Marietta K. "Jim opened up new avenues for our IP that I didn't realize existed. He was a great presenter and shared his own experience with relevant info. It was really motivating." -Ricki L. "Thoughtful way of exploring options. Using podcasts was inspirational." -JoAnne E. "Tons of new information. Thanks!" -Jacqueline L.
Breaking in and Building a Career in Premium Unscripted TV
As you are aware, unscripted television is BOOMING. All the streamers have jumped into the mix and now more and more networks, premium cable channels and even short form platforms like Quibi are diving in with both feet. Creating compelling non-fiction TV requires more than just vision. It involves a gameplan. And it can't hurt to have multiple ideas in reserve or even multiple paths for the same show. This will allow you to not only launch one show, but perhaps lay the groundwork for many shows, essentially building brand recognition for you and for your production company. There is a path to building a scalable business in reality and unscripted and that path is wider than ever. And there's no better person to send you on that path than a guy who has built an empire with his company through producing such shows as Netflix's CHEER and CHEF'S TABLE and many others for streamers and networks around the world. We all have a desire to tell stories. In an era when technology is rapidly developing and there are increasingly lower barriers to actually creating unscripted content. But an idea is just the start. Often times what we fail to do is understand how to get from an idea, or a series of ideas, to having viable content that a more commercial marketplace is actually looking for. By doing a deep dive into the history, shows and business of the prolific reality production company Boardwalk Pictures, we can better understand how to establish our creative voice and brand in a crowded landscape and determine how best to bring our value to a variety of projects and partners. Andrew Fried is the Founder and President of Boardwalk Pictures, producers of premium non-fiction content for multiple networks and distributors including Netflix, Showtime, Quibi, YouTube and many others. A recipient of multiple awards and 3 Emmy nominations, Fried and Boardwalk strive to elevate and expand the idea of documentary television across an ever-growing unscripted landscape. Boardwalk has been responsible for some of the most prestigious unscripted series of the last few years. CHEF'S TABLE, now entering its 7th season, has received 8 Emmy nominations, has won 3 James Beard Awards and the IDA Award for Best Documentary Series. CHEER, also on Netflix, has proven to be one of the platform's biggest successes. Other huge commercial hits include Gwyneth Paltrow's THE GOOP LAB, 7 DAYS OUT, STREET FOOD and LAST CHANCE U (now in it’s 4th season), the Showtime series ACTION and YouTube’s BEST SHOT. Andrew will teach you how to stake your claim in the unscripted marketplace and also how to build an empire in the space. By diving into his journey and the paths Boardwalk Picture shows have taken from concept to screen, Andrew will show you the do's and don'ts of unscripted from the creative and business sides to assure you shorten your path to success. He will speak to the companies origin stories and how Chef's Table became Netflix's first unscripted original series. He will explain how to judge quantity vs. quality, explain the "8th Grade Assembly" test, describe what it means to be storyteller led, and how to identify a void that needs to be filled. He will dive into how to develop your creative brand, define what stories it is you want to tell, and how to approach meetings and networking opportunities to help get your vision to air. He will describe how to add value to just about every situation - so important in unscripted where you're likely to have partners and how to best position yourself to where people not only want to work with you, but will be anxious to hear your next idea and the one after that. Praise for Andrew's Stage 32 Webinar: "Fabulous, authentic insights into what makes a successful producer of premium unscripted content!" -John P. "Loved it! I especially appreciated his positivity! I’m feeling inspired and I know I’m on the “write” track to creating something wonderful!" -Edie F. "Andrew was really great - a total professional who gave a lot of insight into "the business" and what attracts the green light." -Pooky A. "Excellent. Honest. Thoughtful. Insightful." -Tim O.
Stage 32 8-Part Author Lab: Write Your Book Proposal – Query, Synopsis & Outline
Private lab limited to 10 authors - walk away with your completed book proposal! You'll receive an exclusive "Book Proposal Information Sheet" to help you create your own proposal! Payment plans available - contact edu@stage32.com for details If you’re writing a novel the dream is to get the attention of a major commercial publisher. But to get your foot in the door, you’ll need an effective book proposal. What is a book proposal? A book proposal is a document intended to convince a publisher that your project is economically viable for their publishing house. A book proposal is not a lofty, idealistic presentation of your brilliant idea, but rather a persuasive document meant to convince a publisher to spend their time—and their money—on your idea. As publishing becomes increasingly competitive and publishers less willing to take risks, a compelling professional proposal is more important than ever before. And we’re here to make sure you have one. In this exclusive Stage 32 8-part lab, you will create your persuasive book proposal so you can get the attention of major commercial book publishers. To work with you one-on-one for your journey is NYT best selling author Suzanne Corso, who is hailed as one of USA Today’s New Voices for her literary debut, Brooklyn Story. This book is part of a successful trilogy published by Simon & Schuster, which includes The Suite Life and Hello Hollywood, in which is now being adapted by a Major A-List Studio. Over 8 interactive sessions, you will work directly with Suzanne create your professional grade book proposal, which includes: The perfect query letter to publishers The best 2-to-4-page synopsis of your book A chapter by chapter outline of your book Your one page, authors, bio, which explains who you are and what you’re writing about and why should a publisher and audience will care. This lab includes a personal one-on-one consultation with Suzanne where you will receive expert personalized feedback on your work and a discussion on strategy to get your book to the right publisher! At the end of 8 sessions, you will have your book proposal finished and ready to send to publishers! PLUS! You’ll receive an exclusive Book Proposal Information Sheet to help you create your own proposal. ***Flexible Learning: if you cannot attend any of the sessions live don't worry - you will be sent the links to the recordings of each session within 48 hours of the live session and you will have direct access to Suzanne on email to ask her any questions so you can keep up at your own pace and schedule.*** Praise for Suzanne's Stage 32 Teaching "...I've been saying I wanted to write my book for years now and learning from Suzanne has solidified my game plan - I'm going to start today! I'm glad I learned from her before. There's so much I didn't know about the craft and business of writing novels." - Melissa M. "I've had one book published and have to say, I learned a ton from Suzanne. She's a great teacher and a fantastic writer." - Phil G. "Suzanne is amazing. Seriously. She knows her stuff and isn't afraid to share it, which is refreshing for people who are successful in entertainment. Love her!" - Kaitlin B.
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