Stage 32 5-Part Private Pitching Lab: How to Master Your 5 Minute Pitch (February 2024)
Other education that may be of interest to you:
Breaking Down the Pilot Script: Emmy-Winner Succession
This script breakdown has a 100% satisfaction rating! The hit HBO show SUCCESSION has shattered Emmy history with a record-breaking 27 nominations for the 2023 Emmy Awards alone! Add that to the 13 Primetime Emmy Awards they've already won, as well as the dozens more nominations over its 4 seasons, it is safe to say that SUCCESSION is one of the greatest shows of all time. As a creative, it's important for you to understand WHY it's so successful. In an exclusive Stage 32 Script Breakdown Webcast the Vice President of Production for Ian Bryce, Will McCance, will break down the first episode of the Emmy award-winning series SUCCESSION using excerpts from the pilot episode. Will McCance is currently Vice President of Production for Ian Bryce, producer of blockbusters like SAVING PRIVATE RYAN, ALMOST FAMOUS, the TRANSFORMERS franchise, and most recently Michael Bay's SIX UNDERGROUND and FINDING 'OHANA for Netflix. Will has worked on hit television shows including THE BOYS and I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER for Amazon, PREACHER for AMC SWAT for CBS and MAX TILT for HBO Max. During this FREE Stage 32 Next Level Webcast Will will take you through the SUCCESSION pilot as he examines the main story engine introduction and themes, how character arc intros and drama is teed-up for the season, managing the script's pacing in an ensemble cast and exploring it's tonal elements, and much more! Plus, everyone who registers for the webinar will receive a copy of the pilot script of SUCCESSION to study after the webinar is over!
Learn How to Better Pitch Your Ideas: Go from Storyteller to Storyseller
Learn how to pitch your work so you can build a profitable career in film and television with the Vice President of the company behind Finding Ohana (Netflix), Saving Private Ryan, Transformers: The Last Knight, Almost Famous, The Boys (Amazon), Preacher (AMC), and more! Do you ever feel like your great ideas go unnoticed by producers, directors, agents, and managers alike, and that you don’t get the shot you're looking for as a result? This isn’t because these decision makers don’t care; it’s because you may not have pitched or sold your ideas the right way. The reality is, successful screenwriters are as much storysellers as they are storytellers. Whether you like it or not, your primary goal as a writer must be to stand out in a sea of competing projects. The bottom line: Whether you're a screenwriter, filmmaker, producer, or any creative or industry professional looking to gain representation, sell their material, attract talent, raise financing, or simply looking to find work, you will have to pitch. Further, you will be in competition with others pitching as well. You've put so much time and effort into your work and building your reputation, you don't want to have it all undermined with a terrible pitch. And the truth of the matter is that most people that pitch make the same fatal mistakes over and over. They don't know how to tell a concise, riveting story. They don't know what to put in, what to leave out, and what elements really and truly sell someone on their story. This webinar will give you insight and tools to pitch better and get ahead of the pack. Will McCance is the Vice President of Production for Ian Bryce, producer of blockbusters like SAVING PRIVATE RYAN, ALMOST FAMOUS, the TRANSFORMERS franchise, and most recently Michael Bay's SIX UNDERGROUND for Netflix. At Ian Bryce Productions, Will oversees the company's entire development slate. Before working with Ian Bryce, Will worked in development at Original Film's TV department, working on hit shows such as THE BOYS (Amazon) and PREACHER (AMC), as well as on SWAT (CBS) and HAPPY! (Syfy). Independently, Will has produced films such as the upcoming LOLA JAMES, starring Nicola Peltz and Oscar-Nominee Virginia Madsen, BERNARD AND HUEY, starring Jim Rash, David Koechner, and Mae Whitman, as well as Belarus's 2018 Oscar selection for Best Foreign Film, CRYSTAL SWAN, along with Vice. Through his years working as an executive, Will has deep experience with working with writers and choosing to work with them or not based on their pitch, and is prepared to share what he’s learned with the Stage 32 community. In this exclusive on-demand Stage 32 webinar, Will will equip you with all the tools you'll need to elevate your next script to the top of the reading stack. He will discuss the various techniques of pitching, from finding the right words and unique style, to understanding which type of pitch to use and when. He will also analyze sample TV and feature film pitches and break down the hidden power of the perfectly-worded logline. He will teach you tactics, strategies, and even books that will make you a stronger storyseller, and in turn, a stronger storyteller. Will will even deliver a pitch of his own to use as an example and will share other film and TV pitches to analyze what works and what doesn’t. Through Will’s presentation, you will not only learn how to better understand and explain your story, but to also instill a newfound sense of confidence that you can take with you to your next meeting or pitch session. PRAISE FROM WILL'S PREVIOUS STAGE 32 TEACHING: "I would not have been able to advance in my writing career without Will McCance and the pitching lab. I highly recommend Will as an instructor and the pitching lab itself for Stage 32 writers. Thank you." -- Sean M. "Will's credentials speak for themself. He is an incredibly knowledgable executive with the passion to help writers get their projects moving forward. Thank you for all your help on my pitching for my feature!" -- Morgan M. "Will has been hands down the best teacher for pitching I've ever had!" -- Chase R.
The Pitch Tank with Special Guest Jonny Perl
During this Pitch Tank, Jason Mirch is joined by Jonny Perl the Associate Producer at Cinemation, a company built by the creative minds behind features and television including Disney's The Lion King, Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid, DreamWorks' & Netflix's "The Mr. Peabody & Sherman Show", Stuart Little. They are currently in production on Open Road Films' animated feature Blazing Samurai starring Samuel L Jackson and Mel Brooks, which releases in 2021!
Stage 32 Free Workshop: Learn from a Pro How to Pitch Your Project on Zoom - with Pete Goldfinger (SAW Series - SPIRAL, JIGSAW)
Learn how to pitch remotely from the writer of JIGSAW and SPIRAL (Number one movie at the box office this year) Includes a live pitch demonstration and an exclusive pitch workshop with 5 volunteers! As Zoom pitches continue to be our “new norm,” it’s important to know how to deliver the most effective virtual pitches, because let’s face it, it’s not the same as pitching in person. The energy is different, and you need to make sure you keep the energy high and engaging. How do you keep producers interested through a computer screen? Now, more than ever, you have to be quick, clear, and concise. Structure is key, but so is knowing how to handle small talk. Pitching is as much about selling your project as it is about selling yourself. Armed with the right tools, conversation, and materials, your chances are as good as anyone else’s. Pete Goldfinger is an incredibly successful feature and television writer in Hollywood, perhaps best known for penning the two newest features in the SAW horror universe, including JIGSAW, which grossed over $100 million, and SPIRAL, starring Samuel L. Jackson and Chris Rock, which debuted at number one at the box office this year. He’s going to teach you how to quickly hook producers and showrunners with the most valuable and authentic pitch. Pete will share his years of experience handling everything from small talk to delivering strong loglines with pitch decks so that you’ll have all the tools to feel confident in your next virtual pitch. To demonstrate a live Zoom pitch and being quick on your feet with your pitches, Pete will deliver one of his own pitches, and then give you the opportunity to practice your own one-minute pitches and provide you with feedback. This is an amazing opportunity to fine tune and get advice on nailing your pitch from someone who knows just how to do that.
NYC: Stage 32 + Raindance Saturday Film School - In Person Class
We all know that America is bursting with talented filmmakers. Are you an independent filmmaker, cinema or digital media student, D-I-Y filmmaker or videographer? Do you have great ideas, a few skills and few filmmaking friends? Maybe you can shoot a short movie, but can you finance one, find an audience to watch it, or promote and sell it? Raindance Film Festival Founder and social media maverick Elliot Grove comes to New York to bring a fresh look at breaking into the film industry to get your movie made and seen by others. Elliot has produced over 700 short films, 6 features and trained thousands of new and emerging filmmakers around the world. Discover how to use the Raindance method and social media to build audiences, source financing and screen films. CHARGE YOUR SMARTPHONES! Join @stage32 and @RaindanceNYC and #IndieFilmNYC for this information-packed one-day seminar. DOORS OPEN at 9:15 am.
The Breakdown Webcast: Dark Comedy
Dark comedies intend to make light of events that would otherwise be considered too painful to discuss. The hope is that viewers will gain a cathartic experience, or simply laugh at some absurd situation. During this webcast, Jason Mirch discusses the 6 principles of how to make Dark Comedies work, while showing clips of some of the best dark comedies as examples.
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