What are you doing to prepare yourself for future meetings, pitches, or collaborations?
I always construct entire IP ecosystems before pitching. I look at every idea as a potential franchise with room for sequels, spin-offs, and full transmedia expansion. I bundle everything into clear, pitch-ready packages: scriptments, pitch materials, potential series arcs, Mechanics treatment for games or animation, and optional branches a studio can grow into
I typically spend 60 to 100 hours a week generating and developing IP. I am constantly world-polishing, idea refining, and evolving each project to make sure it can scale. For most concepts, I also build alternative action scenes or story branches that could be used for games, show expansions, or future installments to swap in if needed for industry liking.
I also study the producer’s perspective while I build. I look at what types of materials help producers actually execute on set, and I shape my worlds and documents in ways that give them what they need. I often keep StudioBinder or Film Courage running while I work so I can learn how different departments think and what makes a project easier to greenlight, plan, and shoot.
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Those are great ways to prepare, Dwayne Williams 2! I’m learning more about screenwriting and other areas of the industry to prepare for future opportunities, and I'm getting better at pitching live.
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Thanks Maurice Vaughan, I appreciate that. And same here, live pitching is definitely something I need to add to my prep. It’s still tough for me, even with all the work I do behind the scenes. But I’m getting there step by step.
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You're welcome, Dwayne Williams 2. The Pitch Practice in the Writers' Room is the best pitching resource in my opinion. Pitch Practice is every Thursday night at 5:30 P.M. PST/8:30 P.M. EST. You can sit in and listen to members practice their projects and give them feedback. You can pitch your project too, but you have to sign up. The hosts, Noel Thompson and John Mezes, take names during Pitch Practice for people to pitch the following week. You have to sit in and listen at the practice one or two times before you can pitch.
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That’s really professional preparation.
Thank you very much for sharing.
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I second what Maurice said. I've watched a few of the pitch practices and they're very informative just to watch and listen.