So, today I received an email telling me that the feedback from Rachel Paulson was ready.
It was my first pitch, so I didn't have high hopes, but it seems I did slightly better than I thought I would.
Pitch format was satisfactory. - I followed the tip sheet as close as I could in the time given, the 6 minutes flash by!
Clarity of pitch wasn't quite as good. - Maybe it was my accent. Maybe, I lost a bit of concentration when I realised the clock was ticking down. Maybe I should have saved the kebab for later. But fair comment.
Protagonist and World setup could have been better. - Fair shout again. I should have practised the delivery a few more times, I'll know better next time.
Obstacles and conflicts. - This was better. Still not brilliantly pitched but there are signs of encouragement.
Clarity of Tone. This scored better and Miss Paulson easily grasped what I was waffling on about. This probably says more about her as a listener than me as an orator.
Originality of Concept. This was a good score too. I'm pleased about this more than anything.
Strength of voice. A good score again, although I'm not sure whether this refers to the pitch or that I was nice and close to the microphone.
Then at the bottom of the feedback, it said PASS. - At first, I was really happy to see this. I had passed! Then I realised it meant did she want any more information, treatments, scripts. It was a pass.
However, all in all, this was a most constructive feedback. I can now start to see where I need to hone down the pitch and how I should approach it in future.
More than anything this has taught me that no matter how great I think the story is, if I can't sell it, it won't get made. Thank you, Rachel.
Next week, I have another chance when I pitch to Charlie Osowik.
How's everybody else doing?
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cool! It's all about practice and experience, keep improving. Sell yourself first. Buyers are really interested in you and what you bring to the table.
Hey Ken White ! It's awesome that you share the feedback that you received! Let me ask you something: before signing up for a pitch session, did you get coverage or consulting? Or did you go straight to the pitch session? I would like to know because I am currently debating what I should go for in the first place.
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Hi Jose, thank you for reaching out. Before the pitch session, I did the fantastic Chris Mack webinar. Which I think is still available in the education section. Other than that, I spent a couple of days making notes, I then recorded myself doing the pitch and then realised I was taking far too long. I was already at the 6 min stage introducing the characters. I then blue-pencilled the pitch and then put bullet points on my screen with stickies (post its) so I could quickly refer to them without it seeming I was reading from notes. It might be an idea to do a pitch session to find out where your weak points are and work from there. Although it looks like I could do with quite a bit of coaching, so maybe your route would be better. Good luck, let us know how you get on. Yours Ken
Cool!
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Jose Eduardo Penedo I would do the pitch session if you feel you have a script that is ready for an executive to read, so I would consider it your last step. Also I would practice your pitch - a lot - and get it down to no more than 5 minutes that way you won't rush and you'll have time for questions.
So first you need to check your script is ready to pitch. I like the full read+30min call to give you a nice personalized overview. I prefer this to written coverage as you can drill down on any comments AND potentially make a network connection. The consulting is when you're not sure where your script is at all.
My order is: 10 pg review, full script +30min consult, coverage, pitch.
You can skip the 10pg if you've had your script read by another writer and you know you have a solid story, but also your first 10pgs have to sing, so it can't hurt polishing it some more.
No sense pitching, if you're sending over an unpolished script.
Also if you join the writer's room, you can watch PitchTanks (people pitching an executive plus the feedback they received) or Pitch practice, where you can, for free, have your pitch reviewed.
Best of luck!
Noel Thompson that's great advice, thank you very much for your insights!