Screenwriting : What Pitch Material Do You Make? by Maurice Vaughan

That's great that you've never been asked for anything other than a verbal pitch, Drongo Bum. Sometimes that's all you need. Script posters, pitch decks, etc. have gotten me script requests and jobs. Plus, I like making these things.

Maurice Vaughan Which of those items do you find is requested the most?

Great question, Michael David. Logline, pitch deck, and short synopsis.

Maurice, I like doing written pitches...for now, I feel more comfortable doing them than verbal ones. (Yep...I'm still working to change that and get as comfy with verbal pitches as I am with written ones.)

My written pitches start with a brief explanation of how what I'm pitching came about. Then I list format, genre, comps, logline, and setting...followed by a short synopsis, a summary of major characters, and I conclude with a "summing up" of what the major characters have to go through in the story.

I love doing script posters...even if they're not attached to the pitches. Still, I include the posters when I'm working with tools such as ScriptHop (works like a pitch deck) and Prewrite (works the way a lookbook does).

Here's wishing you plenty of success here in 2025 (and beyond)!

Hey, Jim Boston. That's a great way to start a pitch! I'm more comfortable doing written pitches too. I'm getting more comfortable with live pitches though.

I've heard of ScriptHop and Prewrite. I plan on trying them out. I'll probably try Prewrite first since I've been thinking about finding a new program to outline in for a while.

Thanks. Hope you have a lotta success this year and beyond!

I love this list Maurice, saving!

Thanks, Todd Fabyanic. What pitch material do you make for a script/series?

Thank you, Sydney S.

Great list!

Thank you, Oleksandr Shcherbyna. What kind of pitch material do you make?

Maurice Vaughan I'm on the producing / production site. Currently I don't make material for myself, if that's what you mean. But, as I mentioned in other places, I'm looking into interesting projects to co-develop. For such a project I could produce a lot of things - from pitch decks to animation, 2d/3d, cinematics, trailes, mixed reality reels, you name.

Great ideas! I don't do a script poster or a two word pitch. I'm going to try both.

That's right, Oleksandr Shcherbyna. You're the production side. Thanks for commenting though. Maybe you'll hear from writers who have projects you'd be interested in co-developing.

Thanks, Jill Gambaro. Glad to hear it! Script posters and 2-word pitches are great for query letters, Stage 32 Logline pages, and social media posts.

thats intense -- i like the fact that you have a list for whatever project-- smart

After watching a Scriptfella video on YT, I've started experimenting with concept/pitch trailers which are essentially extended loglines in video format.

I'm doing the same thing, GJ Harvey. I've been practicing in Canva.

Maurice Vaughan Share a link?

They're not ready to share, but I'll let you know when they're ready, GJ Harvey.

Thanks, Alejandro Lalinde. I've been using loglines, treatments, etc. for a long time. Some of the things on the list are newer, like the 2-word pitch. And I'm always trying to come up with new ways to pitch my scripts.

Hey, Marty Howe. The pitch material I made got me connections, a lot of script requests, shopping agreement, four short script sales, and a ton of screenwriting jobs and ghostwriting jobs.

Everything! I do it all and create a pitch deck and a reel if I can.

Great, Vital Butinar. How long are your reels normally?

Maurice Vaughan usually about a minute and a half or less. I can't remember, I think I showed you one once.

But I'm not sure what good any of this does for my projects, it seems it doesn't do anything.

Ok, thanks, Vital Butinar. About a minute is what I'm aiming for. Keep networking and pitching. You'll find the right people for your projects.

Hi, Williams Clack. You don't have to pay to pitch your script. You can network on Stage 32, other places online, and in person (like at Stage 32's Meetups www.stage32.com/meetups), and it might lead to opportunities to pitch your script for free.

I love to use Elevator Pitches

I like that idea, Rebecca James. You could send it to support@stage32.com.

Logline, comparative, 1 or 2 page synopsis

I typically have a logline, tagline, short summary, long summary, sample movie poster, and pitch deck. My pitch decks include the short summary, comparable titles, sample casting/descriptions, market stats, a bio, and a list of my other projects.

It's always great to have elevator pitches ready, Mark Deuce.

Have you thought about making a short synopsis, Michael Dzurak? 5-6 sentences.

You're ready, Erin Leigh! What kind of market stats do you put in a pitch deck?

I am inspired to create a pitch about a story titled Son of a Pitch. It could be my life story.

Great title, Wyman Brent!

Maurice Vaughan I'm not really a "numbers" person, but I look for current info related to viewing habits/demographics/what people are watching based on the genre I'm pitching. For my female-centric comedy, I found a stat that 54% of viewers who watch comedies are women--anything that will help the potential sale. And the English instructor in me always verifies and cites the source. ;)

Hi Maurice Vaughan , I have a question: what is the "pitch deck"?

Hi, Imola Orbán. A pitch deck is a document you use to pitch a project. Check out this post and these websites:

www.stage32.com/lounge/screenwriting/Need-some-feedback-on-my-first-Pitc...

https://aarondavis.com/the-tracks-tv-series-pitch-deck/

https://www.deezinersstudios.com/

Poster

Pitch, (4 minute), Written (1) Page

Concept Page, (1) page

Brief Synopsis of First Future Episodes, (1) Page

Character Description Of key Players (1) Page

This is the my series Bible or Pitch Deck

Hi, Mone't Bradley. "This is the series Bible? or Pitch Deck." Sorry, I'm not sure what you're asking.

I'm not asking a question, but just answering yours on the pitch material that I use for my scripts.

Less is more depending on whom you share it with.

Oh ok, Mone't Bradley. Sorry about that. Do you make your posters and pitch decks or hire someone to?

Hey, Stephen Folker. Less pitch material?

Maurice Vaughan Yes.

Busy people don't want to read a 20 page pitch deck. Keep it simple, concise and don't put a bunch of info that is irrelevant.

You're right, Stephen Folker. I like to keep my feature pitch decks to 10-15 pages. My decks don't have a lot of text. I save the other info for the treatment or series bible.

I make my own posters, but I have a screenwriting consultant that I've been working with for years, who has helped me to develop my scripts and my series packages..

I think in this day and age, less is more. Would 15 pages get read? A blistering one page summary that grabs attention has more chance of getting read. If they like that, they are likely to read the script. Just my two cents.

That's great, Mone't Bradley! I use Canva to make posters for my scripts. What program do you use?

It's like that a lot of times nowadays, Marie Phillips. Less is more. I used to write long query letters, but I usually keep them short now. It's a great idea to have a one-pager on hand.

Marie Phillips My pitch decks are about 15 slides, but they're not text heavy. A 15-page summary would be more like a treatment, which an exec could potentially ask for. I haven't written treatments for my scripts (probably should), but I keep everything else on hand so I can quickly pass along whatever they prefer to see. Deck? Sure. Summary? You bet. Script? Absolutely. (Treatment? Oh $%!*)

I do keep a deck of cards which I use specifically to make pitches. I pitch the cards all around the room when things are not going well.