They say “There’s no rest for the wicked”, and I think it’s true because it’s a hectic week up here in Vancouver.

Not only am I doing last minute development work on a show of mine being pitched at RealScreen West this week PLUS doing some last minute consulting on promo material for people taking shows to the Banff Television Festival next week, I’m ALSO in the final throes of pre-production on the next set of webisodes I start shooting next Monday.s

Webisodes are, of course, a great way to promote a show, but almost more importantly than that, preparing to shoot them is a great way to force you to truly understand what your show is about.

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This was a post on an online forum I’m a member of.

Don’t waste your money on these PITCH FESTS! It’s a huge waste of money and time and there’s is no guaranteeing that your show or movie idea would be bought.

I tried to find out what really happened in comparison to what he thought was going to happen. They didn’t get back to me but I think their original post is most telling.

“It’s a huge waste of money and there’s no guaranteeing that your show or movie idea would be bought.”

Of course there’s no guarantee some one is going to buy your show. Paying to attend a PitchFest or any other kind of TV pitch conference isn’t like buying a toaster. It does not come with a guarantee.

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Here is a great article from our good friend Stephanie Palmer of Good In A Room. Check out the discount code (at the end of the article) to her pitching class starting next week.

The Most Popular Pitching Formula in Hollywood (And 3 Reasons Why You Shouldn’t Use It)

By Stephanie Palmer

I imagine you’ve heard a pitch like, “It’s Avatar meets Die Hard!” or “It’s The Hangover meets Bridesmaids!”

The most popular pitching formula in Hollywood takes successful movies and smashes them together in form of: “This Meets That.”

This common practice often backfires.  Here’s why:

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I was reading a pitch the other day and the person listed off three things we might see in their show, and then they said etc.

Using the word etc. is the equivalent of saying “we’re going to roll cameras and see what happens.” If we are going to see more than the three things listed that’s fine, but don’t say etc. Explain what we’re going to see or just end it. Don’t sit on the fence! …readmore

“Nobody’s going to care about your little art project.”

These harsh words were said to a good friend of mine who is now a successful filmmaker and fulltime writer on a scripted drama, and thankfully, he was gracious enough to pass them on to me. …readmore

Tax credits. Hiring the right Producer and Director. Cameras. Reserved parking.

These are all things you do NOT need to worry about when pitching your show. Why? Because they have nothing to do with selling the content or vision of your show.

When you sit down with an Executive they are not going to ask you about the business of the biz, they are going to ask you how your show works.

“What does that character do? How does this story line relate to the rest of the show? What’s the target demographic?” …readmore