ASK & DISCUSS INDEX

9 years, 7 months ago - Marlom Tander

To have a TV Drama you need the ear of someone in TV.

TV peeps tend to only commission from their mates, so what you need is for one of those guys to decide that your project is one they want to pitch. OR you need a hungry wannabe producer who is willing to do the prep work to get it pitchable direct to a commissioner and sales legwork to get the chance to pitch.

I'd also suggest looking at the current spend rates for drama slots (the BBC publishes these in a handy guide) because there is no point at all pitching something that costs X million per episode at an X hundred K slot. Flagging this because you have just laid out a premise that screams "EXPENSIVE" when the actual human interest plot points could probably be done just as well on a desert island maybe. Make sure that you avoid the possibility that anyone with money thinks "ah yes, this project is a bit like Terra Nova or Outcasts", because those "survive on strange planet" efforts were expensive flops.

So, at this stage you want to try and talk to production companies with a track record in TV OR seek out a hungry producer willing to take it to a pitchable project level to go to said companies/TV stations.

Right now you don't need a bigger team, and such a team could be a liability - if a commissioner likes the project they like the script, but they'll want the execution done by safe hands. A gung ho wannabe producer who has brought it to their attention will be relatively happy even if excluded, (because it will have their name on, they will have got some money and they will have a success to brag about), but any other team members (lovely cast types, keen director and whatnot) will just be told that "sorry, no room". At best they get a chance to audition/pitch for a place on the cast/crew. Don't make promises you can't be sure of keeping.

Minor point - "two moons". If I was being pitched to, I'm worried. "Two moons" simply mean the title sequence looks great but doesn't have any obvious relationship to the core element of any drama series, which is the character relationships. "Two moons" goes from "wow" to "so what" in 2 seconds flat. Delete "two moons" and insert "alien race" or "post civilisation crash future people" or "intelligent apes", (though I think the last one has been done already). Point being, insert something that shouts "interaction, crises, jeopardy" rather "pretty view and complicated tides".

Final point - Sci-Fi is considered minority interest. If people's reaction is "it's sci-fi" then that's an issue. If it's "drama that happens to be in a Sci-Fi context then it's The Tempest, or The 100."

Good luck

9 years, 7 months ago - Savio Pagano

Thank you for your feedback on pitch Marlom. The script was born in italy and pitched in italy by 40 people (10 for quadrant). The idea of the show is a mix between lost and the walkind dead. The range of this script is not low budget, was created for sell it. The more expencive things in my opinion can be just the crash train in the underground. Two moons in the sky can be the most cheaper effet in the world. All the script is written understanding an inteligent way for make it cheaper. I know how mutch is important decide the budget before write a script.

I know that producer don't have time for read a script and often they have to decide just reading the pitch.

My idea is pitching that in the real london undeground and create a video with feedback of potential " protagonists" of this story, "the normal passengers" for promote the project. That's my next step for now.

Script is quite ready but the project is not ready for be exposed to a producer ot BBC room for me, that's why I'm looking for another couple of person interested to collaborate.