Pitching producers and Executives at ipitch.tv can be as easy as point-and-shoot with your smart phone. With a little bit of planning, and prompting if necessary, anyone can deliver a great pitch for a new TV or Movie idea. 

Pitching for TV and Film is both a craft and a business skill, but for those with little experience it’s much simpler than one might think. When you know how to verbally pitch your project by distilling it down to a few key beats and keeping it simple, you’ll deliver the most impact for any Producer watching and listening to your pitch.  iPitch.tv can instantly put you and your pitch in the office or home of any top industry executive scouting our marketplace for new ideas.  This Industry is a contact sport, so delivering your pitch in your own words is a powerful way to get your ideas across "face-to-face". Submitting a verbal video pitch at ipitch.tv gives Creators that opportunity.  Just shoot and upload your video pitch with your registration, or add it to any current or new projects you have published through your account.

So here are some tips on pitching to help you find the best angle to present your project and learn how to deliver an inspired pitch:

Make it quick: Pitching a reality series can be done in 2-3 minutes. Scripted genres, such as movies and dramatic series, are much more detailed with story, and may require 4-8 minutes to carry us through the premise, meet the character(s), and take us through the arc of the story.

Introduce yourself very briefly. Give your name, and if you have experience in the industry, mention it quickly. If you have experience that relates directly to the subject or story you’re pitching, give those details briefly. Give the project title, and genre(s) that apply. Then get right into the Logline, providing the “high concept” of your pitch. This is the quick and condensed description of what the core idea of your story or concept is.

Know the hook that is unique to your concept or story: Whether your pitch is for a feature film, or a documentary reality series, you always want to be pitching an approach to your story or subject that we haven’t seen before. This is often the hook, or core concept of the pitch. We call this the “high concept”. Communicate this immediately. Start with the high concept, then pull back and give us the project in a nutshell… This means communicating what would essentially be your Logline (a few sentences that gives a condensed description of your project).

Cut to the chase:  There are two reasons you want to communicate the Logline immediately in your pitch. 1: A Producer or Executive doesn’t have time to listen to a long dissertation of story and details to figure out what’s special about the story or concept. They need to know immediately. 2: If they do like the specific high concept of your project, then their minds relax and become more inspired by the details they hear in the rest of your pitch. Be brief, but give very specific details. The more detail you provide, the more original your pitch is. There’s a talent in knowing how to choose what to communicate. Often new writers and creators will provide too much information that doesn’t actually “show us” what’s special about their project. Different than a traditional business proposal, a pitch for TV or Film doesn’t require a long preamble justifying why the subject or story is important, or why audiences will be interested. That’s for the Producer or Studio Executive to determine. And they’ll determine that viability only when they hear a very clear pitch that gives the Executive a clear visual of what we're actually watching in the movie or show. 

There is often a need to give quick background or backstory as part of the set-up to delivering the pitch, and that’s great but do it quickly and get immediately into the premise and plight of how your story unfolds. If you’re pitching a reality show, whether it’s a docu-series (like “Deadliest Catch” or “Duck Dynasty”) or a formatted series (Like “Survivor” or “The Voice”), always keep in mind that “story” is key. We want to understand the personal plight and challenges of our cast or contestants and what we as the audience will witness unfolding. Being able to communicate what the pivotal moments may be, ultimatums they may encounter, and action they must take, gives us a roadmap for dramatic content that a Producer needs to understand.

Check back for more guidance on creating a great verbal video pitch.