Note From Tongal: “How to Pitch Your Film or TV Project in a Meeting” is part of a series of Tongal Community-written blog posts that were originally sourced in the Tongal Blog Open Call Project. Read more Tongal Community-written posts here and then Pitch us a topic you'd like to write about for the Tongal Blog!
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The big pitch meeting is this week. It’s been rescheduled twice, but now it’s triple confirmed, you have the parking directions and know the full names and job titles of all parties involved. From go-time to show time! You are now in that sweet spot where it’s time to buckle down, do the work, and get ready.
Let’s assume you already know what you are going to pitch, then the rest of your preparation should be practice. And practice. And... practice. Aloud, feel your lips wrapping around the words, check the speed of your delivery, and the tenor of your voice. And if possible, do it in front of a trusted friend, and if none are available, FaceTime/Skype a patient sibling or parent. It doesn’t matter if they don’t understand the content, you want to hold yourself accountable. Don’t cheat yourself, don’t skip around or race, try to recreate as many of the conditions of the actual pitch meeting, so that your practice pitches are as close to the real thing as possible. If you are saying stuff like “and then I’m going to go into this on the day” that’s a pretty good indication that you might not be ready.
Now it’s the morning of. You know what you’re going to say about yourself and you know what you’re going to say about whatever project you are trying to sell. Hopefully, you’ve got enough sleep. 7-8 hours, or whatever your usual is. Please don’t skip breakfast or meals that day. And try to incorporate some brain food like a dozen almonds, it’s a real thing. Our philosophy on what to wear is to have it match the setting of the pitch, if it’s at a coffee shop, dress casually, if it’s at an agency, then maybe dress it up a little bit more. If it’s on a yacht off the south of France, then ditch the formal wear and pack the sunglasses, boat shoes, and something pretentious to throw over your shoulders. Remember how much you practiced? Well on the drive over to the pitch location, don’t practice, trust that you know it, and don’t get in your head and spin out. Relax, play some of your favorite music and be happy. Pitch day is a good day.
Checking in to the office be sure to learn the assistant or receptionists name, and maybe ask them a question about themselves, say please and thank you, and be the same person you are going to be in the meeting. Why? Because you don’t know how close they are with the person who has the buying power and may be asked to give their opinion of you after you leave. Another reason is that you don’t know how soon that person will be in a position to buy something of yours in the future. Make a good impression. If they ask you for water, take the water. It makes the proceedings more transactional and that’s what you want in the air. You give them an idea and they greenlight it and compensate you. Also, you are about to sit down and wait, and that’s when everything is going to get really REAL, nerves might flare, butterflies may try to take flight. It’s okay, you have the water, focus on that, take a sip, let it calm you, if there’s a label, read it, if there’s a cap, twist it, remember the lyrics to whatever song made you the happiest in the car. Pitch day is still a good day.
Now you are in the room, and if you’ve seen Hamilton, you know this is THE ROOM WHERE IT HAPPENS! But before you pitch your idea, you have to sell yourself. A good handshake, be confident, make eye contact, exhibit stellar posture. Make small talk and be good at it. Remember, if they buy your idea, this is not the last time they are going to see you, this could be the start of a professional relationship. They have to like you, want to work with you. You could have the greatest idea that ever walked into that room, but if you are a miserable mumbly shell of a person, they are going to seriously reconsider moving forward with your project.
And then it’s time to present your idea. Take a calm, steady, deep breath and let it flow. Be concise, specific, visual, entertaining, dynamic, engaging, thoughtful, confident, knowledgeable, and charming. Yes, it’s a tall order, not easy, but you’ve got this, because you are well-prepared and you’ve... practiced. You got this. Pitch day is a good day, and you’re doing well.
Afterward, they are going to have questions. Make sure you have the answers. They are going to have suggestions, roll with them, spitball with them, this means they are engaged with your story or project. The more questions and suggestions you get, usually the better. They are also looking to see your collaborative nature, how willing you are to work with them, even if something they have said isn’t necessarily part of your vision, hear them out, and then play it out. Working with them is going to be a process, and if they are interested, then try to remember this is day one, moment one, of that very process.
Hopefully, the post-pitch portion of the meeting has led to some fruitful conversation. And maybe you’ve even saved a thought or two now for the end, something you deliberately left out of the pitch, that you want to end with to keep them excited AND leave them wanting more. If it’s a TV show, maybe throw out one idea about Season 2, if it’s a film, maybe you hit them with a quick nugget of what a sequel could be. Anything to let them know that if you like what was pitched, there’s more of where that’s coming from.
The next day, feel free to email a thank you and try to include a personalized inside joke from the room where it happened. Regardless of whether they respond or not, you should assume you are in consideration. Hopefully, you will hear from them with their answer. If you don’t, feel free to check back in two weeks after the pitch. If they still don’t respond, then assume you have your answer. You have other pitches scheduled for that idea, and a million ideas behind that one, and now the tools to successfully pitch a project.
REPEAT. REPEAT. REPEAT.
That's a great tip! Thanks Joshua :)
