by Voyage | Nov 22, 2010 | Uncategorized
HOW THE TWITTER SENSATION BECAME A HOT PIECE OF PRIMETIME – NAT MUNDEL SITS DOWN WITH THE CO-EXECUTIVE PRODUCER OF CBS’ HIT TV SHOW, PATRICK SCHUMACKER. Before Twitter feed ShitMyDadSays broke out onto the social media scene two years ago, creator Justin Halpern was an editor at Maxim.com and Patrick Schumacker was a film and TV blogger for Screen Junkies at Break Media as well as a writer for Voyage Media. Together, the two saw their project through book proposals (an integral part of the development process), feature-film prospects, and – in a rare instance of role reversal – pitches made by studio execs to networks. Find out what happens on the development road to network television as Patrick discusses what it was like to team up with a pair of producing veterans (Will & Grace‘s Max Mutchnick and David Kohan) to turn the immensely popular SMDS into a hot piece of primetime property. Archives September 2024 (1) April 2023 (1) January 2023 (1) December 2022 (1) October 2022 (1) June 2020 (1) April 2020 (1) February 2020 (1) January 2020 (1) October 2019 (1) August 2019 (1) June 2019 (1) January 2019 (1) April 2018 (1) March 2018 (1) February 2018 (1) January 2018 (1) December 2017 (1) November 2017 (1) October 2017 (2) July 2017 (4) April 2017 (1) February 2017 (1) January 2017 (1) December 2016 (1) November 2016 (1) October 2016 (1) September 2016 (2) June 2016 (1) May 2016 (1) April 2016 (1) February 2016 (3) January 2016 (1) December 2015 (2) November 2015 (1) October 2015 (2) September 2015 (2) August 2015 (2) July 2015 (1) June 2015 (1) April 2015 (1) March 2015 (1) February 2015 (2) January 2015 (3) December 2014 (2) October 2014 (1) September 2014 (3) August 2014 (3) June 2014 (2) May 2014 (5) April 2014 (3) February 2014 (1) January 2014 (1) December 2013 (1) April 2013 (1) December 2012 (1) July 2012 (1)...
by Voyage | Aug 11, 2010 | Uncategorized
TIPS TO BOOST YOUR DIRECTOR’S CAREER DURING A PRODUCTION SLUMP With the omnipresent economic slump, the competitive nature of production has skyrocketed higher than ever before. Whereas 3 years ago there was a relatively even distribution and demand for work, there’s been a significant falloff, especially for directors. And if that weren’t enough, we all know that budgets have been cut in a huge way across the board. So how do you maintain your directors when the workflow isn’t a steady stream? How do you adapt to ever-decreasing budgets? And most importantly, how do you cultivate your directors’ talents, and even facilitate their crossovers into other media? Whether you’re working in the talent agency world, the commercial production microcosm, or the indie spectrum, there are some incredible new strategies to keep your directors active, fresh, and in demand. Here are some strategic platforms where your directors can flourish and gain exposure for little to no cost. 1) 3rd Party Funding – Especially in the commercial industry, so many directors are chomping at the bit to cross over into other media. Yes, your time is spread thin, but the best thing you can do is sit down with your director and get them to open up about small scale projects – those hunches and dream jobs they’ve got going on in the back of their minds (not just spec commercials.) With websites like Kickstarter.com and Indiegogo.com, anybody can pitch their ideas for film, art, literature – you name it. You pitch to the people, and the monetary results are staggeringly successful. Read more about how to raise your funds through...
by Voyage | Jun 1, 2010 | Uncategorized
HOW TO TELL WHEN TO “TECH UP” OR SCALE BACK There’s an ongoing, ancient debate in the world of pitching: how high-tech or low-tech should a pitch be? Does it really matter? Does the audience really care? At Voyage, we’ve worked on totally immersive pitches for clients like Ferrari World and Le Reve for Wynn Las Vegas that go way beyond the standard 2D deck. But that doesn’t mean they’re always high tech. Sometimes a smart person armed with a dry-erase pen and a white board is a lot more convincing than a highfalutin, hard-to-follow, complicated series of do-dads and wing-nuts… So all this raises a big question: How do I know which pitching platform works best for my concept? We all know that technology is evolving at an exponentially faster rate than ever before. With the advent of hardware like the iPad and portable projectors (built into your cellphone!), it’s really easy to get bogged down by the infinite possibilities of where your presentation can go… Do I go the interactive route? Something a client can touch and feel on an iPad, iPhone, or something else? Or do I create a deck, but make it larger than life and sexy? Should I just pound insane amounts of caffeine or 5-Hour Energy’s and wing it? According to the renowned Venture Hacks, the first and most important thing you need to identify is whether or not you’re dealing with a simple concept, or a high concept. Once you identify this, you’ll be able to tell which pitch route to go – the Lo-Fi route, or the Interactive. Lo-Fi – If...
by Voyage | Mar 17, 2010 | Uncategorized
In an age when many decisions in Network Television are made out of fear (i.e. the now infamous Conan O’Brien vs. Jay Leno debacle), it’s easy for both current and would-be TV writers/producers to jump on the bandwagon of cynicism. Despite what may seem like a constant brain-drain towards less and less cerebral or character-driven programming, there’s still a market for your unbridled creativity. For the March issue of the Starbird, Nat Mundel interviews Chris Levinson, an accomplished writer and producer for shows like Party of Five, Dawson’s Creek, and Law & Order. In this interview, Nat and Chris break down the broad points and steps to be taken when pitching a show idea to a room full of (up to 12!) scary network Execs. From what Chris tells us, passion is definitely a contagion that network Execs are more than happy to get infected with. 1) Explain why you’re passionate about the project. Why did you create this show? 2) Pitch your logline. 3) Take your audience through a character breakdown. 4) Walk everyone through an episode breakdown. Treat it like a performance! 5) Bookend the pitch with your passion! Infect the Execs with it! Archives September 2024 (1) April 2023 (1) January 2023 (1) December 2022 (1) October 2022 (1) June 2020 (1) April 2020 (1) February 2020 (1) January 2020 (1) October 2019 (1) August 2019 (1) June 2019 (1) January 2019 (1) April 2018 (1) March 2018 (1) February 2018 (1) January 2018 (1) December 2017 (1) November 2017 (1) October 2017 (2) July 2017 (4) April 2017 (1) February 2017 (1) January 2017 (1) December 2016 (1) November 2016 (1) October 2016 (1) September 2016 (2) June 2016 (1) May 2016 (1) April 2016 (1) February 2016 (3) January 2016 (1) December 2015 (2) November 2015 (1) October 2015 (2)...
by Voyage | Oct 18, 2009 | Uncategorized
Who wouldn’t want to be known as a vital creative force in the workplace and in life? Creativity is a unique and core component of our species, some believe it’s the very reason for our species. And yet so many of us shy away from it. Why? Because the road to true creativity is fraught with real fear, and so we opt out in one of two ways: We project creative excellence onto others – the artists, the visionaries, the people who can’t get up in the morning and hold a day job, and so on. The failing here is seeing creativity as a gift bestowed on a select few rather than a muscle to be worked out by all. We lower the bar – i.e. we praise tired, mediocre work as creative genius. Here, creativity is demystified, readily available for the claiming, even if we fail to understand exactly what it really is. The “sin” here is reversed: Seeing creativity as pure muscle and ignoring the subtleties that arise from a natural given talent. How then should we tap true creativity in a world where it is regularly forsaken or faked? Here are seven steps that will help cultivate and channel creativity, handpicked from across the expansive ethers of the Internets… 1. Have the COURAGE to try new things and risk failure. Every big breakthrough starts as a harebrained idea. This doesn’t mean you should constantly go off the deep end, just that you should balance your portfolio of solutions with an investment in the new and untried. Over time, the risk is usually worth the reward. 2....
by Voyage | Sep 14, 2009 | Uncategorized
I sat down with Michael Garcia, former VP of Drama Development at HBO. With hits like The Sopranos, Big Love, and True Blood-a whole new perspective on the art of pitching emerged Nat: Why don’t you tell me a little bit about your career? M: The factual account is like this: I moved out here 11 years ago. I started at 20th Century Fox as an assistant in comedy development and left to go to Industry Entertainment before starting up at HBO. Over 7 years I became the Vice President and the co-head of Drama series. Nat: Is there a value system you live by that brought you up the ranks so quickly? M: I had just turned 24 years old and I was an executive already, right? And what happened was that I shifted my way of thinking from one rooted in ambition, to thinking, “What can I give in this situation?” How can I help? It takes the pressure off, and it all becomes about learning, and people, and facilitating communication. Nat: So it’s almost as though regardless of external frames of reference-wealth, money, power-you were able to capture a core essence of who you are. M: Exactly. When I finally started to have integrity, then everything made sense. There are two polar orientations: 1. What do I get from this? verses 2. What can I give to this? Nat: Let’s use that as a turning point and step into the minds and hearts of the artists who are trying to get their stories told. M: If you can walk into a room knowing who you are...
