ATX Festival’s "The Pitch Competition": 90 Seconds To Pitch Your Idea for a Great TV Show!
Pitch an original, scripted idea for a TV show and you could win a chance to pitch your show for production!
For those who remember, earlier this summer the ATX Festival launched it’s first annual television festival, and they’re already planning next year’s line-up – which includes a fun competition that you can enter! If you have ever had a great idea for a new, scripted television show, now is your chance to present it to some well-known industry professionals – including creators and producers of some of your favorite shows! Watch the “Pitch Tips,” starring a few people you might know, read the official press release, and then get to work on your original show pitch! Visit the official ATX Festival website for more information!
Pitch Tip #1 by Liz Tigelaar – Creator of Life Unexpected, Writer for Dawson’s Creek, Revenge, Nashville, and more:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3BFPe1xSYA[/youtube]
Pitch Tip #2 by Arielle Kebbel – Actress from 90210, The Vampire Diaries, Gilmore Girls, and more:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VqCfVcBAs2c[/youtube]
Pitch Tip #3 by Matt Lauria – Actor from Lipstick Jungle, Friday Night Lights, Parenthood, and more:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3pBizdm0-mM[/youtube]
Pitch Tip #4 by Bill Lawrence – Creator of Scrubs and Cougar Town
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4sR3cwLJ1E[/youtube]
Pitch Tip #5 by David Madden – President of Fox Television Sudios:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAZmGITu5xM[/youtube]
ATX TELEVISION FESTIVAL AND FINAL DRAFT PRESENT
“THE PITCH COMPETITION”
For The Second Annual Festival June 6 – 9, 2013 in Austin, TX
Austin, TX- Thursday, November 1, 2012 — ATX Television Festival is pleased to announce its collaboration with Final Draft, the creators of the number one selling screenwriting application in the world, to host their first-ever Pitch Competition. This competition will allow aspiring writers and show creators to pitch their original idea for a scripted series to some of the biggest decision makers in the television industry.
Participants will have ninety seconds to convince industry judges on their original idea for a scripted series through a self-filmed video. The competition is open to any and all pitches for scripted shows: a 30-minute for a traditional network, an hour drama for cable, a hybrid for original online content. The only guideline is that it must be for a scripted (non-reality) series and pitched in under a minute and half.
ATX Television Festival will screen all submissions and choose twenty-five semi-finalists to be judged by a panel of industry professionals including: Bill Lawrence (Creator/Producer of Scrubs and Cougar Town), Bryan Seabury (VP of Drama Development at CBS Network), Liz Tigelaar (Creator of Life Unexpected & writer on American Dreams, Nashville, and Revenge), Kyle Killen (Creator of Lone Star & Awake), Peter Billingsley (Executive Producer of Sullivan & Son, Dinner for Five, and Executive at Wild West Picture Productions), David Hudgins (Executive Producer of Friday Night Lights & Parenthood), and special guest judges, who will narrow the twenty-five semi-finalists down to ten finalists.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1SEZngCxFgY[/youtube]
The ten finalists will compete at ATX Television Festival (June 6-9, 2013) in Austin, TX to pitch live before the panel of judges. After hearing all ten of the live pitches, the judges will choose one winner. This winner will receive a meeting with one of the judges (based on the show’s genre/judges’ availability) to explore the idea of their series and gain notes to better develop the series. After the pitch is honed, the winner will then get a pitch meeting in front of one of the festival’s studio/network partners to try and sell their pilot for production!
All participants will receive a discount code for 25% off the latest version of Final Draft (retailing at $249) as well as $25 off of any level ATX Television Festival badge. The semi-finalists will receive Panel badges to the Festival, allowing them to see any panels, including the Final Pitch Competition. The ten finalists will each receive a Weekend badge to the Festival, plus two tickers to the opening night screening and after-party to start the festival off right! The finalists will also receive a free copy of the most recent version Final Draft, courtesy of Final Draft.
“The pitch competition is a perfect addition to the festival. A truth in TV is that you don’t get paid to write your show unless you can sell it as a pitch. Like writing, pitching is an art form that needs to be practiced, honed and perfected,” said Bryan Seabury, VP of Drama Development at CBS Network. “The importance of pitching is often overlooked so this contest is yet another example of ATX understanding the TV industry and providing a great service to its attendees.”
“I’m a life-long TV nerd and I’m all for ATX Television Festival because it’s such a fun way to bring television fans together. The Pitch Competition offers fans an opportunity to get into the industry which is another reason anyone attending ATX Television Festival should consider themselves lucky,” said Bill Lawrence, creator of Scrubs and Cougar Town.