Producing : Ask Me Anything (AMA) Thursday 05/29 to Friday 05/30 - What To Include In Your Pitch Deck by Ewan Dunbar

Hi Ewan, thank you for making time to empower us with your 8-part Pitch Deck writing lab. It so vital for TV Series screenwriters. I am a feature screenwriter and I have a question:

What are the key differences between a pitch deck for a TV series and a feature film? While both share similarities, should a TV series pitch deck focus solely on the pilot, or should it also include details about the episodes? Thank youuu and I am cheering for your Lab :))

This is so amazing , THANK YOU SO MUCH , for taking your time in sharpening our skillset in a Perfect Pitch deck.

I would like to ask, How does one keep the Identity of the project alive, while staying professional. Many a times, we receive so many feedbacks, on our pitch deck that we might loose the originality of the pitch deck. Plus how does AI impact the process of pitch decks

Hi, Ewan Dunbar. Hope you're having a great week. Thanks for taking the time to have this AMA! What's the best order for pages in a pitch deck?

Huge thanks to Ewan for hosting our AMA today — and for everything you do for the Stage 32 community! We're so excited for tomorrow and can’t wait to dive into all the amazing questions coming in for Ewan.

If you have any questions about the upcoming lab or how to get involved, feel free to reach out to me anytime at edu@stage32.com — happy to help!

Also happy Thursday all :-)

Thanks Sandra Isabel Correia ! Great question. Your pitch deck should give a good ammount of detail on your pilot episode, but also tell the rest of the story for your first season. This way you can demonstrate how audiences will keep coming back for more episode by episode. If you plan on more seasons for your show, you can include a little information about them in your deck but not more than a line or so.

My pleasure Elmare Hendricks ! One of the key things you're doing in your deck is telling someone about your characters, story and world. As a byproduct you are also showcasing yourself as a creative, so seeing your deck as an extension of your creative voice and storytelling ability will be key to keeping your voice in there.

As for AI, it should be seen as a tool to help you at most. If there isn't a creative vision behind it, the result will be bland in both writing and in any other AI elements. The people you are pitching to see a lot of decks and can spot AI work pretty easily now, with some taking the attitude of "if you can't be bothered to write it, why should I be bothered to read it?" In contrast, a well thought out deck that is written in someone's unique creative voice can by a real joy to read and can take your work far up the acquisitions process.

Great to hear from you Maurice Vaughan ! The best way to structure your deck is to build up the information you are giving in a way that is easy to understand and builds interest the more you learn. The person you are sending your deck to is reading this for the first time, so you don't want them to feel like they're getting hit over the head with an encyclopedia on page 1. Start small with your logline and build from there. I will go into more detail about this over the course of the lab.

Thanks Sydney S !

Ewan. Thank you for your time and insights.

I've created several pitch decks for my ideas. One thing I've done in some of them involves my characters. I include an actor or actress type: Which actors/actresses do I imagine filling the role (whether they ever would or not!) Is this something worth wild to continue or just leave it at the character bio?

Thanks for the advice, Ewan Dunbar. I appreciate it! I have an order for pitch decks, but I like to change up the order sometimes.

Hi Ewan Dunbar - hope you're doing well and thanks for having this AMA. I have two questions if I may: 1. If a creator uses AI for imagery alone in a pitch deck, should there be some kind of disclaimer stating that no AI was used in the writing of any and all materials? 2. How many pages is too much? Thanks a ton in advance.

Thank you Ewan Dunbar for your advices and I will take them with me when the time comes. Until now, I only did pitch deck for features, but I want to write a TV Series. Thank you and I wish all the best with your Lab.

When you’re reviewing a pitch deck, what’s the #1 thing that makes you stop and say, “This project needs to be made”?

Hey Ewan - I hope you're doing well! I'm putting together my first pitch deck for a tv series based on a graphic novel I wrote. I have two questions -- Should I include praise for the GN and art samples or just exclude that all together? I actually just picked up your Pitch Deck Webinar and I see that you mentioned above that there should be more description of the pilot and a shorter summary for every episode in the first season. I have seen other instructors recommend a short description for just the first four episodes with very limited detail. I guess the idea is to not bog the deck down with too much information? Where is the balance? How much is too much and what's not enough? THANK YOU!!

Awesome questions everyone :)

Hey, everyone here is a link to Ewan's pitching lab that starts tomorrow! https://www.stage32.com/education/products/stage-32-8-part-pitching-lab-...

Hi, Ewan, I'm glad to meet you here.

HI Ewan! Thank you for being here. I've never pitched any of my work before. I'm not really sure how it works and how to prepare my first pitch. Are members allowed to sit in on Pitch sessions before purchasing a pitch?

Hi Ewan, my question is what information must go into the pitch deck past the script and logline?

Dear Ewan, It sounds like you will definitely help screenwriters assemble a good pitch deck. I had to do so for 2 scripts without this type of help. Thank you so much!

Hi Ewan :)Thanks for sharing all this.

From what you’ve seen, what’s the boldest move someone made in a pitch that actually worked?

Why is it so hard to find a producer? Everyone wants money up front

Hi @david C. Velasco. There are differing opinions on whether to include an "actor type" or not in the character section. Sometimes its an indication of the type of actor you envision, but sometimes it can come across (and is sometimes labled) as a wish list which can be problematic. If the wishlist is too ambitious it can make it seem like there are unrealistic expectations.

Happy to help @Maurice Vaughn ! No two decks are the same, so you can arrange the information differently in one deck to another, just as long as it makes sense and can be followed by someone reading it for the first time.

Hi @Leonardo Ramirez . It may not be necessary to make a disclaimer for the text. Readers can often tell if the writer has relied heavily on AI for the text. If you would like to point out that AI has only been used for the images and not the text, there is no harm in doing this just as long as you are being honest.

Great question Ashley Renee Smith ! Usually it is a combination of unique story, deep consideration of theme, characters that will - form strong connections with audiences, give different perspectives on how we see the world, each other and sometimes ourselves - all told in a compelling and distinct creative voice. When all these come together a pitch deck can be a joy to read and will make the executive reading it want to push your project through.

Thanks Ewan Dunbar. I wouldn’t dream of not being honest but I really appreciate the answer. I’ll likely let the pros see for themselves that it wasn’t used in text. Thanks again!

Hi Christopher Charlton . To answer your questions: 1) If the source material you are basing your project on has received praise, absolutely use it! If you have artwork that demonstrates the tone of what you want to achieve, use it but don't over clutter your deck with too much (I've pitched projects in the past based on graphic novels and the artwork looked incredible). 2) There are different schools of thought on how much information about the show you should include but my rationale for the amount is - Give a bit more information about your pilot episode as it will be the most important episode of your show (if its a dud, people won't keep watching) and to give a good overview of your first season, as executives will need to have a good idea of the complete audience experience of this season to make a judgement on it - If it is incomplete, they don't know if it is interesting enough to keep an audience hooked from start to finish. 3) In total the text of your deck when written in a word/pages/sheets document on normal sized paper and in a normal sized font with paragraph breaks etc. should come to about 10 pages.

Hi James Victor . I think someone on here runs monthly pitch practice sessions which you may be able to sit in on. Maybe in the writing lounge? @Maurice Vaughn or @Ashley Renee Smith may be able to help with this one. Some film festivals also run live pitching sessions you can sit in on too.

Hi David Austin Veal . For a TV show it is good to include: Logline, short synopsis, practical information about your show (number of episodes etc.), information about your characters, world and tone, why this show now, season 1 story overview, a little information on future seasons (if any) and practical information about yourself as the creative. If you're making a pitch document for a broadcaster, financier or sales agent you may need to include information on comparable shows and their audience stats etc.

Good question Inessa Kraft ! Strongest move I've seen is someone that knows their unique creative voice and is unafraid to use it in every aspect of their deck. If its a comedy with a strong and irreverant sense of humor - use it. If the reader doesn't get it, they're not the partner for you. If the reader is falling out their chair laughing at your sense of humor, you've made an ally.

Yeah, you can sit in on the Pitch Practices like Ewan mentioned, James Victor. Pitch Practice is every Thursday night at 5:30 P.M. PST/8:30 P.M. EST in the Writers' Room. You can sit in and listen to members practice their projects and give them feedback. You can pitch your project too, but you have to sign up. The hosts, Noel Thompson and John Mezes, take names during Pitch Practice for people to pitch the following week. You have to sit in and listen at the practice before you can pitch (I think once or twice). One night each month is the Pitch Practice Happy Hour where everyone hangs out and gets to know each other better. I think it's the 3rd or 4th week every month.

Thanks for the response, Ewan.. Appreciate it!

Awesome! Thank you, Maurice Vaughan !

Thanks for the detailed response Ewan Dunbar - great stuff!

You're welcome, James Victor.

Thank you Ewan. Much appreciated.

Hi Ewan! I know I missed the AMA window, but I wanted to thank you for sharing your insights here. 

I’m currently developing two projects, a grounded rom-com and a contained survival thriller, and I’m starting the process of building pitch decks for both.

Would you recommend tailoring the structure and tone of a deck based on genre and audience? Or is it better to keep things consistent when building a slate?

Appreciate any thoughts if you happen to circle back to this thread — and I’ll keep an eye out for future opportunities to learn from you!

Thank you, Ewan Dunbar Very inspiring and vivid. I’ll definitely remember your advice ✨