Creating TV: A Series

A step-by-step guide to developing your TV series.

Buy the full series of six classes in advance on Eventbrite.  Or drop-in to just the classes you choose. Series tickets available immediately. Individual class tickets available weekly.

Creating TV is a six class series designed to guide you through the television development process step by step. In every session, I’ll discuss a fundamental series building block and provide tools, techniques and practical examples. These classes are similar to the Wednesday writing classes I’ve taught over the last two months: friendly, informative and grounded in my 30+ years TV writing experience. The classes can be your companion through your own series’ development process; accompanying you on your creation journey. By the end of this series, you will have thought through all of the major aspects of your series.

Over the course of the 6 class series, I’ll also discuss the current marketplace and how the rise of streaming platforms effects how we create TV. I’ll provide background on the television industry and offer guidance on surviving the writer’s life, overcoming creative challenges and remaining productive and motivated.

At the end of each class, I will suggest writing assignments and exercises to help you integrate the week’s concepts and techniques into your writers’ tool box. Between classes, I will sometimes share relevant readings, links and videos via email.

Every class will include opportunities to ask questions.

Videos of the classes will be made available for a limited time to registered participants for review.

Interested in going deeper? Check out Creating TV: The Workshop, accepting applications until June 15.

Format

1.5 hour classes taught on Zoom.
Mics-on Q&A for the first 5-10 minutes as we wait for participants to assemble followed by my (approsimately) 65 minute “lecture” with the final 15-20 minutes devoted to moderated Q&A.

Target Audience

Screenwriters, web series creators, university screenwriting graduates and industry professionals. These classes are not intended for beginners.

Dates & Topics

Advance registration available for the whole series. Drop-in registration for individual classes will open on the Wednesday prior (various pricing options).

Wed June 17: Series Concepts Registration Open

Wed June 24: Developing Characters

** No class the week of Canada Day **

Wed. July 8:  Arcing Story: Pilot, Season, Series

Wed. July 15: Story Worlds, Timelines & Episodic formats

Wed. July 22: Audience and Marketplace

Wed. July 29: Theme, Tone & Style and Developing Your Own Voice

Registration

Buy the entire series of six classes in advance and be guaranteed your place in every class. The cost for 6 classes is $110 ($133.01 including HST and service fee) on Eventbrite.
If you wish to pay by  e-transfer or PayPal contact us at pandemicpilot @ gmail.com and we will assist you with registration.
(Following payment, you will recieve a confirmation email. You will recieve the weekly class Zoom links on a weekly basis on Wednesday mornings.)

Drop in: Registration for individual classes will be on Eventbrite with classes posted a week in advance. Sliding scale pricing and free tickets will be available. Register for Class 1: Series Concepts now.

** Please note, prices are rising slightly as we add HST

We email notification of classes to my mailing list as soon as they are posted to Eventbrite. Later, we post them to the Pandemic Pilot Program Facebook Group and finally we share them widely on social media. To be among the first to be notified and avoid disappointment, join my mailing list.

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Creating TV:The Workshop

Go deeper with personalized creative input. Limited to 12 participants. Apply now.

These six hands-on, mics-on Zoom sessions are your opportunity to workshop your creative material with input from me and a small group of like-minded peers. Each week, you’ll attend my Creating TV “lecture” series on Wednesdays. On Monday, we’ll gather to explore the same topic in the context of participants’ projects. It’s an opportunity to take the creative elements of a project to a new and deeper level. 

The Workshop is a chance to develop and practice the skills writers need to thrive in a story room. Beyond giving and getting notes, you’ll  learn about the individual strengths you can bring to a room, how to define your role and differentiate yourself from the other writers while acting as a team player. We’ll talk about story room etiquette and much more. 

During weekly Zoom sessions, you’ll have time to ask questions and work through creative problems. We’ll discuss career trajectory, elements of the business of tv that every writer should know and how to market yourself and your project.

The class will be limited to 12 participants.

Format

1.5 hour classes taught on Zoom. 

Mics-on discussions of participants’ projects.

(Price includes admission Jill’s Wednesday classes. If you’re not into the Workshop, register for the full series of Creating TV Wednesday classes here and for just the first session here.) 

Target Audience

Screenwriters, web series creators, university screenwriting graduates and industry professionals. These classes are not intended for beginners. 

Dates & Topics

Mon June 22: Series Concepts (Lecture June 17)

Mon June 29: Character Development (Lecture June 24)

** No class July 6th **

Mon. July 13: Arcing Story: the pilot, the season arc, the series arc  (Lecture July 10)

Mon. July 20: Story Worlds, Timelines & Episodic formats (Lecture July 15)

Mon. July 27: Audience and Marketplace (Lecture July 22)

Mon. Aug 3: Theme, Tone & Style and Developing Your Voice (Lecture July 29)

Apply to Be Part of the Workshop

$678 ($600+ HST) for 6 workshop classes and 6 lecture classes (12 classes in all).

(one full scholarship and one half scholarship available.)

Please fill out the Google form found here by Monday June 15. Successful applicants will be notified by June 18th.  Apply now!

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An Online Class Led by Jill Golick

CLASS IS NOW FULL. NO LONGER TAKING REGISTRATIONS

Check back for news of a class next week or join my mailing list.

The way we watch TV has changed tremendously. The way we develop our series should change too. TV has moved from an appointment-viewing, shared activity that takes place in the living room to a personal binge-watching activity done in private on a computer, pad or phone. In the Audience-Focused TV Series Development Master Class, we will look closely at the viewer’s experience and discuss how that relates to series construction.

Some of the things we’ll discuss are: the power of the audience and why an audience focus has now become essential; understanding the audience’s journey and how they will interact with the show you are creating, tailoring your series structure to specific platforms (e.g. broadcast vs. streaming), season arcs vs story engines, authenticity, voice, bingeability and rewatchability.

When:

Wednesday April 22, 2020 3 pm EST on Zoom
An hour long presentation followed by a Q & A.

Target audience:

Film & TV professionals, web series creators, emerging screenwriters, university screenwriting graduates.

This class is not for beginners. a familiarity with fundamentals of TV series creation is necessary.

Cost:

$20 for those who can afford it (e-transfer or PayPal to pandemicpilot @ gmail.com)
While ability to pay is not a barrier to entry please recognize that it is extremely time intensive to run these classes. So far, a lot of people are registering but only a small percentage of people are paying. Please pay what you can to incentivize me to continue to do this.

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When digital strategist  Annelise Larsen and I get together a few times a year, the conversation flows fast and furious; ideas piling on top of each other. We both believe that it is essential to put the audience at the centre of every step of the development, writing, production, distribution and marketing of screen-based media. And since we have different backgrounds, areas of expertise and experiences, our conversations about story and audience are full of new ideas and revelations. I always leave inspired.

That’s why I am so excited to share some of these conversations with you in our new podcast Story + Audience. Over our first 8 episode season, Annelise and I will share anecdotes and case studies on the intersection of story and audience along with practical tips and techniques that writers can bring into their writing work and their promotional strategies.

Episode 1 of Story + Audience is available now. Click below to listen:

You can subscribe to Story + Audience wherever you listen to podcasts including the following platforms:
Spotify
Apple
Listen Notes
Deezer
PodcastAddict
PodChaser
Stitcher
Castro
Buzzsprout

If you’re working on a pilot script at the moment, you may find this podcast very useful.

The post Story + Audience: A Podcast for Writers appeared first on Jill Golick.

You’ll also find an hourlong video of the livestream I did to help you get started with the program.

For an even bigger writers’ community with very active discussions on a wide range of topics, check out inkcanada on Facebook.

The post Writing A Pilot During a Pandemic appeared first on Jill Golick.

We’re all stuck inside trying to flatten the curve and feeling anxious. On the other hand, how many times have you wished you could take a break from real life and devote yourself to writing? Your wish has been granted.

The Pandemic Pilot Program is a step-be-step guide to writing an hour long pilot in 14  days. You can download the PDF by clicking on the image below.

The plan breaks down the process of writing a pilot into seventy 45-minute writing “sprints” and tells you what to focus on for each of them. You can choose how many sprints to do each day. Sprints 1-30 are spent developing characters and story and getting to a rough outline. Sprints 31-70 guide you through the process of writing the first draft.

There’s lots of writing advice integrated into the document but not so much reading as to distract you from your actual job: writing.

It’s not an age old system for writing pilots because I only just made it up. Still, I think it will help you make these days of social isolation productive and maybe a little happier. I’d love to hear your feedback if you’re using it. It’s so fresh that there are probably plenty of typos and other kinds of mistakes. Let me know about those too.

When I started developing this program (March 13, 2020), I imagined that a few people might be quarantined for 2 weeks and this could help them use their time in isolation. Now it seems like a whole lot of us will be stuck at home for even longer, which is why I eliminated the pressure of completing the pilot in 14 days in the v2 draft. Now you can choose how many sprints make sense for you.

I considered offering this for sale, because like everyone else, I’m feeling financial anxiety. Then I decided to give it away because… everyone’s feeling financial anxiety.

Finally, I am considering will be running some Pandemic Pilot Workshops in the next little while. If you’re interested, submit your email address below I will send you the details.

You can also register for the April 22 master class here, right now!

Stay healthy. Stay safe. Keep Writing.

Sending love,

Jill

By the way, digital strategist Annelise Larson and I have a new podcast. It’s called Story + Audience and it’s about creating stories that connect deeply with audiences. Subscribe on your favourite podcasting platform.

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·      Madison Cheeatow, Marlee Maslove, Scott Beaudin, Elena Gorgevska star
·      Sean Cullen joins the cast for Season 3

For Immediate Release:

TORONTO, November 18th, 2013 – Digital media producer Story 2.OH announced today that production has begun on the third season of the multi-award-winning teen/tween mystery series, Ruby Skye P.I..  Principal photography starts November 18^th in Toronto on ten all-new episodes of this interactive series.

The Maltese Puppy is a third baffling case for teen detective, Ruby Skye. It includes all the features that thousands of fans have grown to love: a fast-paced plot that just keeps twisting, action, humour, quirky characters, interactivity, online engagement and great production values.

Returning cast includes award-winning young actress Madison Cheeatow in the title role of Ruby Skye; Marlee Maslove as Ruby’s sister, Hailey; Scott Beaudin as Edmund O’Fyne and Elena Gorgevska as Diana Noughton.

The cast for Ruby Skye P.I.: The Maltese Puppy also includes Sean Cullen, Hannah Spear, Araya Mengesha, Noah Cappe and Lacie in the role of the Maltese Puppy.

“We can’t get enough of our favourite teen detective, Ruby Skye.  We just have to keep on funding this series so we can find out what she is up to next”, said Independent Production Fund’s Executive Director, Andra Sheffer.  “Ruby is a great character and a million fans have discovered her antics on the web”.

”We are delighted to have the opportunity to make a third season and to have the support of so many great, like-minded partners,” says Showrunner and Creator Jill Golick.

Janice Dawe of Swing Media and Jill Golick helm as Executive Producers while Kelly Harms mans the Director’s chair for the third consecutive season.  Ruby Skye P.I.: The Maltese Puppy is produced by Golick’s Story 2.OH, with the participation of CBC, the Canada Media Fund, the Independent Production Fund, the Bell Fund and the Shaw Rocket Fund.  Ruby Skye P.I. is distributed internationally by Farrago Media.

Get more Ruby Skye P.I. online at:
Website — http://RubySkyePI.com
Facebook — https://www.facebook.com/RubySkyePI
Twitter — http://www.twitter.com/RubySkyePI/
YouTube — http://www.youtube.com/user/RubySkyePI
Season 2 Trailer: https://youtu.be/noDVG4KE7JY

Downloads:
Visit https://rubyskyepi.com/about-the-series/press-room/ to download hi-res images, headshots, logos and other materials.

Story 2.OH is a Toronto-based production company that specializes in multiplatform creation. Combining television storytelling techniques with interactivity, video, blogs, social media and more, Story2.OH creates the next generation entertainment.

Swing Media was founded by Toronto-based producer Janice Dawe to work with some of Canada’s best creative and media business talent to bring projects to market with a view to commercial success.

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Not every web series gets to season 3 and few shoot under the circumstances we hope to become accustomed to. Not to say we have a ginormous budget — things are always tight — but compared to most web series, we are sitting pretty.

Here are a few notes on what’s happening:

We rented the studio where they shoot the CBC television series “Cracked“. Yay, the production office is not my dining room table. In fact, I have an office all to myself that is bigger than my dining room. We have dressed some fantastic sets so for part of the shoot, we will have the comfort of shooting in the controlled environment of a studio. Luxury!

What a team! Over three seasons, Director Kelly Harms and I have worked with and learned to love a number of people: editor Mike Reisacher, Sean Van Delft on location sound, Key Hair and Makeup Jessica Panetta, custume designerr Ginger Martini, casting director Marjorie Lecker, camera assist Alex Leung, Gaffer Ryan Hernandez and our music team at Studio Cat. I co-wrote with the very funny Julie Strassman as always. This season, we’ve added some fantastic new people to our team: among them Production Designer Bob Sher, Cinematographer Celiana Cardenas, first AD Aline Robichaud and production manager Bruce Hutchison. Supervising Producer Jordana Aarons is quietly keeping us on track and on budget.

The interactive elements we’re planning are the coolest ever. We have a really strong team working on them, led by Shawn Bailey who I have long wanted to work with.

The business-producing end of things is getting more complicated. And I never paid enough attention to that end of things anyway. The amazing Janice Dawe is patiently and calmly untangling my mess and guiding us toward a profitable future. She’s put a team (!) in place to handle the business. Lack of business acumen is a problem for a lot of web series creators — and by a lot, I mean me — so having Janice at my side is an incredible relief.

We have an accounting department, just saying.

As we hurtle toward first day of Principal Photography, I feel relaxed, optimistic and pretty darn happy.

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