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Posts tagged as “Pitching”

Being a Black Writer in Hollywood ft. WGAW Committee of Black Writers Chairs (Michelle Amor, Hilliard Guess, Bianca Sams) (PT181)

Being a Black Writer in Hollywood ft. WGAW Committee of Black Writers Chairs (Michelle Amor, Hilliard Guess, Bianca Sams) (PT181)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:04:19 — 59.1MB)

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Alex and Nick invite the Chairs of the WGAW Committee of Black Writers, Michelle Amor (Playin’ for Love, Of Boys and Men, The Honorable), Hilliard Guess (Deadly Class, We Got Issues, Ticker), and Bianca Sams (Charmed, The Originals, Training Day), to have an in-depth discussion about systematic racism and injustice in the entertainment industry towards Black writers, representation in and out of the writers’ room, plus various ways TV writers and professionals of all levels can be part of the solution.

WGAW Committee of Black Writers

NOTE: We recorded this episode remotely so please excuse some minor audio glitches.

Links

Open Letter by the WGAW Committee of Black Writers (PDF)
WGA Inclusion Report 2020 (PDF)
WGAW Committee of Black Writers on Facebook
Michelle Amor on Twitter
Hilliard Guess on Twitter
Bianca Sams on Twitter

If you enjoy Paper Team, please consider supporting us on Patreon at paperteam.co/patreon! :)

Special thanks to Alex Switzky for helping us edit this episode.

You can find Paper Team on Twitter:
Alex – @TVCalling
Nick – @_njwatson
For any questions, comments or feedback, you can e-mail us: [email protected]

Return of the Pod – Paper Scraps Monthly (PT178)

Return of the Pod – Paper Scraps Monthly (PT178)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 43:07 — 39.7MB)

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Alex and Nick return to Paper Team by answering your TV writing questions about outdated scripts, voice-over in shows, and pilot pitching.

Plus, we discuss some of the TV business updates following COVID, including production changes, WGA demands, and new OTTs.

NOTE: This episode was recorded before the current George Floyd protests. We’ll be covering TV writing through the prism of representation and police brutality in upcoming episodes.

Content

Podcast Updates and Shout-outs (01:21)
TV Writing Questions: Outdated scripts, voice-over, pilot pitching (06:31)
TV Writing News: COVID consultants, new-writer discounts, Quibi, HBO Max, fall schedules (23:43)

Links

Peter C. Hayward’s “Paper Team takeaways” thread
“Wanted in Hollywood: COVID-19 consultants to help keep sets safe” – Reuters
“WGA Calls For Elimination Of New-Writer Discounts And Training Program Rates” – Deadline
“Quibi cites pandemic, protests for drop in rankings. Others cite lack of hits.” – Los Angeles Times
“HBO Max’s Quiet Launch” – The Motley Fool

If you enjoy Paper Team, please consider supporting us on Patreon at paperteam.co/patreon! :)

Special thanks to Alex Switzky for helping us edit this episode.

You can find Paper Team on Twitter:
Alex – @TVCalling
Nick – @_njwatson
For any questions, comments or feedback, you can e-mail us: [email protected]

Showrunning Duncanville & The Simpsons ft. Mike Scully (PT172)

Showrunning Duncanville & The Simpsons ft. Mike Scully (PT172)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:18:58 — 72.5MB)

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Alex and Nick invite Mike Scully, executive producer, co-creator, co-showrunner of FOX’s Duncanville, long-time writer/showrunner of The Simpsons, and writer/producer on Parks and Recreation/The Carmichael Show/Everybody Loves Raymond, to learn all about his writing process and running a comedy room.

From staffing a writers’ room and reading samples, to breaking episodes and producing an animated show, we take a deep dive into what goes into creating a comedy series from the inside.

PT172 Mike Scully

Content

1 – Beginnings, pitching, and becoming a showrunner (00:00:43)
2 – Staffing Duncanville and other writers’ rooms: reading samples, assembling the right staff and advice for showrunner meetings (00:09:19)
3 – The Duncanville & Simpsons rooms and writing process: best practices, format differences, blue-skying, breaking episodes, tone, structure, and character arcs (00:23:53)
4 – Production of Duncanville: animation, department heads, casting and punch-ups (00:40:47)
Final advice, resources, and next week on (01:11:38)

Links

Duncanville on FOX
Mike Scully on Twitter
Everybody Loves Raymond
Parks and Recreation
The Carmichael Show
What a Country!
Out of This World

Resource

“Tinker in Television” – Grant Tinker

If you enjoy Paper Team, please consider supporting us on Patreon at paperteam.co/patreon! :)

Special thanks to Alex Switzky for helping us edit this episode.

You can find Paper Team on Twitter:
Alex – @TVCalling
Nick – @_njwatson
For any questions, comments or feedback, you can e-mail us: [email protected]