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Posts tagged as “Structure”

Earning Your Way Into the Writers’ Room ft. Ning Zhou (Ozark) (PT135)

Earning Your Way Into the Writers’ Room ft. Ning Zhou (Ozark) (PT135)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 53:49 — 49.5MB)

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Alex and Nick invite Ning Zhou, story editor on Ozark, to discuss how she worked her way up through the assistant ranks and into the fabled writers’ room.

What is the process of writing for Ozark? How do you transition into the writers’ room? How can you nail that assistant interview? What are ways of being a valuable showrunner’s assistant and writers’ assistant? Why is it important for the support staff to make their career goals clear? Why is communication so important in television?

The Paper Team moves up the Ozark writers room…

Content

Earning Your Way Into the Writers’ Room with Ning Zhou (00:32)
Final Advice, Resources, and Next Week On (47:08)

Links

Ning Zhou on IMDb
Ozark on Netflix
Damages
Bloodline

Resources

“Bird by Bird” – Anne Lamott

If you enjoyed this episode and others, 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]

Paper Team Mentorship II – “Mid-Death Crisis” Beat Sheet (PT134)

Paper Team Mentorship II – “Mid-Death Crisis” Beat Sheet (PT134)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 43:38 — 40.2MB)

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Alex and Nick continue their Paper Team Mentorship with winner Paul Chang, and his comedy pilot MID-DEATH CRISIS.

Step two: a beat sheet of the pilot episode, including general acts and story arcs.

We hear about the pilot episode, and discuss our thoughts live.

Content

Quick recap and listeners’ thoughts on the first mentorship episode (00:30)
“Mid-Death Crisis” – Beat sheet (06:41)
Discussion of the beat sheet (08:30)

Links

“Mid-Death Crisis” beat sheet
Paper Team Mentorship I – “Mid-Death Crisis” Overview (PT128)
Paper Team Mentorship I – Paul’s Update
Bringing the TV Writers’ Room Process Home (PT06)
Paul Chang on Twitter

If you enjoyed this episode and others, 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]

TV Formula 101: Building an Engine For Your Show (PT117)

TV Formula 101: Building an Engine For Your Show (PT117)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 28:24 — 26.2MB)

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Alex and Nick discuss why TV formulas still matter and how to build a successful TV engine for your pilot and show.

What is a TV engine? Why is a “formula” a necessary ingredient for a sustainable TV series? What are some ways serialized and character-based series use formulas to their advantage? How do you generate a sustainable and compelling engine for your show? How do you express that formula in a script?

Plus, we launch our Patreon page and are hosting a mixer to celebrate!

The Paper Team regenerates…

SHOWNOTES

Announcements

1 – Paper Team is now on Patreon! You can support us starting as little as $2/month and get exclusive TV writing advice in exchange, including cheat sheets and bonus episodes. Join us at https://www.patreon.com/paperteam

2 – To celebrate the launch, we’re having a free mixer! Join us Saturday, January 19 at the Harlowe Bar in West Hollywood. The event starts at 5PM and runs all evening. More information available at http://paperteam.co/mixer

Content

Announcements: Patreon launch and Mixer details (00:26)
1 – Why formulas are still important in TV (03:39)
2 – How to generate a TV engine (09:09)
3 – Common questions and problems (22:44)
Takeaways and Next Week On (26:34)

Links

TV Pilot 101 (PT30)
TV Pilot 201: Keeping the Reader Interested (PT84)
Day Break
Act Breaks (PT15)
Weaving Storylines: A/B/C Stories (PT53)

Special thanks to Alex Switzky for helping us edit this episode and everyone else who supported us this year.

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