Advice on Converting a Feature to a Pilot

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  • #16
    Re: The problem with converting features to series.

    Originally posted by KitchonaSteve View Post
    It's not easy to make work. The problem lies in the distinct natures of the two different mediums. Features rely on genre, story and one or occasionally two characters. Series rely on a family of characters and genre. I wrote a blog post about this recently but from a sitcom perspective. The theory holds true for hour length as well, I think.

    A feature is going to spend about two hours dealing with the most important event, or series of events, in a character's life. A series is going to spend tens of hours telling dozens upon dozens of stories about a group of characters. The Walking Dead, Lost, The Sopranos, Game of Thrones, Star Trek (take your pick), Battlestar Gallactica, Lie To Me.

    Outlander feels closest to your series in terms of character, but there are lots of characters that we stay with episode to episode. Weeds kept the family together for most of the series even though they ended up moving around a bit.

    The struggle that I've seen feature writers have when turning to TV is making this shift. The primacy of that big important story and a single main character in features becomes second nature after years of feature writing. Popular TV shows always construct a type of family, whether it's a real family, a work family, or a family of friends. Even Last Man on Earth ramped up pretty quickly from Bill Hader to six or seven characters.

    So this seems like it might be the biggest challenge for you since you seem to be focusing on two main characters. I'm sure you have other characters, but will they be recurring from week to week and season to season?

    HTH,
    Yes, I completely understand your concerns, and no it doesn't have a small cast. First, it's a written as a franchise ensemble piece. A feature that leads to prequels and sequels. It could stand alone, but it definitely ends with a turning point that creates expectation. The end is solid, I think, on it's own, but it's also written so that you know there is a next installment.

    There are a lot of things about the world at large that are set up and create interest but not everything is explored or answered. It's very much like being dropped in the middle of a world in progress.

    As I'm reading Small Screen Big Picture I am learning they are very different and it's opening my eyes to how it has to be written in a way that I'm not used to writing. That's not scary to me, because I think I see the differences.

    I love Outlander, but it isn't the same as my story, and the fault is in my logline. I still have reworked it since I finished the feature. I have five main characters that converge and team up together. They fight against three (and a fourth for a while) different antagonistic forces.

    And even the antagonists are interesting and have room to build stories around their own motives, needs flaws, and weaknesses. There's a lot going on off screen, too.

    My story isn't told from a single POV, where we are seeing almost all the story unfolding through that one person's eyes. I know the back half of the first season of Outlander opened up with some of Jaimie's POVs, but primarily the story has unfolded from Claire's POV.

    My world is set up more like Game of Thrones. The world I've created supports expansion.

    The feature is laser-focused on this one event in these people's lives that happens over the course of about two days. That's not to say that the "on the run" couldn't take longer. It could and would in a series.

    I can see it being a series with one family of main characters (adding new and killing off old), or it has the potential to be an anthology type of series. But it would be best told through multiple POVs.

    You know, it could be like GOT, sometimes we're with the Lanisters, sometimes with the Starks, sometimes we're with Jon Snow and the wildlings, and sometimes we're with Kaleissi.

    Look, I'm a nobody. I admit that I'm completely ignorant to all of this. I don't know if it's going to work, but I'm willing to try. I've created a world I want to explore. And I've got a great start on how to do that from everyone's advice here and the books that arrived today.

    Thank you, and everyone for your generous advice and if you have more to share/offer, please do, I'm all ears.

    I think the pitch document is a key starting point. Once that's completed I think I'll have a better idea of whether it will work.

    Best,
    FA4
    Last edited by finalact4; 04-10-2016, 12:06 PM.
    "Arguing that you don't care about the right to privacy b/c you have nothing to hide is no different than saying you don't care about free speech because you have nothing to say." -- Edward Snowden

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    • #17
      Re: Advice on Converting a Feature to a Pilot

      Ah, an engineered virus...

      Have fun with your "like GOT, only better" ;.) series.

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      • #18
        Re: Advice on Converting a Feature to a Pilot

        Originally posted by RG55 View Post
        Ah, an engineered virus...

        Have fun with your "like GOT, only better" ;.) series.
        and it gets even better... Lots of secrets.
        "Arguing that you don't care about the right to privacy b/c you have nothing to hide is no different than saying you don't care about free speech because you have nothing to say." -- Edward Snowden

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        • #19
          Re: Advice on Converting a Feature to a Pilot

          Hello everyone,

          I wanted to thank you all, again. Because my pilot is done and I'm proud of it. I think it's good. The act outs are strong.

          We're focusing our efforts to a specific Agent who can hopefully, if she loves it, team me up with the right showrunner. Since many are out July and August on vaca, we have some time to create some interest before they start reviewing new pilot concepts at the end of summer. It'd be great if I could get another pilot ready before then...

          With that said, I have a new idea for a comedy spec pilot. I don't think of my self as "comedy" at all (not sure I can pull it off), but I did surprise myself with my pilot, and there is a good amount of levity in what is otherwise, a dark story.

          It was a sci-fi action/thriller pilot. One hour.

          Now I've got an idea for a "**** my Dad says," meets "Cougar Town."

          It's a 30 min pilot and I have no idea how that works. The idea has a natural inclination to comedy and a limitless amount of situations that could be similar to "friends," or "Frasier." But I don't actually know if it should be a 30 min sitcom or an hour drama? Anyone have ideas on how I figure THAT out?

          If there is any advice you can think that I should be aware of, that would be great. What is the typical act structure? Teaser with 3 acts? Does that make sense?

          I don't mean to seem lazy by asking your opinions, I really don't, I will be focusing on research for this project, but as evidenced by my last inquiry, there is much actual advice that you can provide that I won't necessarily be able to access in a book.

          If you feel inclined to contribute, I'd like to say that I am grateful. Even if you have a recommendation, I can take the research from there.

          Best,
          FA4
          "Arguing that you don't care about the right to privacy b/c you have nothing to hide is no different than saying you don't care about free speech because you have nothing to say." -- Edward Snowden

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          • #20
            Re: Advice on Converting a Feature to a Pilot

            Originally posted by finalact4 View Post
            It's a 30 min pilot and I have no idea how that works. The idea has a natural inclination to comedy and a limitless amount of situations that could be similar to "friends," or "Frasier." But I don't actually know if it should be a 30 min sitcom or an hour drama? Anyone have ideas on how I figure THAT out?

            If there is any advice you can think that I should be aware of, that would be great. What is the typical act structure? Teaser with 3 acts? Does that make sense?
            You could go with a teaser. Or you could use a tag, which is the same basic premise as a teaser or cold open, just as the ending point instead of the beginning. MODERN FAMILY uses tags. Those voiceovers that sum up the heart of the episode's story or a scene that finishes up a joke. You could use both a teaser and a tag. Or neither. Whatever works best.

            As for length, I think you'd be best served thinking about the tone. If it ends up having a network or cable tone, then you probably want to keep your comedy to a half hour. I can't really think of a lot of hour-long comedies on network. But there are a number on the premium channels. And if it ends up with a premium cable tone, you don't need to worry about writing in the act breaks.

            I think the only instance where writing a half-hour would be demonstrably different from writing an hour-long pilot is if you were to write a multi-cam.

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