Help! What can I do with 3-part miniseries?

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  • Help! What can I do with 3-part miniseries?

    Oh boy...

    I hope that I'm not the only one who has ever done this: I told myself if/when I finished my paid work, provided it was earlier than required, I could write anything I wanted for fun.

    The result was a 3-part miniseries, a dramatized version of real events, that happened about 100 years ago. It's the kind of thing I would picture seeing on the Discovery Channel. Not big budget, though not contained either. And, yes, I wrote the whole thing: all 180 pages as it's subject matter I know very well.

    Nuts, yes, but it was a fun ride, and IMHO, it turned out really great! But now I don't know what I can do with it. It was supposed to be for fun only but apparently I was lying to myself.

    I'm not repped, so I have no one to give it to.

    It's a one-off; the entirety of the story is in the three parts. Sure, the characters can go off on their own into some sort of spinoff but I don't see it at this point.

    So... I thought dramatic pilot contests... but I sure don't need a series bible as it's done.

    I thought querying it but I don't know who'd want a one-off... those I know are looking for material with legs.

    Someone suggested the Tracking Board.

    The BlackList? I don't know much about their TV section.

    Any advice would be welcomed!

  • #2
    Re: Help! What can I do with 3-part miniseries?

    My understanding is that miniseries (at least in the US) are at least 6 hours in length (or three 90ish-minute scripts, factoring in commercial breaks). If yours sits at 180 pages, then you've got a long way to go to get to "miniseries" or a short way to go to get to "feature".

    What I would do is have a trusted, unbiased reader give it a pass and give me an honest evaluation of the material and its potential placements. I would hash out ideas on how to make it longer, and how to make it shorter, and decide which I want to pursue. The easier path is probably feature, but that might not be the right path for your final story.

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    • #3
      Re: Help! What can I do with 3-part miniseries?

      Originally posted by MoviePen View Post
      My understanding is that miniseries (at least in the US) are at least 6 hours in length (or three 90ish-minute scripts, factoring in commercial breaks). If yours sits at 180 pages, then you've got a long way to go to get to "miniseries" or a short way to go to get to "feature".

      What I would do is have a trusted, unbiased reader give it a pass and give me an honest evaluation of the material and its potential placements. I would hash out ideas on how to make it longer, and how to make it shorter, and decide which I want to pursue. The easier path is probably feature, but that might not be the right path for your final story.
      Thanks, MoviePen, for your reply!

      I'm modeling my, okay, let's call it micro-mini series, after Discovery's Klondike and other fact-based, quasi-educational type dramas. The ones I looked at are all 60 minutes, 3 episodes, therefore 180 minutes.

      It wouldn't be marketable as a feature, but it makes a fascinating micro-series.

      So, it's the right length for what I want to do... though I don't yet know what that is.

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      • #4
        Re: Help! What can I do with 3-part miniseries?

        Originally posted by DayJobWriter View Post
        Thanks, MoviePen, for your reply!

        I'm modeling my, okay, let's call it micro-mini series, after Discovery's Klondike and other fact-based, quasi-educational type dramas. The ones I looked at are all 60 minutes, 3 episodes, therefore 180 minutes.

        It wouldn't be marketable as a feature, but it makes a fascinating micro-series.

        So, it's the right length for what I want to do... though I don't yet know what that is.
        Then pursue it with the prodcos the Discovery Channel does business with, and with select actors or directors who you may be willing to attach themselves to your script with a Letter of Interest.

        If you can package a few names with the material, that will increase the chances that it'll get serious reads.

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