[Watch the video interview on Youtube here]
Film Courage: Should new TV writers focus on pitching their shows to studios and networks?
Niceole R. Levy, Screenwriter/Author: The trend in this business is if you are a writer who’s actively staffing there is a limit to your ability to pitch. Most studios contractually will not allow you to start pitching projects until you reach co-producer level. Unless you already had something that another studio was interested in and you can do what’s called a carve out where it’s protected from your contract, you really are not developing if you’re staffing constantly. If you staffed once and then you’re having trouble finding another job, your reps are going to be like What do you have that we can take out and pitch? because it’s a way to keep you in the game. It’s a way to get you out there meeting people and sometimes it happens. Sometimes newer writers sell shows and they get made and that’s amazing. The biggest obstacle when you are a newer lower-level writer and you sell a show is that you do not have the…(Watch the video interview on Youtube here).
BUY THE BOOK – THE WRITER’S ROOM SURVIVAL GUIDE: Don’t Screw up the lunch order and other keys to a happy Writers’ Room by Niceole R. Levy
BIO:
After growing up near China Lake Naval Weapons Center in the middle of the Mojave Desert, Niceole escaped to the bright lights of Los Angeles. While studying acting at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, she realized her true love was writing stories, not playing them out. She worked as a police dispatcher to pay her way through USC undergrad and then completed the Master of Professional Writing program, also at USC. An alum of the CBS Writers Mentoring Program, NBC’s Writers on the Verge, and the WGAW Showrunner Training Program, Niceole has written on “Ironside,” “Allegiance,” “The Mysteries of Laura,” “Shades of Blue,” “Cloak & Dagger,” “Fate: the Winx Saga,” “S.W.A.T,” and “Graymail.” She also co-wrote a feature, “The Banker,” with former “Allegiance” showrunner and director George Nolfi, available on AppleTV+, and is now writing “Spark,” a film inspired by the life of Claudette Colvin. Niceole is currently a co-executive producer on an upcoming Netflix series and has several TV and feature projects in development. Her first book, “The Writers’ Room Survival Guide,” will be released in October of this year.
CONNECT WITH NICEOLE R. LEVY
Advertisement – contains affiliate links
(As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases)
More affiliates:
Camera we use for interviews – https://buff.ly/3rWqrra
Sound we use for interviews – https://amzn.to/2tbFlM9
Other books on Amazon that Film Courage recommends – https://buff.ly/3o0oE5o
