Make your series idea a marketable project. Learn how to improve your script as well as your skills, and find out possible funding opportunities. Both limited and ongoing series projects are welcome.
The program was previously known as TV Launch.
Make your series idea a marketable project. Learn how to improve your script as well as your skills, and find out possible funding opportunities. Both limited and ongoing series projects are welcome.
The program was previously known as TV Launch.
Participating projects are divided into three groups of three, and each group's development is overseen by both a group leader and participating development executive.
To ensure the most complex approach to training, Series Launch works with established and well-respected industry names coming from Central and Eastern Europe, Western Europe, USA or Australia.
The Head of Studies oversees the general methodology of the program, ensures the needs of the participants are met in the most effective way, and guarantees the practical value and industry impact of the training delivered.
Gabor is a trailblazing professional: showrunning three seasons of the HBO Europe high end drama Golden Life, he boldly went where no man has gone before!
The Group Leaders oversee the development of projects in their group from the very beginning of the training until they graduate from the program. They also coach the development executive participant assigned to their group.
The Development Executive Mentor attends and co-creates the training program for the development-executive participants, ensuring that it's implemented into group work and that the collaborative set-up simulates a real-life industry environment.
These established professionals attend one of the workshops to share their particular professional expertise.
The 9 creative teams, split into 3 groups, work under the guidance of internationally renowned and experienced tutors and in close collaboration with development executive participants who are involved in all parts of the program.
The program schedule and the form of the organization inevitably depend on development of the coronavirus pandemic situation.
Project team members are introduced to serial storytelling with lectures and dramaturgical consultations addressing the structural differences between features and series, and tackling the subject of the series concept and a pilot.
Development executive participants, guided by their tutor, in collaboration with the group leaders, are briefed and pre-trained in their basic script-editing skills.
The creative teams are led to defining their series concept and theme, and outlining their pilot scripts. The workshop consists of group work, individual consultations, lectures and series analysis.
Each Development Executive is assigned to the group of projects and observes the group work led by the group leader. The participants get acquainted with the dynamics within the creative team. Their learning process is debriefed within meetings with the development executive tutor, as well as the project teams themselves.
Creative teams work on completing their pilots, and creating their season arc and season outlines. They focus also on the role of a director, the project pitching documents, production aspects as well as the financing strategy.
Development Executive Participants continue the involvement in the group, serving as script editors, observing the work on the pilot episode, and getting trained in the financing strategies and production issues together with the creative teams.
Each project arrives with a revised pilot script and a completed pitch book/mini-bible. Workshop focuses on creating marketing strategies, refining pitching skills and familiarizes participants with the specifics of different segments of the series market. It concludes at the Industry@Tallinn & Baltic Event and its TV Beats market, offering debates, panels, lectures, case studies, master classes and the pitching presentation of all projects and participants within.
The development executive participants are present at the pitching training and rehearsals of the projects and also prepare for their own presentations, to pitch themselves as industry professionals. They will also use the networking opportunities at the event for their future careers.
Expert lectures based on the needs and knowledge gaps of MIDPOINT series programs alumni.
The Industry talks have been brought to you by MIDPOINT Institute in partnership with Agora and Sofia Meetings, EAVE, ACE Producers & MFI:
with Joanna Solecka, Marketing Strategists at Alphapanda (Germany/Poland), in partnership with EAVE
Thinking about marketing usually takes place when the film/series is finished, and in most cases focuses on choosing stills, writing the synopsis and creating the poster and the trailer. It’s too late and not enough anymore. In the digital era there are so many other opportunities to reach different audiences with various assets, and ideas that ultimately would help grow the number of viewers. Having a marketing strategy in place before starting the shoot helps to understand what kind of materials should be prepared during the production, which eventually can help the budget. Last, but not least, film/series marketing is fun and creative and can substantially support the pre-production process with ideas on how to prepare for the film or series launch. Based on case studies, this talk aims to give the audience hands-on tools on how to use marketing strategy at the development stage, how to better understand the film or series world, the audiences and the ways to reach them.
with Tim Wagendorp, VAF (Belgium), in partnership with Sofia Meeting
The talks cover the following topics: how to provide the opportunity to explore challenges around implementing sustainability in the film/series industry; how to enhance a deep understanding of applied sustainability through the combined perspectives of film/series funders, producers and exhibitors; how to guide participants through a process around how the Green Challenge can begin to be addressed and carried out both individually and within an organisation.