Give Me the Money and I'll Shoot! Finance your Factual TV/Film Project

by Lees, Nicola

• ISBN13: 9781408132968
• ISBN10: 1408132966
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2012-07-15
• Publisher: A&C Black

Summary

The must-have guide to traditional, emerging and creative TV funding models that are being developed and exploited by social media-savvy documentary filmmakers. Each chapter covers a different form of funding and combines advice from industry insiders - producers, buyers, specialist media agencies and corporate funding bodies - and entertaining case studies that illustrate the benefits and pitfalls of each method. With practical tips, case studies and advice it reveals what grantors, brands and NGOs are looking for in a pitch (they all have different needs and expectations), and the cultural differences that can trip up the unwary producer. Funding examples range from blue-chip TV documentaries, such as Planet Earth, which was co-funded by the BBC, Discovery NHK and CBC to The TV Book Club (More 4), which is funded by Specsavers opticians; to Lemonade Movie, which harnessed the power of Twitter to source free equipment and post-production resources. Readers will discover: the difference between co-productions, pre-sales and acquisitions; how to develop and pitch advertiser funded programming; the new rules on product placement; where to hunt for foundation and grant funding and how to fill in those fiendish application forms; the power of crowd-funding and how to harness the internet; how to sniff out grants and funds held in non-film focused organisations such as the Wellcome Trust; why corporations are keen to fund your documentary and how to get them to part with their money without giving up your editorial control.

Author Biography

Nicola Lees has developed documentaries, docudramas, multiplatform and reality programmes for network and cable channels, including the BBC and Discovery, Travel Channel, National Geographic and TLC in the USA. She has consulted for international clients and is editor of www.tvmole.com dedicated to factual development. Nicola Lees is author of Greenlit: Developing Factual/Reality TV Ideas from Concept to Pitch.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements	p. xi
Disclaimer	p. xii
Copyright	p. xiii
Introduction (and a word of warning)	p. 1
The Idea
Getting Ready	p. 9
What's the Story?	p. 10
Why Does Your Story Deserve to Be Told Now?	p. 12
Is Film or TV the Best Medium for Your Story?	p. 13
Is There a Market for Your Idea?	p. 14
How Are You Going to Tell the Story?	p. 16
What's the Genre and Format?	p. 17
Why Are You Making This Film?	p. 18
Do You Have the Right Skills?	p. 20
Do You Have Business Acumen and a Fat Contacts Book?	p. 21
The Pitch	p. 24
Write a Proposal	p. 24
Anatomy of a Proposal	p. 26
Pitch Tape	p. 27
Additional Information for Grantmaking and Other Funding Bodies	p. 28
Production Team	p. 28
Schedule	p. 31
Budget	p. 32
Production Budgets	p. 36
Finance Plan	p. 38
Putting Together a Funding Application Schedule	p. 40
Distribution and Outreach Plan	p. 42
Building Contacts	p. 42
Building Buzz	p. 42
Sample Proposals: How to Re-establish a Vodka Empire (feature documentary proposal), The Rock (documentary series proposal)	p. 46
Further Reading and Resources	p. 49
The Funding
TV Channels-Ratings Addicts	p. 57
Fully Funded	p. 60
How to Pitch to a TV Channel (or Independent Production Company)	p. 62
Co-production between International TV Channels	p. 64
Co-production between Two Domestic Channels	p. 67
Co-production between International Production Companies	p. 68
How to Pitch for International Co-production	p. 68
Sample Treatment: The Guinea Pig Club	p. 73
Jargon Buster	p. 81
Further Reading and Resources	p. 81
Festivals, Markets and Forums	p. 82
Distributors-Traveling Salesmen	p. 87
What Does a Distributor Do?	p. 88
How Can A Distributor Help with Budget Deficit?	p. 90
Development Funding	p. 91
Presales	p. 91
Distribution Advance	p. 91
Securing Co-production Funding	p. 92
Completion Funding	p. 92
Increase International Appeal	p. 93
International Market Intelligence	p. 94
Credibility	p. 94
Rights Protection	p. 95
How to Pitch to a Distributor	p. 96
Jargon Buster	p. 101
Further Reading and Resources	p. 102
Brands-Dirty, Sexy Mad Men	p. 104
A Brief History of Brands on Screen: Back to the Future	p. 106
The Future of Brands on Screen	p. 107
What's in It for Brands?	p. 108
Sponsorship	p. 112
Advertiser Funded Programming (AFP)	p. 113
Product Placement	p. 117
Calculating the Value of a Product Placement	p. 121
Prop Placement and Trade Outs	p. 123
How to Pitch a Brand Funded Program	p. 124
Pitch to TV Channels First	p. 124
Pitch to Brands First	p. 125
Sample Brand Proposal: The New York City Experience	p. 179
Jargon Buster	p. 133
Further Reading and Resources	p. 134
Banks and Private Equity Investors-Masters of the Funding Universe	p. 136
Banks	p. 137
Gap Finance	p. 138
Cash Flow	p. 138
Private Equity Investors	p. 140
Investment Funds	p. 142
Pitching to Equity Investors and Banks	p. 144
Business Plan Outline	p. 146
Finance Plan	p. 148
Jargon Buster	p. 152
Further Reading and Resources	p. 153
Government-Compliance-driven Box Tickers	p. 155
International Co-production Treaties	p. 157
Regional and Pan-regional Funds	p. 160
Local Funds	p. 162
Jargon Buster	p. 164
Further Reading and Resources	p. 165
Issue-driven Funders-Guilt Trippers and Global Reformers	p. 167
Types of Issue-driven Funders	p. 170
Brands with a Conscience	p. 170
Nonprofit Organizations	p. 171
Foundations	p. 174
Do You Need a Fiscal Sponsor?	p. 176
How to Pitch to Issue-driven Funders	p. 176
Sample Outreach Plan: Donor Unknown	p. 178
Grant Application Housekeeping Tips	p. 184
Letter of Inquiry	p. 185
Jargon Buster	p. 186
Further Reading and Resources	p. 187
Knowledge-driven Funders-Scholars and Educators	p. 191
Universities	p. 192
Government Departments	p. 194
Knowledge-driven Grant Foundations	p. 196
How to Pitch to Knowledge-driven Funders	p. 198
Sample Grant Application: Here's Johnny	p. 200
Jargon Buster	p. 209
Further Reading and Resources	p. 210
Film Funds-Movie-making Mentors	p. 212
What Are the Odds of Getting Funding?	p. 213
How to Apply for a Film Fund Grant	p. 215
What to Do if Your Application Is Rejected	p. 223
Sample Grant Application: Shakespeare Behind Bars	p. 224
Jargon Buster	p. 239
Further Reading and Resources	p. 240
Crowdfunding-Couch Producers and Micro-patrons	p. 242
Individual Donors	p. 244
How to Pitch to Individual Donors	p. 244
Crowdfunding	p. 246
Is Crowdfunding Right for You?	p. 250
Plan a Crowdfunding Campaign	p. 251
Choose a Crowdfunding Platform	p. 252
Set a Funding Goal	p. 253
Set a Time Limit	p. 254
Write the Campaign Copy	p. 254
Create Perks	p. 254
Make a Pitch Video	p. 256
Engage with Potential Donors	p. 257
Schedule and Launch the Campaign	p. 259
Jargon Buster	p. 263
Further Reading and Resources	p. 263
Beg, Borrow and Negotiate-Local Heroes and Hopefuls	p. 268
Cut the Budget	p. 269
Work as a Gun-for-Hire on Commercial Projects	p. 271
Pay for It Yourself	p. 272
Think Laterally	p. 272
Forget TV: Go Online	p. 275
Get Businesses to Donate, Props, Locations and Equipment	p. 276
Ask Post-production Facilities to Defer Payment	p. 278
Ask the Crew to Defer Payment	p. 279
Find Crew Who Will Work for Free	p. 279
How to Pitch to Businesses and Individuals	p. 281
Jargon Buster	p. 282
Further Reading and Resources	p. 283
The Reality
Tales From the Frontlines of Finance: The Players and Producers	p. 287
Players	p. 287
President, Illiad Entertainment, New York City	p. 287
Director of the Hot Docs Forum and Market, Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival, Toronto	p. 292
Executive Director, Documentary Programming, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Toronto	p. 294
CEO, Parthenon Entertainment, London	p. 296
Head of Programming/Branded Content, MEC, London	p. 302
Public Engagement Advisor, People and Broadcast Grants, Wellcome Trust, London	p. 305
Executive Director, Women Make Movies, New York City	p. 309
Director of Education, The Edit Center, New York City	p. 311
Producers	p. 315
Executive Producer, Bungalow Town Productions, England	p. 315
Independent Executive Producer/Director, London	p. 319
Vice President Factual, Cream Productions, Toronto	p. 323
Managing Director, Furnace, London	p. 325
Managing Director/Executive Producer, Big Wave Productions, West Sussex, England	p. 328
Independent Feature Documentary Producer, Brighton, West Sussex, England	p. 329
CEO, Aquavision TV Productions, South Africa	p. 332
Independent Filmmaker and Producer at Changeworx, New York City	p. 335
Company Director, Blink Films, London	p. 340
Independent Producer, England	p. 341
Producer/Director, Animal Monday, Brighton, West Sussex, England	p. 345
Independent Producer/Director, Banyak Films, London	p. 349
Independent Filmmaker, London	p. 353
Independent Filmmaker, Optimistic Productions, London	p. 357
Producer/Director, Philomath Films, Santa Fe, USA	p. 361
Independent Filmmaker, One Angry Woman Productions, New York City	p. 362
Producer/Director, Break Thru Films, New York City	p. 366
The Final Word…	p. 368
Appendix	p. 369
Festivals, Forums and Workshops (listed alphabetically)	p. 369
Sample Budget Template	p. 371
End Notes (list of references for each chapter)	p. 378
Bibliography	p. 418
Index	p. 425
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