(18) Dragon's Den Pitch Planning

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Pitch for my Short Film
In class, we were instructed to prepare a pitch to present to both the class and outside individuals who were experienced in working in the media industry. We were given two days to prepare. We were also given a list of things we could include in the pitch, which were of the following:

  • What brief you were taking - Short film or Music Video?
  • The style of music and/or artist (for music video only)
  • Genre of film (for short film only)
  • Your idea for your narrative so far
  • Your idea for the performance element so far (for music video only)
  • Potential cast
  • Potential locations
  • Research you have done - how has it affected your decision-making?
  • Any inspiration you have taken 
  • Anything you desperately want to avoid
  • How your work is going to be creative and original

As I am following the short film brief, there was one less thing I had to worry about (performance element). This didn't make the task any less daunting, however. I wrote out brief plans of what I am going to say during my presentation:

  • Brief - I am following the short film brief. The reason for this is because I feel that I can make the most out of short films and that it'll benefit me more for the future. I also chose this brief because short films personally appeal to me more, as I prefer watching shorts over music videos. I also think creating a short film will be more fun as it is definitely more of a challenge than creating a music video. 
  • Genre - I haven't chosen a genre for my film yet as short films don't have to follow conventions as rigorously as feature films; choosing a genre to apply may be more restricting. I can't think of a genre that suits my current idea, anyway. 
  • Idea - My idea consists of two tribes: White Cloaks and Riverfolk. The White Cloaks hate the Riverfolk because of the hate spread by the ignorant leader (The Preacher). The Preacher spreads hate to justify his invasion of their land and killings of their people. A young man (Egon) encounters the more compassionate leader (Bleedingheart) who convinces him that the Riverfolk are peaceful but are in fact being attacked by the White Cloaks. An estranged member of the Riverfolk then commits a Terrorist attack, murdering both White Cloaks and Riverfolk in the process. The Preacher uses this attack as political merit to further persecute the Riverfolk. 
  • Cast - I have cast Elliott Gillespie as Egon. This is because he played the protagonistic role in my AS project and performed brilliantly. Furthermore, he fits the requirement of being a young man. As Bleedingheart I have cast Beth Bridgwood. She is a drama student and therefore has experience in acting. She is also quite attractive and can play a compassionate female role well. As The Preacher I have cast Rowan Knights. He is a talented actor as he's performed roles in many of his own media creations, particularly antagonistic roles, which is what he's supposed to play in this. 
  • Locations - I need a lake/river to film at as this is the home of the Riverfolk. I am considering Lynford Water, as it's very close to me and is one of the only local lakes that you can wade in. 
  • Research - I watch short films almost every day and this has therefore familiarised me with certain codes and conventions (how little there are). This has, therefore, stopped me from applying feature film conventions to my own work.
  • Inspiration - I have no media-oriented inspirations. However, I have taken inspiration from various speeches, particularly racist speeches that has inspired my script writing. 
  • What not to do - I definitely don't want bad dialogue/audio. By working on my script I can avoid stilted dialogue. I can also avoid bad quality audio by taking care when filming. I also don't want to create a film that's purely aesthetic-driven and has no substance. As while they're impressive to watch - they're easily forgettable and boring. 
  • Creativity/Originality - My work is creative because it involves a very layer plot. It is also allegorical and therefore is meaningful - it provides a lesson the audience can take away. It's original because it's about terrorism, which is rarely touched on because of its sensitive nature. 

I decided to create a PowerPoint, as it's an efficient and easy way to present and is far more interesting to look at than just listening to me. I added more to it than what we were given, as I have planned further ahead because of the complex nature of my film. This is the PowerPoint I have created:

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