Pitching a project is one of the most exciting parts of the process of making. Of course pitching isn’t really part of the main creative within a film or job but it is the point where it may start to happen. It can now take form outside of your head, conversations, scripting and planning. The pitch ultimately involves you trying to convince someone with money to pay you to make something. It’s obviously a flawed process but it’s the way the environment is set up. Since everyone is trying to sell you something, from artists to Wendy’s, no matter if you love the product and work they still have to get it to you. PR for that spicy chicken combo or Kara Walker is still pushing a commodity. And as artists, storytellers and humans we tend to shudder when we realize we have to be sold and bought to make the next thing. Reality is harsh, but building your own is what all artists and creatives yearn for. Getting good at selling your reality is essential.
The pitch can be a long process but I like to keep it short. I build a deck and add a few examples of work, from me or others, a couple images, some big words in bold text and go.
Most People do not Know How to Listen.
From directors to the heads of companies, normally you’d think to get to places of prestige you have to have a skill or be smart or have worked hard to get there. This assumption is false. Most people you will find in positions of power whined, lied, threw people under a bus or stabbed someone in the back to get there. Rarely do you find good people in these positions, because good people know how to listen and as good listeners are empathetic and they quickly realize that power is toxic and not for them.
Knowing this, your pitch has to be quick and to the point, involve some kind of humor and maybe even stats showing you can quantify your and your works worth. Get to the point quick, read the room or zoom, and get out on a high note. Don’t act desperate. Some people may kiss ass but I have never been able to do that, although the narcissistic leaders love it and live for it. Get in, get out and leave an impression anyway you can.
There is also the endless time suck that comes with pitching. Sometimes it can take weeks or months to get a no. I find that usually if the project isn’t ok’d in the first two weeks after you’ve pitched and submitted the budget it’s not going anywhere. If you have to email someone asking for an update more than twice, the project is dead. Also you have a clear view of how the company is run. I’ve worked for them all and four months to hire and one hundred and eight days to pay isn’t unheard of, but it’s mind numbingly absurd.
If There’s no Budget or no Contract it’s not a Real Job
This is the hardest one to overcome. When you are coming up you will be put into this position a lot. And as people who have a passion to create, that passion is easy identifiable and so too easily manipulated. Sometimes you just want to make the thing and it’s hard to let that feeling go. Just remember those working in the multinational corporation, that cool magazine or the small design firm that pretend they don’t have the money to pay you don’t care about you, they just want the work for free and they absolutely have the money.
If they ask you to start working without a CONTRACT - DO NOT DO IT. It’s worse than net 90 at Meta or Google. At least with them you eventually get paid after a year or so of having to harass them. If you don’t have a contract you run the risk of being ghosted or worse.
If they say there is no BUDGET - DO NOT DO IT. It’s a lie and if it’s not then the project will never be completed anyway and you may never see all the work you poured into it.
How to Budget so you can Eat.
The rule is fifty percent up front. Get that into your SOW or Contract every time. If you can cover the costs in that initial payment you will breath easy as you work and the company will be less likely to stiff you since they already invested, paid and it shows that the contract is valid to anyone in court.
I usually cover all my costs for any others I need to bring on in that first payment. There’s nothing worse than having to talk about money on set or while editing. It stops projects and creates a funk over all the work. And you’ll always have someone who won’t shut up about getting paid until they are paid. Most likely because they have had to deal with folks who stiffed them more than once. That experience will leave the meekest person loud and proud when it comes to getting paid.
I also put into my contracts little reminder that stakeholders have to do work too. Have limits on edits and reshoots. Because sometimes you’ll get stuck in the doom loop of revisions. Lots of people who are in positions to make decisions cannot, and they certainly cannot visualize. After they’ve asked for the music to be loud but soft and the colors to be muted and bright a few times you can renegotiate for a higher fee or stop there for full payment. They usually renegotiate.
Know your Worth.
This will come with time and grow as you do.
Wage theft is real. By law in California you cannot work for free. It’s a process to get paid if you are ever put into this position and the best way is to simply avoid people who want your labor without paying for it. They will come with open arms and promises and smiling praising faces. But they are thieves.
Remember that your work is of value and if you have to wait for someone who actually knows how business works to come along, believe me it’s worth the wait. The energy these vampires will suck from you is immeasurable, not to mention all the work you could be missing out on by focusing on unpaid hopes and dreams others pour into your ear. The heartbreak when you realize they never intended to pay you and the time you wasted thinking that the free work would lead to a paid gig can be overwhelming.
Do yourself a favor from the start, if there’s no contract and no budget, run.
Scratch a lie, find a thief.