Hi Colleagues, I am writing my very first pilot and find the wisdom of this community unmatched. I would like to hear your thoughts on the key ingredients of planning and executing a pilot. Every piece of advice is valuable
Screenwriting : Standing on the shoulders of giants by Kagiso JayJay Blaad
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I feel like there is no easy "ingredients", especially for pilots. I think the core is having compelling characters and plenty of them so that you can have multiple storylines. Have you checked out Stage 32's webinars? There is one in particular about the structure of drama pilots that I would highly recommend: https://www.stage32.com/webinars/Master-Pilot-Structure-For-Your-One-Hou...
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I would say that the most important thing is to get your pilot format exactly right the first time. How long, what is expected at every break, and any overall guidance regarding character arcs and what should happen by what point in the overall running time. There are a lot of resources on S32 to help you get things right.
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Kagiso, is your pilot 30 minutes or 60?
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Many good pilots act as a microcosm of the feel for the whole show while introducing the audience to the world and characters etc. The pilot episode of ER is a great example of a pilot that throws you into the world of the show.
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While Television is about character and theme, I always believe that every pilot needs a really strong inciting incident to kick off the series. So that no matter where the story goes season after season, we can always trace it back to a single event that changed the characters' world forever.
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A great logline and a outline is very helpful!