As a writer/producer storytelling is an important part of my job. I’m always looking for a story and a way to tell it. But, I’m not the only one with something to say. Everyone on this planet now has the ability to create a story and share it with the world. If you have a flip camera, an iPhone, or any other recording device you can make a video and upload it to YouTube. But are you telling a story anybody wants to hear?

Good storytelling usually begins with something you feel passionate about communicating. It has a point of view. It captures the viewer’s attention and it’s memorable. What’s memorable? Viewers are still talking about it long after the story’s been told.

I…

Joke Fincioen and Biagio Messina are the husband and wife team behind the very successful production company Joke Productions. You may not know them personally, but you know their work across the television landscape with such hits as VH1’s Scream Queen, CW’s Beauty and Geek, Style Network’s Foody Call, E!’s Celebrity Drive By and others.

They’re executive producers with ideas and they know how to get a show made.  What’s different about these pros is their willingness to share their experience and help others.  They agreed to an interview and I jumped at the chance to get a look behind the curtain of Reality TV making.  Here’s Joke and Biagio.

As executive producers/show runners what are…

TV Land Prime is moving toward scripted shows with a two pilot sitcom order.  This is a bold move for the network.  Up until now their original series line-up has been one reality show after the next.  Not only will the network have to dig deeper into their pockets to produce original sitcoms, they’ll also be up against their current programming.  The majority of their audience has been tuning in to both laugh and reminisce with shows that debuted years ago.  Classics like The Andy Griffith Show, I Love Lucy, The Bill Cosby Show, M*A*S*H, and soon they’ll add Everybody Loves Raymond.  They’re classics for a reason and viewers have continued to watch them over many decades;  they’re well written, well acted, well directed and…

Today I asked National Emmy nominated writer and producer Sydnye White to give us some of the basics on shooting in HD.  Sydnye’s credits include the series Home Made Simple for TLC and Moneywise with Kelvin Boston for PBS.  Her documentaries include Great Books: The Autobiography of Malcolm X for The Learning Channel and the Discovery Channel’s Detroit SWAT.

HD Primer by Sydnye White

So you have to shoot in High Definition and you don’t know where to start.  Don’t worry. Though it may seem confusing at the beginning, knowing what to ask is half the battle.  Here are a few questions to help you get started.

1. What type of editing intake system will you be using?  There…

You’ve sold your pilot.  The network has given you a 6 or 13 episode order.  You’re walking down the street with a smile on your face a mad man couldn’t smack off.  Your new best friend is the network’s  Executive-In- Charge of Production, you’re in sync and you almost imagine you couldn’t possibly do anything wrong.  Then one day it happens, you and the network are no longer doing the same happy dance and you’re story telling doesn’t match up to their expectations. It might happen after the first draft of the treatment or script is delivered, or after the first shooting day, or even after you’ve delivered the first rough cut.  Somehow, almost without warning, you and the network are operating from two separate…

During pre-production do you ever feel like you’re drowning in a sea of emails?  I do.  I can receive as many as 100 emails in one day.  Just getting all the principals to attend a meeting can create a flurry of emails that would dwarf a basketball player.  At the end of the day, matching up emails and making sure I have the latest on what was decided can be a chore.  So, I’m wondering – wouldn’t it make sense to use Google Wave?  I haven’t tried it, but I’ve read a lot about it.  Mashable describes it here:

Google Wave is a real-time communication platform. It combines aspects of e-mail, instant messaging, wikis, web chat, social…

You’ve got a budget.  Now it’s up to you to stay within the budget and make money.  That’s right make money.  This is America, we’re capitalists.  But, you also want what’s up on the screen to appear as if you’ve spent every last dollar on the production.  The production must look spectacular.  If the budget has a line for original music then get some composed, don’t go with a cheap library version because the client will know. However, if the client is paying for cheap library music and they decide after seeing the first rough cut they want something more musically unique, then they will have to pay for that.

Don’t be the producer that tells the client they can’t have things unless they pay…

Watching an editor edit can sometimes be like watching a speck of water evaporate from the table.  It will feel that slow and yes boring.  When working with an editor there are several things I’ve learned over the years, and one of them is never sit in the same room leaning over their shoulders waiting for them to make the next cut.  It’s absolute torture for me and it’s probably annoying for the editor to have a producer tell them to shave five frames off the head of a dissolve while their still in the middle of cutting the piece.  Geez… once the timeline is down the editor will need to go through it a few times and get a sense of the pacing, make…

If you’re interested in making documentaries, or getting money to make them, you might be interested in “How to sell your documentary” workshop/competition at the NY Paley Center for Media.

Over 75 filmmakers applied for this workshop/competition and only five finalist were chosen.  At the workshop they will pitch their ideas to a panel of documentary producers. The producers will give them feedback on their concept as well as their presentation skills. The winner will be selected based on the persuasiveness of their pitch, originality of idea and the film’s viability. He or she will receive a $5,000 grant, sponsored by SnagFilms, to be used toward the completion of the pitched film.

The five finalist
Annie Heringer, The Pigeon Game
Jennifer Redfearn, Sun…

Every once in a while the DP of choice becomes the DP Diva, and then the shoot becomes absolute agony. Speaking from personal experience, it’s a situation that makes you want to open up a yogurt stand and forget you were ever involved with television production. From requesting last minute lenses, lights, and dollys to being nasty and even yelling at the crew, a situation like that can be untenable.  But this is where you have dig deep into the center of your producer soul, strap on a pair of balls and get the show produced with the least amount of collateral damage.

Be Decisive
When the DP is being unreasonable or demanding, never let him see you sweat.  If you’re lip quivers, if you…