Writing the TV Drama Pilot

    Tuesday, May 31, 2016 at 6:30 PM until Tuesday, June 28, 2016 at 8:30 PMUTC -04:00


    Sarah Lawrence College
    1 Mead Way
    Bronxville, NY 10708
    United States

    Instructor: Frederic Richter
    Length: 5 sessions, $450
    Tuesdays, 6:30 PM - 8:30 PM

    This class is dedicated to the inception and ultimately creation of a TV 60 minute Drama pilot (network, basic cable, premium cable or premium stream like Netflix). The class will walk writers through from their initial ideas which they will pitch all the way through to the first draft. Writers are expected to enter the class with several potential ideas for TV series that can be sustained, and the pilot for them. The class will then walk students through the outlining phase all the way through to the finished first draft at a minimum. Students will also be expected to create at least a rough draft of a working “story bible” which outlines what happens in the future episodes at a minimum the first season and then how you see the show ultimately concluding and character arcs. Students will emerge with a solid draft of a TV pilot and bible. Open to students at all levels as long as they come in with ideas for TV series.

    Frederic Richter is a New York native. He studied at Sarah Lawrence College, where he pursued history, writing and literature. He was editor-in-chief of the school newspaper and was selected as SLC’s delegate to SCUSA, a foreign affair conference held at West Point. History has been a lifelong passion for Frederic. For over three years, Frederic worked at the Museum of Jewish Heritage-A Living Memorial To The Holocaust, where he assisted in collections & exhibitions with historical research. Upon graduation from SLC, Frederic shocked everyone by forgoing a career in history and journalism to enroll at in the MFA program at the American Film Institute. At AFI he wrote numerous projects, including his thesis short-film, MACHSOM. MACHSOM was selected by AFI to be screened at the thesis showcase at the DGA in Los Angeles and was accepted into over twenty-five festivals including AFI FEST, and won numerous awards. His feature-length screenplay APPEARANCES, won 1st place in the Slamdance Screenwriting competition. He has worked on, “Sons of Liberty”, the scripted mini-series on the History Channel. Frederic has been employed for years as a story analyst for numerous companies, including Goldcrest Films, Film Rites (Steven Zaillian’s production company), QED International (Financier behind ELYSIUM DISTRICT 9 and FURY), Scott Free, The Black List, and Black Label Media. He was elated to join Tradition Pictures, as their company mandate hit so close to his own passion projects. He works at Tradition Pictures as a Creative Executive and producer helping to find true and historical stories to bring to film and TV. He has also taught classes on screenwriting, script development, and the entertainment industry at Sarah Lawrence College, The Ghetto Film School and NYU SPS. He is a Teaching Artist at The Ghetto Film School, and Adjunct Instructor at NYU. He lives, mostly, in New York City with one foot in Los Angeles.

    Writing Institute Registration Process:

    Step 1 - Registration Information: Complete this registration form in full.

    Step 2 - Payment: Once you click submit on this form, a new page will appear in your browser with a payment link. Click on the payment link, complete the required information, and submit your payment. 
     
    Payment is required for your registration to be confirmed. If we don’t receive your payment within 48 hours of submission of this form, your registration will automatically be cancelled. You will have to complete the form again if you wish to register for the class.

    Step 3 - Confirmation: Once we receive your payment, your registration will be finalized and confirmed with an email. Please keep this email for your records.  Details about room assignment, parking, and any other information relevant to the course will be emailed to registered students the week before classes begin.

    If you have questions about the registration process, please call us at 914-395-2205 or email sorefice@sarahlawrence.edu.

    Registration is no longer available because the event has been cancelled.