Pitch Slam 2008

Organized by IFP/Seattle and The Northwest Screenwriters Guild and hosted by the Seattle International Film Festival, Pitch Slam is a staged representation of the process of screenwriters and filmmakers pitching to producers. Leading up to the event, screenwriters submit 75-word loglines, which are judged locally, and the surviving entries are sent to three producers who each select four.  The day of the event, three teams of writer/filmmaker finalists are chosen to pitch in a simulated producer’s office in front of professional producer/executive judges and a live audience. Both audience and producers vote on their favorites, and the winners are presented the Greenlight Award.

Pitch Slam is an opportunity for movie lovers to catch a glimpse of one of the early steps in the filmmaking process. Screenwriters and filmmakers receive lessons in pitching and there is always the chance that one of the producers will like what they hear and ask for the script.

Dates –         
                        May 19 last day to send loglines
                        May 23 Quarter-Finalists selected
                        May 31 Pitch Workshop
                        June 7 Semi-Finalist selected and notifications sent
                        June 14 Pitch Slam 2008 @ SIFF

Location – NW Film Forum at 4pm

Eligibility – Pitching at Pitch Slam is open to anyone interested.

Training – The NWSG is holding a Pitch Workshop presented by Hollywood pitchmen Bill True and Dean Hyers.  Interview and Q&A on Friday, May 31; Pitch Workshop on Saturday May 31 www.nwsg.org/events.  Attendance is not required for participation in Pitch Slam but participation is highly encouraged.

Loglines – Participants may enter an unlimited number of loglines for $7 per logline, $5 per logline if you are a member of IFP/Seattle, NWSG or SIFF; pay via the Paypal buttons on the left sidebar*.  Loglines should be no more than 75 words.  Loglines should be electronically submitted to loglines@ifpseattle.org.  Loglines will be reviewed by a selection committee who will select 30 loglines to forward to the guest producers. 

*IFP/Seattle is set up for PayPal, if paying by check; the check must be received at IFP/Seattle offices at 1001 Lenora Street, Seattle,WA 98121by May 16, 2008.

Filmmakers – Through the NW Production Summit mentorship program, three filmmakers (directors and/or producers) will participate in the Pitch Slam and help the writers pitch their projects to the panel of visiting executives/judges.

Producer Selection – Guest producers will select their top four loglines and two alternates, and notify the PitchSlam coordinators of their selections via e-mail.  In the event that a logline is selected by more than one producer, the logline will be granted to the producer whose e-mail arrived earliest.  In such event, the remaining producer will then select from the alternates.

Pitches – Prior to Pitch Slam, the filmmakers will be paired with their respective producer.  The producer/filmmaker teams take pitches from their selected loglines.  Screenwriters have 15 minutes to make their pitch and answer questions. At the conclusion of the pitches, each producer/filmmaker team selects their favorite pitch of the four.

The Pitch Slam Event – The three filmmakers and the three writers pitch to the three guest producers in front of a live audience. Each writer/filmmaker team has 15 minutes to make their pitch and answer producer questions.  Following the three pitches, the three guest producers take five minutes to select their choice for the top pitch. A moderator conducts an audience vote for which writer/filmmaker team the audience felt had the best pitch.  Then the producers announce their choice of best pitch.  That team is awarded the “Greenlight Award.”

Questions about the Pitch Slam should be directed to lacey@ifpseattle.org