What You Need to Know For Your Career in Television Writing
Saturday July 25, 2009
Writers Guild of America, 7000 W. Third Street, Los Angeles, CA 90048
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With sponsorship from Write Brothers Inc.
Registration enters you in a raffle for 1 of 3 copies of Movie Magic Screenwriting Software!

PROGRAM SCHEDULE

9:00 Registration and light breakfast

10:00 PANEL – TELEVISION IN A CHANGING WORLD
How will television and the mission of writers change in the new economy? Agencies are merging, Leno is on at 10pm 5 nights a week, reality TV is taking up more programming time and is cheaper to produce. How does the screenwriter turn what appears to be a loss into a gain? How does the television writer thrive against the challenges of online competition, DVR, cable, and satellite? What are the implications of year round programming? How are smart writers adjusting to the evolution of programming seasons? What will cutting costs mean to the working writer? To the writer trying to get staffed? What does the future hold for the scripted television writer?

11:30 Coffee break

12:00 PANEL – FROM THE GROUND UP – CREATING A SHOW
How do you create a show from the ground up? What are the elements you need to consider? How do you evaluate an idea in terms of what will and won’t work? What do you need to think about in terms of the audience and demographics? How do you find the right network and how do you tailor your concept for a specific network? How do you pitch it and to whom? What happens when you sell your pitch?

1:30 Lunch

2:30 PANEL – THE ROOKIES – BREAKING IN
Join five young writers as they share their experiences of breaking into the television business. How did they break in? What did they do? How long did it take? What is their advice to other up and coming writers who’ve yet to be staffed? What was some of the best and worst advice they got when they were trying to break in? What are the keys to not just breaking in but staying in the business?

4:00 Coffee break

4:30 PANEL – ANATOMY OF A WRITERS ROOM
What are the dynamics of a writers’ room? How does a writers’ room work best? As a staffed writer what are you expected to bring to the room every day? What does a showrunner expect from his/her staff? What should a staff expect from its showrunner? The entire writing staff from _____ will host a panel to answer these questions.

6:00 Time to Network: Wine & Cheese

Note: program subject to change. Panelists confirmed subject to availability.

PURCHASE TICKETS HERE

TICKETS: $150 general public; $125 for WGA members; $110 for full-time students with ID. Cost includes light breakfast and lunch, snacks and evening wine and cheese mixer.

CANCELLATION POLICY:
Full refund (minus $20 processing fee) if cancellation made by 5 pm, Monday July 20. 50% refund if cancellation made by 5 pm, Thursday July 23. No refunds after this date.

*SPEAKERS CONFIRMED SUBJECT TO AVAILABILITY.