Master Class: Crafting Impactful Pitch Decks for Film & TV with Alexandra Barreto, Taylor Feltner, and DMA Anderson | presented by IMDbPro
About this Master Class
Master Classes are in-depth, interactive learning experiences focused on craft and career building and led by renowned industry experts. Topics include fiction and documentary filmmaking, TV writing and production, and navigating and succeeding in the entertainment industry.
As a creator, one of the most daunting tasks is attracting producers, financiers, buyers, or other collaborators, and convincing them your story and vision is worth backing. Creating a compelling pitch deck can succinctly build out the world of your feature film or series, magnify its irresistible nuances, and cement your singular style and tone. But how do you make a pitch deck that sells? What differs between independent film and television? What do you need to include, and what can be left out? And if you cannot afford a graphic designer, are there tools that you can use?
This Master Class will cover what goes into an effective pitch deck for film and TV, tools you can use to create on your own, and things to consider as you put all of the pieces together.
Industry professionals Alexandra Barreto, Taylor Feltner, and DMA Anderson will walk you through the process of creating a professional pitch deck and share lessons they have learned from creating and reviewing pitch decks over the years.
Topics covered include:
- 0:00:00 - 0:04:23: Introduction of class and Feature Film Pitch Deck instructors Alexandra Barretto and Taylor Feltner
- 0:04:23 - 0:09:05: The journey of “Late Bloomers” from pitch to distribution
- 0:09:05 - 0:11:12: Why build a pitch deck?
- 0:11:12 - 0:11:57: What a pitch deck is supposed to accomplish
- 0:11:57 - 0:15:53: Gathering the materials for a pitch deck
- 0:15:53 -0:18:17: Choosing the tools to design your pitch deck
- 0:18:17 - 0:22:47: Collaborating to building the deck
- 0:22:47 - 0:27:04: How “Late Bloomers” pitch deck was put together
- 0:27:04 - 0:30:05: The evolution of the pitch deck (financing, casting)
- 0:30:05 - 0:48:13: Walk through “Late Bloomers” pitch deck
- 0:48:13 - 0:55:28: Pitch deck vs. Cookbook, alternate pitch deck example
- 0:55:28 - 0:57:09: What came out of “Late Bloomers” deck and lessons learned
- 0:57:09 - 0:59:55: “Late Bloomers” trailer
- 1:00:13 - 1:19:09: Q&A
- 1:19:29 - TV Pitch Decks, Introduction of DMA Anderson
- 1:20:47 - 1:23:09: Introduction to TV Pitch Decks, live poll
- 1:23:09 - 1:30:04: Interactive Exercise; show descriptions preparing the pitch
- 1:31:55 - 1:34:00: Prepping your TV pitch
- 1:34:00 - 1:36:57: Wow, Me! The Credits
- 1:36:57 - 1:45:55: Why Me? My Connection
- 1:45:55 - 1:58:30: Why Now? The World
- 1:58:30 - 2:08:00: What’s the dilemma? The Logline
- 2:08:00 - 2:20:54: Whose Journey? The Characters
- 2:20:54 - 2:27:17: How it Flows - The Pilot
- 2:27:17 - The Meaning of the series
- 2:28:30 - 2:29:42: Presenting the deck
- 2:29:42 - 2:30:40: Sample TV pitches/bibles
- 2:30:40 - 2:35:27: Researching for your TV pitch, utilizing IMDbPro to find buyers
- 2:35:27 - 2:36:09: Pitching your series from the inside out
- 2:36:09 - 2:47:52: Q&A
- 2:47:52 - 2:50:45: Closing
Download Recommended Resources
Download Pitch Deck Guidelines for Fiction and Nonfiction Feature Films
Sundance Collab thanks IMDbPro for their generosity in sponsoring this Master Class.
IMDbPro is the essential resource for entertainment industry professionals. An IMDbPro premium membership includes the following: detailed contact and representation information; tools for members to manage and showcase their IMDb profile, including selecting their primary images, demo reels and the credits they are best “known for”; the IMDbPro app; and more. IMDbPro premium and basic memberships include features for professionals to self-identify and manage the display of personal details, such as gender identity, race/ethnicity, pronouns and more, across IMDb and IMDbPro. IMDbPro is a service of IMDb, the world's most popular and authoritative source for information on movies, TV shows, and celebrities. Industry professionals can join IMDbPro today at imdbpro.com. New premium members get a 30-day free trial.
Master ClassTeam
Taylor Feltner
Taylor Feltner is a producer working across multiple genres and mediums, from scripted features and documentaries to commercials.
His latest production under his We’re Doin’ Great banner with parnter Alexandra Barreto is the narrative feature LATE BLOOMERS, which world premiered at SXSW 2023 and will be released theatrically by Vertical Entertainment in June of 2024. The film stars Karen Gillan (GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY), Margaret Sophie Stein (BULLETS OVER BROADWAY) and Jermaine Fowler (SORRY TO BOTHER YOU). It was selected for the 2020 Sundance Institute Creative Producing Fellowship and the 2021 Sundance Catalyst Spring Slate as well as the 2020 Film Independent Directors Lab, the 2020 IFP Market and the 2019 edition of Film Independent’s Fast Track.
He produced the doc short EXIT 12, which won the SXSW Grand Jury Prize in 2019 and Vimeo’s 2019 Best of the Year award, and was acquired by Searchlight Pictures. His narrative short LADY HATER had its world premiere at Tribeca 2019.
He produced the feature TOO LATE, starring Academy Award nominees John Hawkes and Robert Forster. It enjoyed a 30+ market theatrical release and secured a worldwide deal with Netflix. He produced the drama LEAVE ME LIKE YOU FOUND ME (SXSW ’12), as well as the documentaries FALL AND WINTER (SXSW & Hotdocs ’13) and JUST LIKE US (Tribeca ’10), which was acquired by Lionsgate.
Taylor also serves as Head of Production at Even/Odd, an award winning creative studio and production company and AdAge’s Small Agency of the Year in 2021.
Taylor is a Film Independent, Gotham and Sundance Institute Catalyst and Creative Producing Fellow.
Alexandra Barreto
Alexandra Barreto has been working on sets for over twenty years as an actress, writer, producer, and director. Alexandra’s directorial debut LADY HATER premiered at the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival and was named “Top 5 not to be missed shorts from the Tribeca Film Festival” by Forbes. She directed the Audible Original Series CUT AND RUN starring Meg Ryan, Rachel Bloom, and Sam Richardson. She wrote and directed a segment for the horror/comedy anthology, SCARE PACKAGE 2: RAD CHAD’S REVENGE, a sequel to the Shudder hit SCARE PACKAGE.
Alexandra’s producorial feature debut TOO LATE starred Academy Award nominees John Hawkes and Robert Forster and was released theatrically in over thirty cities and secured a worldwide deal from Netflix. Her most recent feature she produced starring Karen Gillan, LATE BLOOMERS, premiered at the 2023 SXSW Film Festival, and won an audience award at their international premiere at the American Film Festival in Poland, and is being distributed by Vertical Entertainment. In addition, she’s produced seven short films and she wrote and directed the first political commercial to air on Comedy Central.
As an actress she has guest starred and/or recurred on television shows spanning all genres from “Pushing Daisies” to “Justified” to “Parenthood” to a five year run on “The Fosters.” She most recently recurred on the FX breakout hit, “Mayans MC” and CW’s “All American.”
Alexandra is a Film Independent, Gotham, and Sundance Institute Creative Producing Fellow.
DMA Anderson
DMA Anderson is a veteran TV producer and executive, tech entrepreneur, and multi-sector strategic consultant. As a producer, DMA has helmed top-rated programming for CBS, Bravo, BET, A&E, TLC and more, authored two entertainment books that are taught in media programs nationwide, and written, produced and showrun over 100 hours of television. As an executive, she has served as Co-Head of Television for Lee Daniels Entertainment, VP of Creative Talent Development for Disney Entertainment Television, and VP of Development for BET, where she developed and shepherded four seasons of cable’s #1 original sitcom, The Real Husbands of Hollywood. Strategic consulting clients have included Netflix, the City of Berkeley, Partnership for After School Education, Ukraine’s TET TV, and the Los Angeles Public Library. In tech, DMA most recently launched Korgi, AI-fueled all-in-one project boards that integrate Google Workspace and MS365 apps. She has earned three utility patents for production and social networking software and is an active champion of excellence in inclusion across multiple industries. She is a graduate, with distinction, of Stanford University and is a career-long member of the Television Academy, the Producers Guild of America, and American Mensa.