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.


Television and streaming episodic shows have taken a great leap in recent years, becoming platforms for serious directors to experiment and break traditional barriers of format and genre. Simultaneously, the medium has welcomed diverse voices and talent who have taken risks as they find their unique voices and visual styles. Join award-winning filmmaker and producer Rachel Raimist (The Sex Lives of College Girls, Wu-Tang: An American Saga, The Big Leap), who has directed shows for HBO MAX, Hulu, DISNEY+, CW, and more, as she unveils her process of directing TV from start to finish. In this three-hour online event, Rachel Raimist defines the role of a TV director and how to get hired as one and covers the steps it takes to be successful as an episodic director, from effective meetings with your crew to the prep process to working with actors.


Resources:

Download the list of resources from Rachel Raimist and Sundance Collab



Topics covered include:

    00:00 - Welcome and Introduction from Sundance Collab

    03:24 - Introduction from Rachel Raimist

    05:50 - Presentation: Rachel’s Path to Directing

    09:40 - How to Navigate Meetings

    21:54 - The Role of the TV Director

    24:22 - Q&A

    33:40 - Directing TV vs Directing Indie Films

    36:00 - Steps to Prep for Episodic Television

    1:02:30 - Q&A

    1:17:30 - Location Scout, Tech Scout and Blocking a Scene - Case Study: Wu-Tang: An American Saga

    1:24.26 - Q&A

    1:39:20 - Break

    1:39:38 - Location Scouting - Case Study: The Republic of Sarah

    1:57:31 - Floor Plans and Blocking - The Sex Lives of College Girls

    2:13:40 - Q&A

    02:32:05 - Blocking Stunts/Action and Scriptation - Case Study: 4400

    02:43:34 - Collaboration- Case Study: The Big Leap

    02:51:09 - Further Study and Readings

    02:51:52 - Q&A

    02:58:40 - Final Announcements


Past classes have included Academy Award-winning director Roger Ross Williams on Documentary Storytelling, Finding Dory’s Victoria Strouse on Comedy Writing, Emmy-nominated director Lesli Linka Glatter on Blocking a Scene, The Walking Dead’s Glen Mazzara on TV Writing and more.


Rachel Raimist
Director
Dr. Rachel Raimist is a formerly tenured college professor turned television director. She has television credits in action, drama, comedy and musicals. She recently directed on the drama BEL AIR (Peacock) and on the family fantasy THE SPIDERWICK CHRONICLES (Roku). Other credits include UP HERE (Hulu), WU-TANG: AN AMERICAN SAGA (Hulu), CSI: Vegas (CBS) and SEX/LIFE (Netflix). At the Directors Guild of America (DGA), Raimist is the first woman appointed as the Co-Chair of The Special Projects Committee and was appointed as Co-Chair of the Disability Committees by President Lesli Linka Glatter. She was also elected by her peers as the Alt. Co-Chair of the Women's Steering Committee and has served as Alt. Co-Chair of the Latino Committee. She loves directing wild teens, lovable kids, wild animals and stories about women on a mission. more...
Tags:TV Writing

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