James Cottle Scriptwriter

5 Ways to Sound Awesome When Talking About Your Movie

For people with such a firm grab grasp on the English language, writers are a bit rubbish at talking about themselves and their ideas. Pitching is about 30% of the battle when it comes to getting your work off the ground (along with 50% for the script itself, 15% for who you know and 5% of something else, mostly for the sake of even mathematics). In those panic-ridden moments where you find yourself having to pitch your latest project verbally, there's a few key tips to keep in mind to avoid showering your conversation partner with spoken diarrhea...

Judge If / When to Talk About Genre

Genre is the ultimate pitch shorthand, but I'd say that about half of the time, it can do more harm than good. The trick is knowing when to unleash the beast. With some genres, it pays to be completely upfront, pretty much opening with what it is. These include any genre that revolve around a setting (Western, War, etc.) or any genre that employs a specific tone or style (Comedy, Horror, etc.). Feel free to qualify these with a single specific subgenre, for example a Psychological Horror,but know that adding more subgenres actually says less about what it is (e.g. a Neo-Noir Revenge Psychological Horror Comedy) as the listener desperately tries to work out what the Hell that all entails.

What I will say for the other genres that I have yet to mention is that you need to ask yourself - is specifying the genre actually adding anything? Saying something is a "Drama" literally means nothing in this day and age. The genre should really be apparent from your logline, or at least the two or three lines you use to summarise the darn thing. If you know for a fact that it isn't, due to your narrative focus being different to what would typically be expected (e.g. an Action movie that focuses on a coming of age storyline), then use that as a twist within your pitch. Set the listener up to believe it's one thing and then pull the rug out from beneath them (not literally) when you reveal it's another.

Titles Can Make or Break Your Pitch

Titles work in a similar way to genres, in that you should avoid pitching them unless you're a) 100% certain you have the best title possible, and b) it won't confuse what you've just pitched or are about to pitch. If you're confident in it, lead with it - although if it happens to be a comedy, beware of how your current audiences may react to puns. If you're less confident, I'd recommend not mentioning it at all, unless directly asked. Even then though, if you admit to there being a "working title", your listener's brain is going to immediately conclude that you have no idea what you're actually doing, even if you've just proven that isn't the case.

One thing I like to do, which has worked in my favour most times, is to find a way to include the title, whether it be a phrase or just a single word, within one of the sentences of your pitch. That way, the title already feels strongly linked with the end product. For instance, if your film was titled Guardians of the Galaxy, your opening of your pitch would be something like "A band of five outlaws and misfits become wrapped up in a plot threatening intergalactic security, and must join forces to become the Guardians of the Galaxy." You get the idea. Note - you may struggle with this if your title is more avant garde or a thematic symbol, but I'm sure you'll find a way.

Say as Little as Possible

Have you ever stopped to wonder why someone has asked you about what you're working on? Could be that they're simply making polite conversation after droning on about their latest project for the last 20 minutes, but, if you're a glass half full kinda person, it's more likely that they are genuinely interested in your ideas. Now think back to your years in education - weren't the sessions where you were actively encouraged to participate and answer questions far more engaging than the lectures where the teacher would talk solidly for a full hour? Your pitch needs to be interactive and the best way to do this is to leave threads dangling.

I'm not advocating that you basically ignore the opportunity to pitch here. I'm reinforcing what we already know - that brevity is crucial. Pitch your entire film in a single sentence, that includes a) your main character(s), b) their ultimate goal and c) the main thing that is preventing them from achieving said goal. If you've done your job right, your "listener" will maybe ask a question or two (e.g. "Why is the main character depressed?", "Why do they want to become the Prime Minister of Canada?", "How are they going to overcome the hoard of Probing Aliens camped between them and Mr. T's penthouse?"). Be prepared for these questions, and answer them in a single sentence. You don't want your audience to feel like they're working too hard though, so be sure to always LAD... Leave A Dangler.

Mention Other Films at Your Own Peril

"It's like Who Framed Roger Rabbit meets Braveheart". What does the even MEAN? In your mind, you've borrowed elements from two different "beloved" movies and created your own. But in that one sentence, there's no indication as to what elements they even are, and so now your audience is scratching their heads trying to work out whether you mean it's a Comedic Noir set in the Scottish Highlands or if it's a blend of live action and animation where fictitious characters team up with William Wallace to overcome... something?! You can maybe get away with this IF your single logline sentence was already super clear as to what you're trying to achieve.

But then you run into a different problem - what if your audience doesn't like either or ANY of the films you've just mentioned. Sure, in a professional context, they would try to remain objective, but there's no doubt that their preconceptions over the quality of those films won't weigh on them subconsciously. And now, worst of all, your audience is thinking about someone else's work and not your own. Keep your pitch focused on your story entirely, and if your listener happens to draw those comparisons for themselves then that's absolutely fine - at least they've engaged and understood what you're saying rather than trying to decipher some cryptic riddles.

Don't Think About It as a Pitch

I'm aware this goes against pretty much everything you just read (unless you skipped to the end, you Cheating Charlie), but this is probably the most important tip of them all. The way you can achieve this is simple, but involves a little dedication on your part. Memorise your one sentence logline, to the point where you don't sound like a 5 year old in a school nativity play, but that it comes out naturally like breathing itself. You want to be reeling that thing off in your sleep. Now, whenever someone asks you to talk about your movie, it's nothing more than just flexing a muscle. You can focus on the important stuff, like developing a rapport with your listener beforehand, making it feel more like a casual conversation.

Obviously, you don't want to sound blasé though, as the thing that will kill your project fastest is a lack of passion. Think about the three major pointers in your sentence as you're memorising it, and put the right amount of emphasis on the character, the goal and the obstacle. Make the character sound unique, make the goal seem out of their reach and, most of all, make what's stopping them even greater. At this point, it isn't a pitch any more whenever you have to reel off that sentence. You've said it about 500 times to your terrifying dog, so a guy in an elevator isn't going to be much of a threat. The main thing is, you've managed to think big but keep it small, and that's what anybody who is listening is going to appreciate most.