Lesley Goldberg, a television industry expert, shares insights from her latest survey of top writers on improving TV development. Topics include the surprising resurgence of mini-rooms, with writers advocating for their return, and how Zoom pitching has altered the landscape, creating new opportunities. She discusses the need for better training for showrunners and highlights Amazon's growing role in film distribution. The conversation ultimately reveals the urgent need for fair compensation and creative control in today’s evolving industry.
Writers are advocating for the return of mini-rooms to address shorter development times and insufficient paid opportunities in the industry.
The emergence of actor-driven pods is reshaping creative control, complicating access for writers and raising concerns about storytelling's future direction.
Deep dives
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Shifts in TV Development and Writers' Rooms
There is a notable shift in TV development with shorter episode orders and longer development periods, impacting the dynamics of writers' rooms. Established television practices, such as mini rooms, which provided paid opportunities for writers, have been eliminated, causing concern among both newcomers and seasoned professionals. Many writers express frustration over the imbalance between development time and the time spent in actual writing environments, limiting their growth and skill acquisition. As budgets tighten, the traditional methods of nurturing talent are evolving, raising questions about the future of writing careers in the industry.
The Role of Actors in Creative Control
The rise of actor-driven pods in television production is changing the landscape of creative control within projects. These pods allow actors to take on executive producer roles, which can provide additional income and influence on productions, although they often shift focus away from writing talent. Writers find themselves competing against established actors for attention, complicating access to green-lit projects. This trend raises concerns about the future direction of storytelling, as non-writers gain more creative power in the development process.
Challenges for Emerging Writers
Emerging writers face significant challenges in a competitive landscape where staffing opportunities are scarce and oversaturated. With shows receiving hundreds of submissions for a handful of positions, newcomers struggle to make their mark amid established writers' networks. These dynamics are exacerbated by the decline of networks like CW, which previously served as a crucial entry point for new talent. As the industry shifts post-strike, the path to gaining experience and recognition for new writers has become increasingly difficult, prompting a call for systemic changes to support the next generation.
TV shows take longer to develop, writers rooms are shorter and naturally “no one wants to continue to work for free,” says Lesley Goldberg, who joins Sean McNulty and Elaine Low to share her survey of top writers on how they’d fix TV. There’s Shawn Ryan’s proposal to better train showrunners in writers rooms; details on how Zoom pitching creates opportunities; and why once-loathed mini-rooms need to return. Plus: Amazon’s curioustheatrical push.
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