One of MIDPOINT’s programs dedicated to TV series writing and development, the Writers’ Room, is a sidebar module of the project-based 9-months long TV Launch and is designed to support the training of specialized skills and offer practical knowledge about the organization of a writers’ room.
MIDPOINT Writers' Room 2019
Series
Archive
Organizational information
The one-off event runs in 4 training days and consists of lectures, plotting and writing training, and simulation of a writers’ room. The program runs in the English language.
Dates and venues
November 4 - 9, 2019
Prague, Czech Republic
Who is it for?
- writers
- creative producers with some experience in writing and the ambition of becoming creators/showrunners
Eligible countries
all Europe (primary focus on Central and Eastern Europe)
Contact person
Katarina Tomkova
Program Coordinator
katarina.tomkova@midpoint-institute.eu
"The MIDPOINT Writer's Room is a rare professional experience not easily acquired. It is run on a very high level, led by leading professionals in the business. Essential for anyone looking to write a TV series."
Sarit Zadok
Writer, Writers' Room 2020 alumna
Participants
Tutors
Gabor Krigler
Hungary
Gabor’s career began in the writing staff of a daily serial at Grundy UFA in 1999. He became Creative Executive at the Budapest office of HBO Europe in 2010, responsible for all creative aspects of ...
Complete bio
Maggie Murphy
United States
Maggie Murphy is an independent Executive Producer. She worked 8 years for Shaftesbury U.S. and founded the company’s Los Angeles-based division focused on development for the U.S., Canadian, and ...
Complete bio
Methodology
The single participants, entering the program as talents looking into enhancing their craft and writing skills, will get acquainted with the structure, hierarchy and processes running in a writers’ room from two different perspectives: the American and the European. Theoretical lectures and plotting exercises will be offered alongside the simulation.
The program’s graduates will acquire knowledge and skills connected to the processes occurring during TV series writing, such as creative teamwork, joint brainstorming, and creating or following one unified narrative voice and vision as well as the structure of a TV series episode itself.
Lectures
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LecturesLectures
A Writers' Room Inside OutGabor Krigler, Maggie Murphy
November 04, 2019 | NTK / Educational CenterUnwrapping the mystery of organizing a writers’ room, its purpose, hierarchy and the roles of the writers in it, Maggie Murphy (US) and Gabor Krigler (HU) will talk about their extensive experience with this powerful “tool”, shedding a light on how a European writers’ room might differ from the American one or if it works differently when writing a procedural and serialized show.
Pilots - The Alpha and the OmegaMaggie Murphy
November 04, 2019 | NTK / Educational CenterWith more than 25 years of experience in the television business, Maggie Murphy (Ally McBeal, Chicago Hope, Veronica Mars, Malcolm in the Middle and many more), will discuss the highlights of the most powerful and critical parts of a pilot script: the beginning and the end. In the market of television where there are hundreds of shows to watch - how to break out of the clutter. It is critical to hook the audience in the first 10 or 15 pages. This is the heart of a show - the make it or break it. Maggie will screen an assortment of iconic pilot openings and analyze why they keep the audience mesmerized. There will also be discussion on the ending of your pilot and how it must also be equally strong to bring the audience back for more.
Writing a Great PilotGabor Krigler
November 04, 2019 | NTK / Educational CenterGabor Krigler, the founder of Joyrider TV and former Creative Executive and Producer at HBO Hungary, will explain why the pilot episode must serve many different needs. First and foremost, it has to be a great story itself but it also must set up a long, ongoing narrative. He will be looking at the various elements that need to be introduced in a pilot to hook the audience and make them want more of your stories.
FUNDERS
