25: Why a Pitch Deck is essential good news for your documentary

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I'm really excited as I am working on my latest documentary which is taking all sorts of curious twists and turns. It is called Violette's Playground, and set in a Victorian Cemetery near my mother's home, Kent, England. I have been coming here filming with my granddaughter Violette since the 2020 lockdowns. Violette has taken a shine to Philadelphia Carman who died in 1851 to unusual and otherworldly consequences. 

I needed a voice artist and decided the best way to get my vision across for Emily, the actress, was to create a pre-production Pitch Deck. She found the Deck much more helpful than simply words. I have just looked at your synopsis and it looks terrific. I love the interwoven of past and present; the connection of TB and Covid and the spiritual resonance between Philadelphia and you. Please do count me in. It would be an absolute pleasure. I will start tracking down an East Sussex accent and let you know what I find.

An awesome Pitch Deck quickly gets my attention. An intriguing PDF can be the difference between me loving your project and being just another attachment in my already way too stuffed inbox... A Deck cuts through the noise. Nick Sadler  - SCRIPT MAGAZINE

TIPS from Sundance Film Festival

• Use your Deck creatively
• Think about the fonts, the images, layout, and try to communicate your vision
• Everything stylistically in the Deck helps give the viewer a sense of the tone, approach, and creativity of the filmmaker’s vision and intent

WHAT IS A PITCH DECK AND
HOW TO CREATE ONE?

A Pitch Deck is a visual presentation of your documentary. Instead of showing a synopsis which is full of words, the Pitch Deck is full of visuals along with the words; the style can be as dramatic or soft, conventional or quirky as you like, reflecting the theme and topic of your documentary.

Why would you want to create one?

Statistics show that a Pitch Deck for promoting creative work is becoming THE GO component for promoting your artistic work. (And not just for films, for any project you want to promote or get funding for.)

If you are asking for money or collaboration, those interested will get a clear idea of the end result and a real feel for your project.

Future collaborators such as

• cinematographer
• funders
• editor
• sound designer will be able to get a real grasp of what you want through the visuals and the text. ​

A Deck can be made at any point in the production process, and used for different occasions and reasons. Once you have the blueprint, you can expand upon it as you move along in the production process​.

How to do it?
You can use any tool to make the presentation which allows you to create a PDF. Canva is my go-to in all occasions that need graphics. It is free, and unless you want to get into paying monthly to use their Canva Pro, which has a huge archive to play around with, you really don't need it. The free version gives a huge scope.

You can also use any of these tools to create your Deck which allows you to export it as a PDF:

Issue. Google Slides. Lucidpress. Powerpoint. Keynote.
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What do you include? 

• A killer title page
• Your logline, synopsis and genre/theme
• Your approach and style - directors notes
• The mood and feel of your documentary
• Target Audience details
• Financial resources needed
• Time needed to finish documentary
• Your Bio, and your team (if you have one)​​

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Thank you for passing by. Have a great week, and, carry on experimenting!

Jeanne
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