By Don Robert
Senior Vice President of Research, AETN

We looked at some of the top unscripted series on cable in 2010 and came up with 8 key observations:

It is still important to BE FIRST with an idea.  Deadliest Catch, Pawn Stars, Intervention, Project Runway — they all looked and felt different and unique when they first hit the tube. If you’re first with a great concept and execute it well, you can have a hit for years as these shows have demonstrated.

If you can’t be first, then be BEST — which usually means you need to find the best characters.  Billy wasn’t TV’s first exterminator, but his larger-than-life personality made him #1 in the category. Kat von D wasn’t the first tattoo artist and Teresa wasn’t the first housewife, but they are both break-out characters that have...

Can producers evolve beyond the work-for-hire model? Who retains rights?

A recent post (NOV, 2011) at documentarytelevision.com offers up 5 of the MOST POPULAR MISTAKES Original Content Producers make when pitching their shows to Network Exectutives.  Sohini Das, a development executive at MTV has seen the same mistakes over and over, and gives some advise on how best to avoid them.

1.  Producers don't listen
2.  Producers don't do their homework
3.  Producers don't research their idea
4.  Producers can't answer the question: "What's the show?"
5.  Producers don't take "No!" for an answer

To read the full article and learn how to avoid these common mistakes, click here.

This November 8, 2011 article on documentarytelevision.com offers great insight into how producers and networks develop such killer hits as Pawn Stars -- ranking #1 for its demo.  The article includes a few videos with the key players, including Executive Producer, Mary Donahue from History.

Check it out.

Hey, thanks for stopping by! 

Veritas Film & Television, LLC (fka Scraper Media Group) is a Multimedia Creative Development Company, specializing in Development Production for unscripted original TV content and feature film screenwriting.  VFT also offers a number of x-platform services including Theatrical Creative, TV GFX and Commercial Development.

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