The Edit | JD DeWitt on What Executives Want: Content Trends & Networking Secrets

Executive Producer JD Dewitt discusses what content studios are asking for and her advice on how to land a deal.

Encouragement and insight in under 15 minutes.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:04

What are some of these people looking for right now?

SPEAKER_01 0:06

The people that I speak to in Hollywood?

SPEAKER_00 0:09

Yeah, just anywhere. I mean, what are they looking for as far as content goes? Because it's kind of seems interesting right now. You kind of go through these shifts. It's funny, I sat down and I started watching a new, I love Peter Berg. And so I'm watching a new Western that he's done. And, you know, you kind of have to go like, okay, what am I watching? Right. But we also, as consumers, we want to watch and consume as much as we can so that we understand what is being put out there. And so, you know, we kind of go through these shifts in in entertainment. And so, you know, here they're making period pieces, and this is a new Western, and it's done really well. And you can tell that there's just a ton of money that's behind it. And, you know, and then you go to the next thing over on the, you know, the next thing you could pick on would be a rom com or whatever it is. But it seems like the culture right now is asking for a certain level of content. Do you see that with the people in the studios that you're talking to? Are they looking for, are they looking for certain types of content, whether it's Westerns or faith or family, or what what is it that you see is happening in the world today with entertainment and media?

SPEAKER_01 1:14

Yeah, they say words like we want culturally relevant. It used to be that they wanted just kind of dark, dark things. And now they're saying we want things that are affirming, things that are inspirational. And they're not speaking faith. They're just they just want uplifting content now, which is great. Um, in case any of your listeners have these projects, you know, they're looking for procedurals that are not that are not legal. Like they they want procedurals, non-cop procedurals. I don't know what that looks like. I have yet to find that. They want the next Friday Night Lights. These are, you know, examples that they give me of things are looking for the next Virgin River, the next, oh, I don't watch it on Netflix. Super popular with young, there's young kids as the cast. Why am I blanking? You forgot.

SPEAKER_00 2:08

Stranger things.

SPEAKER_01 2:09

Stranger things. Okay. I know. I'm like, what ones do we not watch? Okay, okay. Yeah. Yeah. So they they want what worked. They're not super keen on outside of the box things unless like the procedural that is outside of the box in their mind is they'll have that be talent-driven, right? But not legal, not cops. So what does that procedural look like? I don't know. But that's kind of what I think. Period. I've always get no period piece, no period piece, because we could and then like they make them every every time you turn on the TV, there's a new historical. So I have not unlocked that that mystery yet because I've been told that for you know 10 years. Right, right, right. I even books, it's like just period pieces is out, and I just so disagree with that. And I have period pieces on my slate, and I'm just waiting for the day where we can get those done. I don't know, I'll think of others as they come, but those are the main things. If you think about you know, Friday Night Lights is a family. I get a lot of we want what middle America would like. And I love that because that generally means some sort of family drama that doesn't have to be faith per se, but it can just be a really good drama. And what I'm working on is Saltwater Cowboys. I just optioned this book series that ticks off the boxes of Virgin River and Procedural, but it's not like a procedural on television. It's written by Christy Barrett, the author, I should say, optioned the book series. I don't have a script yet. And apparently this was a real thing. At the turn of the century, there are there were saltwater cowboys who rounded up wild horses on the beaches of South Carolina and kind of put them at a preservation and and preserved them and protected them as well as the small community so wild horses weren't trapped in through. Okay. So this author, Christy, wrote a series of modern day, because there are still today Saltwater Cowboys, which I had no idea. So it's a true story, yeah. And it's romance, it's mystery, it's beautiful. I mean, small town on a beach. Come on. So it's like Virgil River-esque. So that I just optioned that TV, that book series in December. And Christy has sold over five million books. Like the IP. I could not have, I couldn't believe it was available. I really thought I was my ask, I would be shut down. And I got it. So that's what I'm super excited about right now.

SPEAKER_00 4:49

I love that. Well, and that's such a great, I love okay. We're gonna lean into that because people are listening, and you know, they're they're first of all, you are now an executive producer, you're a showrunner, you're uh, and that's a big deal. People don't understand um those titles, but in the industry they're very important and they give credibility to setting the stage for the next piece of content that you're gonna be able to create, right? So, as somebody's listening right now, what would you tell someone that has an aspiration to have a television series or to write a book or they that exactly what you've just optioned, you know, uh what would you tell them, give them a couple steps that they would go through to encourage them and how they would work towards getting a series made with with a series like that?

SPEAKER_01 5:39

So I think networking is very important. I used to go to writers' conferences um at least three or four a year. I know that can be spendy. I would try to go to local ones and just build your network. Now I I think this can this is meant to be encouraging. It can sound discouraging, but it works. Um my my process for having such a great network of um executives that I have an open door to, I can pitch things to, was I I would never make a cold call um or anything like that. But what I do and have done probably for six or seven years is I will email an introduction, um, ask if I can go over their mandates, you know, just super brief. I don't pitch them anything. It's so inappropriate, right? So do things with a sense of etiquette and respect. But so I I wish I had an example. Um, I'll I'll email someone, a develop director of development at a production company or a studio or a pod company, and just say, hey, here here I am. I would love to chat with you if you have time in the next couple of weeks. Uh I would love to learn what your mandates are. This is what I've done, and leave it in their hands. I can email 35 people and and get a response from three. Like the percentage is like one percent. Right. That one per I have over a hundred contacts now. I mean, that's how many people I've had to email over the years. Well but have opened doors of um people that I normally would never have access to. And so you get on a call or a Zoom with them and you have that face-to-face, and you're respectful and you don't push anything. That's how I have made my connections. And it it sounds discouraging, like that one percent, but it it's so fruitful. And I have I've sold shows that way, just by these connections. So that's kind of what I would encourage people to do is just don't give up when you're ignored 30 times because it's that 31st person who might engage and and they love they love relationship. They don't want I know for me on LinkedIn if I make a connection with someone five seconds later, I have pitches and links and everything. And I it's so I don't know. It it's not like how dare you, it's not like that at all. It's just like, look, I don't even know you. Let's how about just say hi, introduce yourself. The people who say hi and thank you for connecting. I always I respond, I'm like, thank you for connecting. And that's that, right? It's just but but I will never open a link. It's just a shame that people are so forceful out there because you approach executives in LA that way, and I can't imagine anyone responding to you. So just be polite. Um, I've been told many times that I am pleasantly persistent, and it's always said with like a, I just know if you're annoying me or not yet. And I love it. And then I'm like, yeah, I know, I know I am.

SPEAKER_00 9:00

And you smile at them. But what I love what you're saying here is that it is really about building relationships. There is a relationship basis. You know, I used to tell this with mentoring the girls and working with different ones, I would always say, you know, build your relationship first. That is always what's going to continue to grow and shine through. And I think that's really valuable information. So growing your relationship, you know, looking at what are the mandates and then how can these people who are desiring to create something write something, or maybe they've already done that, maybe they've already created the IP. But just trying to, you know, step into it, build the relationship, and see how they can then cultivate that in a way that might be actually probably fruitful for both of them, you know, for the person who on both sides of it, you know.