24-02-2022

FNE Innovation: Pitch the Doc: Online Hub for Documentary Professionals and Industry Events

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    Pitch the Doc is an innovative online platform dedicated to documentary projects, that provides functionalities based on international pitching standards and allows to keep presentations of documentary film projects complete, updated and easily searchable.

    Industry decision-makers from all over the world have constant access to carefully curated content of complete documentary production packages compliant with industry standards. Through cooperation with various market initiatives Pitch the Doc improves common experiences and international activities in the documentary market and has become a valuable hub for creating new contacts and maintaining relations established during pitchings, coproduction meetings and markets.

    The market platform solution offered by Pitch the Doc has proven to be especially valuable in the time of the Covid-19 pandemic, making it possible to maintain contacts among the people of film and facilitate constant development and growth of documentary projects based on this existing resource, its functionalities and relations already established within the PtD online environment. The marketplace character of the platform, mobility, accessibility for authors and producers from low audiovisual capacity territories, versatility, transnationality, personalization and professionality are the features that, combined with the ecological factor of carbon fingerprint reduction, let PtD close many gaps and provide additional value to on-site industry solutions and the professional documentary environment.

    For Documentary Authors

    Pitch the Doc is a secure place for uploading a complete package of materials, from the synopsis, director’s note and treatment, the crucial elements that can attract and persuade industry professionals looking at the project, to stills, trailers/teasers and other visual materials connected to it. Documentary producers can record their pitch live via a webcam or upload a video file. They post key data about the project (budget, cast info, creator’s profile with a portfolio), which is more detailed than a traditional paper catalogue and easily editable. This complete producer's package put in an organized way is a key to draw the attention of coproducers, sales agents, festival programmers and all other industry professionals searching for a certain type of a project. All this information can be easily exported into a PDF file.

    The documentary filmmakers can browse for decision-makers interested in a specific type of projects and invite them to take a closer look at their work (the “knock knock” feature). Thanks to the “invite” feature they can send invitations to professionals outside the platform to let them learn more about the project. Only validated industry professionals can see details about the projects, so Pitch the Doc is a secure place for sharing ideas. Also sharing the project with registered Authors of their choosing is a great way for PtD members to find other collaborators.

    Every film proposal is validated by the platform’s consultants – the authors receive feedback so they can be sure that their project package is professional from the industry’s standpoint. In addition, they can order in-depth consultation with documentary experts from different fields (pitching and strategy consultants, filmmakers, producers, marketing experts).

    For Industry Decision-makers and Producers

    Pitch the Doc offers professionals in the field of documentary cinematography access to attractive, curated projects from all around the world. All key info about the project is in one place: production details, crew, budget info, synopsis, video pitch and more. It's an easy way to stay updated and be aware of new emerging documentary projects, as well as follow the development of chosen projects thanks to change-log information. After its completion a project can be tagged “just completed”. Via the link to the creator’s profile the decision-maker can find other exciting projects by the same author.

    Pitch the Doc is an easier and faster way of networking than one-to-one meetings and presents only legitimate projects from real creators thanks to a curation process. Users have detailed search criteria at their disposal, information about projects is presented in a standardized way and all projects are curated by our team of consultants – so there is no risk of searching through first drafts and undeveloped ideas. Thanks to the “follow” feature industry professionals are automatically notified about major changes & milestones in the desired project. They can also “hide” chosen projects, so they will not appear in the search results. All the important information can be easily exported to a PDF file.

    For Partner Organizations and Events

    Pitch the Doc helps extend the impact of documentary events on participants and guests through cooperation that always creates added value: for participating projects – maintaining connections from the event, for invited professionals - staying in touch with projects, and for the initiative as such – monitoring and evaluating the event’s impact.

    Our labeling program enables the identification of projects participating in a partner's initiative or event, with their clearly visible logo. Additionally, the name of the event will be added to the search criteria, allowing interested film professionals to easily find participating projects.

    The EOS sub-platform’s system creates a dedicated, separate space for the purposes of industry initiatives and events, their participating projects, invited experts, and guests. Based on Pitch the Doc’s structure, this is a secure and friendly environment to prepare, consult and finally present a documentary project. The sub-platform can work as a complementary solution for workshops, consultations or training, as a preparation platform for pitching sessions – online and physical, or as an additional online catalog or presentation space.

    PtD offers its partners a “private” module that allows to present a set of video materials to a group of identified viewers. It can be used as a showcase for jury members, or for internal pitching presentations or voting purposes. Each video can be shortly described, and also linked to the full presentation at Pitch the Doc.

    Pitch the Doc Prize is an award given to boost the progress of the credited project, providing it with dedicated curation and support in building its international recognition and visibility. Consultation is held by an expert associated with Pitch the Doc, and takes place within 6 months of the Prize announcement, provided that the project is successfully validated on the platform. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. if you would like to learn more or to include the PtD Prize in your event.

    PtD Viewer Mobile App

    PtD Viewer is a newly introduced handy mobile app available exclusively for Pitch the Doc members, that will accompany all users in the documentary market, both in physical and online contacts. It allows for showcasing of the essential components of documentary project anytime from anywhere, and also sending quick invites to prospective partners to preview full pitching packages. The tool is very popular with PtD users and will be supplemented with new functionalities in the future.

    About the Authors

    Adam Papliński

     Adam Papliński: co-founder & CEO – active on the film market for over 30 years, and for more than 20 years exclusively in the documentary industry. Producer, production manager, consultant and tutor at international workshops, jury member at various film festivals, coordinator of documentary trainings and pitching events in Poland, Russia, Ukraine and Belarus. Pitch the Doc, founded in 2016 is the extension of his market activities. Adam Papliński is Member of Polish Filmmakers Association, Documentary Association of Europe and International Documentary Association.

     

     

    Katarzyna Szarecka

    Katarzyna Szarecka: co-founder & COO - consultant and trainer for projects’ development, managing and financing. She specializes in the structuring of projects' concepts and in their development, describing and budgeting issues. Involved in the Pitch the Doc initiative from its beginning. She is responsible for designing, development and implementation of the platform’s new features for users and partners, as well as for networking and market cooperation.