Make Your Own Show

When I started in television, everyone dreamed of airing a show on a big network. Unfortunately, making television cost a fortune. Cameras were big and difficult to move, editing required sophisticated and often custom-made equipment. You needed an advertising budget in the millions, not counting the free publicity you got from your network. Because of the high cost you had to get your show on a network in order to have a chance to make your money back.

Today, that's all changed. For a few hundred or at the most a few thousand dollars, you can have access to digital cameras and home editing systems that are as good or better than the ones professionals use. More importantly, You don't need a network. Sites like You Tube exist to provide you with a platform for airing your video. You do not have to convince some network honcho to give your program a chance; you can take it directly to the people, and promote it via the internet.

So if you have a program idea you believe in, don't wait. Make your own show! Buy or rent the equipment, or find a friend who owns it. Write the script. Make the storyboard. Get friends, or family, or people from the local college drama or film program to act in it. Once you have the final product, if you're proud of it, put it up on the internet.

This serves three purposes:

1. It demonstrates your passion for this project. No program idea can succeed unless its creator is passionate about it. If you don't care about the program, why should the audience?

2. You've created a pilot for the show. Some networks require a pilot before they'll consider a program idea. Putting the pilot on You Tube makes it easy for them -- You can send them a link to the site that shows your work, and they can make a determination at their desks.

3. Even if a network passes on the project, the show may catch on. You never know what will resonate with the public until you give them access to it. If your program becomes popular on the web, it will be much easier to sell to a network or even a movie studio.

Don't know how to shoot and edit a television show? Don't worry. There are books and web sites that can give you more information. You can take classes in video production at your local community college. And there are many consultants and production companies that can help you realize your vision if you don't feel confident creating it yourself. Consultants and production companies will expect to get paid, so make sure you have a clear understanding of what you want them to do and what your fee covers.

It's your idea. Why not make your own show?