Top Ten Animation Pitch Mistakes

Pitching - Hit the Bullseye

What is a pitch? A pitch is defined by Wikipedia as "a short summary used to quickly and simply define a profession, product, service, organization, or event and its value proposition". Animators often pitch their projects, hoping to get their own unique project off the ground.  

A great pitch is funny, interesting, grabs your attention, and makes the listener think "wow, that could really work".  A great pitch leaves the listener wanting more.  But pitching is harder than it sounds. Below are some of the most common mistakes in pitching.

Yibi Hu Explains Why Animators Need to Pitch

Yibi Hu, founder of Future Power Station

At yesterday's University of Hertfordshire annual student show, animator Yibi Hu, founder of the animation studio Future Power Station, explained the importance of crafting a great pitch. 

As Yibi Hu put it succinctly: "Pitch is a Bitch" - in essence a great deal of unpaid work for a potential client who might - or might not - like your creation. 

The conundrum is that you have to pitch to get the job, but all the work might be in vain. Pitching is free work, but you have to do it anyway.

CMC Wants Your Pitches by 13 June 2024

Children's Media Conference 9-10-11 July 2024 

The Children's Media Conference (CMC) in Sheffield wants your animation pitches.  

In the "Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is" pitch sessions, animation creatives pitch to the animation industry, much like on the BBC's "Dragon's Den".   The CMC takes place from 9-10-11 July 2024. The deadline for submissions is 13 June 2024. 

BBC Ignite Welcomes Animation Pitches

BBC "Ignite" deadline is 8 February 2024 at 2pm

BBC Children’s Animation are seeking submissions for fresh, bold and innovative animation ideas. The scheme is called "Ignite" and the deadline is 8 February 2024 at 2pm. 

For all our students at Animation Apprentice who have been working on short films - this is a perfect opportunity to pitch your materials to the UK's biggest broadcaster.

Get Ready for Cartoon Movie 8-10 March 2022

Cartoon Movie, the pitch-fest for animated films, is now taking applications.  The Deadline to submit a feature film project to Cartoon Movie is 17 November 2021. 

Cartoon Movie takes place in Bordeaux from 8-10 March 2022, and is now open for applications.

BBC Ignite Seeks Fresh Animation Ideas

BBC Ignite wants your pitches

BBC Children’s Animation are seeking submissions for fresh, bold and innovative animation ideas. The scheme is called "Ignite" and the deadline is Midnight on 1st September 2021. 

For all our students who have been working on short films for the past couple of years - this is a perfect opportunity to pitch your materials to the UK's biggest broadcaster.

Successful pitches will be given a "fully funded development opportunity" to bring their project to the small screen.

You don't need to have created any finished animation for your project; more important is an idea of the stories you want to tell and who the main characters are.  To see more, follow this link.

Cartoon Springboard 2021

Save the date! Submissions will open soon for Cartoon Springboard, the annual pitching event that takes place from October 27-29 in Valencia, Spain. 

Successful projects will pitch to industry delegates, including producers, broadcasters and sales agents, as our students seek ways to capitalise on the festival success of their films. 

Save The Date! Cartoon Forum 2021

Save the Date! Cartoon Forum is back - Europe's biggest TV pitch-fest for animation takes place in Toulouse, France, from 20 – 20 September 2021.

For all our students and graduates with an idea for an animated TV or web series, Cartoon Forum is the place to pitch it.

The deadline to submit your series project this year is in May. So, there is plenty of time to sharpen your pencils, fill out some forms - and make your pitch perfect.

Cartoon Forum 2020: Deadline 6 May

Cartoon Forum 2020

Cartoon Forum is Europe's biggest TV pitch-fest for animation, and takes place in Toulouse, France, from 14 – 17 September.

If you have an idea for a TV series in your head, Cartoon Forum is the place to pitch it.

The deadline to submit your series project this year is 6 May. So, you have a little more time to sharpen your pencils, fill out some forms - and make your pitch perfect.

Pitch Your Project at Animation Production Days

Animation Production Days in Stuttgart is an event that should be on every animator's radar.

Like Cartoon Movie and Cartoon Forum, APD offers a unique opportunity for animation graduates to pitch their ideas to producers, financiers and sales agents - the people who can bring original animation content to the market.

Cartoon Movie 2020: Deadline 20 November

Our student animators at Animation Apprentice are film-makers as well as animators, and many are developing their own ideas for original films and TV Series.

Of course, financing idea projects isn't easy, but the annual Cartoon Movie event in France is a good place to begin.

Nickelodeon Explains the Art of the Pitch

David Steinberg at Annecy

Animation veteran David Steinberg from Nickelodeon made a great presentation at this year's Annecy animation festival on how to pitch animation ideas to Nickelodeon.

Nick does most of the design and creation in house, but the "meat and potatoes" of animation is usually subcontracted out to other studios, often overseas, around the world.

So, what does Nickelodeon ("Nick", for short) look for in an animation pitch?

Cartoon Forum 2019: Deadline 8 May

Cartoon Forum: 16-19 September 2019

What is Cartoon Forum? And why should animators know about it?

Cartoon Forum is Europe's biggest TV pitch-fest for animation, so if you have an idea for a TV series in your head, Cartoon Forum is the place to pitch it.

The deadline to submit your series project this year is 8 May. So, you have a little more time to sharpen your pencils, fill out some forms - and make your pitch perfect.

Cartoon Movie 2017: Submit Your Project by 25 November

Do you have an idea for an animated feature film project you'd like to get off the ground?  If so, you should submit it to Cartoon Movie!

The Deadline to submit a feature film project to Cartoon Movie is 25 November 2016.  If your project gets selected, you will be able to pitch it to almost 1,000 animation and industry professionals from forty countries.

Present at Cartoon Movie will be around 200 buyers, including 120 distributors & sales agents.

But why should animation students want to pitch their feature film ideas? Because we think all our students should aim high - you could be the next Walt Disney or Jeffrey Katzenberg - an animation mogul!  Most of all...you'll never find out if you don't try.

Pitch Your Idea for a TV Series at Cartoon Forum!

What is Cartoon Forum? And why should animators know about it? Well, Cartoon Forum is Europe's biggest TV pitch-fest for animation, so if you have an idea for a TV series in your head, Cartoon Forum is the place to pitch it.

The deadline to submit your TV project is 11 May. So, you have just one week to sharpen your pencils, fill out some forms - and make your pitch perfect.

Submit Your Feature Film Project to Cartoon Movie!

Cartoon Movie - pitch your project

The Deadline to submit a feature film project to Cartoon Movie is 25 November 2015. Do you have an idea for an animated feature film project you'd like to get off the ground?

If so, you should submit it to Cartoon Movie! If your film gets selected, you will be able to pitch it to almost 1,000 animation and industry professionals from forty countries. Present at Cartoon Movie are 200 buyers, including 120 distributors & sales agents.

But why should animation students want to pitch their feature film ideas? Well, why not? We think all our students should aim high - you might be the next Brad Bird or Jeffrey Katzenberg. You'll never find out if you don't try.

How to Create a Great Animation Pitch

Learning to pitch is an important skill for any artist. Sooner or later you will be called on to persuade a client that you have a great idea to sell their product, or perhaps try to sell your own idea for a TV series or feature film to a network or production company. Either way, you're going to need to learn how to pitch your ideas. Pitching is not just about standing up and delivering a persuasive summary of your awesome idea, it's also about what should go into it in the first place. How much character work and design do you need to do? How well thought out does your story need to be?  In this excellent blog post, Disney designer Chris Oatley explains what goes into a great animation pitch and bible.

Got an Idea for a Feature Film? Submit it to Cartoon Movie by 26 November

Cartoon Movie 2014

The Deadline to submit a feature film project to Cartoon Movie is 26 November 2014. Are you looking for co-producers, financing and distributors for your animated feature film project? If so, you should submit it to Cartoon Movie! If your film gets selected, you will be able to pitch it to almost 1,000 animation and industry professionals from forty countries. Present at Cartoon Movie are 200 buyers, including 120 distributors & sales agents.

Where can Animators Pitch their Ideas to Producers?

The Big Pitch at TAAFI - the panel

Where can you Pitch your animation ideas? The trick with pitching is to find the folks who are actually in the market to buy new material. But short of camping outside the offices of the Disney Studios and begging for an interview, where can you go to pitch? One place worth trying is "The Big Pitch" at TAAFI, the Toronto Animated Art Film International. 

On Monday June 16th, the last day of TAAFI, various producers were present on stage and hearing pitches, all from studios describing themselves as “actively looking for content”. Two pitchers got to go head to head for the chance to sell their idea to a studio, and to win a prize.

Where can you pitch your idea for an animated feature film?

Cartoon Movie, like Cartoon Forum, should be on every animator's radar. It takes place in Lyon every year - in 2015 it will be held from 4-6 March. It is a huge pitch-fest for talent and business to get together and make independent animated feature films, and, like its cousin Cartoon Forum, you don't have to speak French - Cartoon Movie is bilingual and English is the main language spoken.

Cartoon Movie is the place to pitch your animated film idea. If you've got a concept for the next animated smash hit - this is the place to pitch it. The deadline is the end of November, so you have plenty of time to dream up a smash hit.