Speaking
If you’d like me to run a speak at your event drop me a line with your request.
Previously…
GETTING THE GREENLIGHT: How to Get Your Factual TV Programme Commissioned
Wednesday 16th November, 2011 – BVE North, Manchester
HOW TO PITCH FOR BUSINESS: Ten Lessons From Successful TV Producers
Wednesday 25th May 2011 – Walthamstow Library, High Street, Walthamstow, London, E17 7JN
HOW IDEAS GET ON TV
Tuesday 8th March 2011 – Walthamstow Library, High Street, Walthamstow, London, E17 7JN
World Women’s Day Event
TOP TIPS FOR PITCHING YOUR TV IDEAS
Wednesday 16th February, 2011 – Directors UK (members only)
GETTING THE GREENLIGHT: HOW TO GET YOUR FACTUAL IDEAS COMMISSIONED
Tuesday 15th February, 2011 – Producers’ Theatre, The Production Show, Earls Court 2, London
TEN REASONS YOUR IDEAS AREN’T GETTING COMMISSIONED
Tuesday 8th February, 2011 – Development Producers Group Meeting
Ten simple things that can stop even the best ideas being commissioned.
DEVELOPING FACTUAL TV IDEAS FROM CONCEPT TO PITCH
Friday 21st January, 2011 – City Business Library, Aldermanbury, London EC2V 7HH
Are you an author or expert with an idea for a TV programme based on your book, business or hobby? Find out what it takes to get an idea on TV in this session packed with insider information, case studies and down-to-earth advice from a TV veteran who has successfully (and not so successfully) pitched hundreds of programmes in the UK and abroad.
HOW TO SUCCESSFULLY PITCH FOR BUSINESS: TEN LESSONS FROM TOP TV PRODUCERS
Wednesday 8th December 2010 – Walthamstow Library, High Street, Walthamstow, London, E17 7JN
Whether you are pitching a product, a service or yourself there are a number of key principles to winning business in a tough and competitive marketplace. Nicola Lees, who has successfully pitched eighty TV shows in a market where fewer than 1 in 100 pitches go through to the next round, brings an entertaining new perspective to help you brush up your business skills and grab your buyers’ attention. Distilling more than a decade’s experience and interviews with more than 50 top international buyers, this session uses case studies of successful programmes from The Apprentice to Supernanny to reveal the ten key steps to winning new business.
TOP TIPS FOR GETTING YOUR FACTUAL IDEAS ON TV
Waterstones, 203/206 Piccadilly, London - Tuesday 28th September 2010
An exclusive master class for members of Women in Film and Television. Nicola Lees reveals, in ten entertaining lessons, how to successfully develop and pitch your non-fiction TV ideas. The master class is followed by a Q&A and book signing.
HOW TO GET 100% OF YOUR IDEAS COMMISSIONED… MAYBE
Entertainment Master Class, Banff, Canada – Friday 18th June, 2010
Drawing on interviews with fifty international commissioners and producers, this session looks at the various ways that internationally successful factual programmes were originated, developed, pitched and commissioned. Each case study reveals an important principle about development and pitching best practice.
Visit the Entertainment Master Class
TEN STEPS TO SUCCESSFUL TV DEVELOPMENT
Entertainment Master Class, Banff, Canada – Friday 18th June, 2010
Most TV creatives believe they have great ideas; most commissioners wish they heard more good ideas. So why is there such a disconnect? It’s because TV development and pitching is a discrete and specialized discipline with its own set of rules and grammar. The trouble is, the principles of a good pitch are rarely talked about, let alone taught.
Illustrated with real-life stories of how internationally successful and award-winning programmes were originated and commissioned, this course gives participants an overview of the development process and all the professional tips, tricks and insider information they need to pitch commissionable ideas again and again. The session is designed to be interactive, with delagates sharing their own experiences and tips.
Visit the Entertainment Master Class
HOW TO PITCH
BECTU Freelancers’ Fair – Friday 11th June, 2010
Commissioners give fewer than 1 in 100 programme proposals a second glance: how can you make yours grab their attention? This session distills more than ten years experience and interviews with fifty top international producers and commissioners, to reveal the insider development tricks and pitching secrets no one ever teaches you. Find out how what initially turns buyers on to an idea – and what guarantees that a proposal will get turned down before you’ve finished your pitch.
“Nicola’s presentation was actually very useful and honest; Nicola is the first speaker I’ve heard who tells the truth about getting a commission. Very insightful,”
Read the review on BECTU