Photo via NBPC
The National Black Programming Consortium (NBPC) has selected four winning projects from the NBPC 360 fund and incubator after its inaugural Pitch Black event.
Yes, the face of television is changing with a slew of popular shows starring African Americans emerging at the top of the ratings. But in order to keep the ball rolling, there has to be new material. Thus, the Harlem-based NBPC recently held its first pitching session. It put a call out to Black writers to come propose their scripted and non-scripted show ideas.
Four winners were selected for the fund and incubator for TV, Web and multimedia projects. The winners—chosen from eight production teams participating in the NBPC 360 intensive, six-week incubator—came out on top after battling it out at the Pitch Black pitching session, which drew the top names in public television, including CPB, PBS, WORLD Channel, ITVS, POV and WNET, but also saw attendance from HBO, A&E, Fox, BET, Tribeca All Access, and Third World Newsreel. The event awarded producing teams between $50,000 and $150,000 toward development funds to produce their pilot.
“I am extremely excited about the selected projects because they will bring vitally needed fresh perspectives and new voices to public media,” said NBPC Executive Director Leslie Fields-Cruz. “At the same time, I’m also incredibly proud of each and every one of the producers who participated in the inaugural launch of NBPC 360, because no matter where their projects land, they will also bring vibrant, engaging stories about the Black experience to American audiences.”
Three winners will develop their pilots over the next six months. Once pilots have been completed, the winning producing teams with the support of NBPC will then pursue broadcast and distribution opportunities for the programs.
Among the winners were:
My Africa Is by Nosarieme Garrick and Hassatou Diallo, a documentary series that highlights the diverse stories of African youth culture
Street Cred by Sultan Sharrief and Oren Goldenberg, a broadcast TV series that aims to show a more positive in-depth side of Detroit through Detroit High School students who learn entertainment producing skills and compete for a chance at a dream internship
POPS by Garland McLaurin and Jason Samuels, a humours documentary Web series that explores fatherhood from the point of three African-American men
And Pixie Dust by Damon Colquhoun and Shertease Wheeler, a scripted Web series that follows a teenage girl whose mentally ill mother stops taking her medication.
These sound like they could make for interesting viewing.
