Despite viewers’ ability to binge a TV series in a few days, producing them can take years, and after a year-long program in collaboration with ATX TV Festival, UT students in TSTV’s Incubator Program learned firsthand the effort that goes into creating a pilot episode.
In their first-ever collaboration, ATX TV Festival screened five student-made pilots at the Paramount Theatre on May 29. The original pilots included horror-infused courtroom drama “The Division,” mystery-thriller “Earshot,” dark comedy “Hag Ridden,” coming-of-age drama “Let There Be Light” and absurdist satire “Hysterical.”
“(This experience) really set the tone for the art I hope to make in the future,” said Sarah Barker, co-writer and director of “Let There Be Light,” which follows a grief-stricken college freshman struggling between her religious identity and burgeoning sexuality. “It’s eye-opening to how much work it is and how much you have to commit yourself to your art.”
After a selective application process, the Incubator Program chose only 20 aspiring filmmakers, and only five scripts proceeded to production. Aside from receiving feedback on their pilots and advice from various guest speakers throughout the program, students independently ran their own productions, said Jakob Ortiz, co-writer and co-director of “The Division.”
“That shows the talent level we have at UT Austin,” Ortiz said. “And where the program is being led and taken by, honestly, just students.”
“The Division” follows a naïve lawyer who must investigate a four-victim murder case that reeks of paranormal activity. In retrospect, Ortiz said, he feels astonished that his team took on such an ambitious project, which, in addition to a tight turnaround time, included extensive research over real legal practices.
“As far as what all of us have learned is that these things take a lot more time than a lot of people think,” Ortiz said. “Luckily, we had a lot of talented people around us, so we were able to push through.”
While Ortiz recently graduated, Barker and Oscar Wisner, writer and director of “Earshot,” which follows a blind elderly man uncovering a murder mystery with only sound as his guide, joined Incubator during their freshman year. The program provided an unusually productive experience for first-year film students. Wisner said he feels a drive to keep up the creative momentum started by the pressure-cooking nature of the Incubator program.
“Now I’m like, ‘OK, next year, how about I just do this on my own?’” Wisner said. “What’s stopping me?”
Students formed strong connections with each other during the long hours on set and in post-production, something Barker said is invaluable, especially at the beginning of one’s film career.
“The whole thing was a huge learning curve,” Barker said. “But it’s the most exciting, beautiful thing to work with people who are just as passionate about filmmaking as you are.”
Select pilots receive the opportunity to be made into continuing series on TSTV, and most directors, such as Wisner, don’t want to abandon their brain children too quickly. If presented with the opportunity, Wisner said he would love to develop the story and characters of “Earshot” even further.
“I’ve been working on it for so long, (and) I do really feel attached to it,” Wisner said. “Now, I want to see what happens next.”
