At one of our resume editing webinars recently, an aspiring writer asked:
Is there any resume-related use of having pitched shows at Networks but never sold anything?
Obviously, no one is pitching or writing anything to the networks right now, but I still thought it’d be worth answering for anyone looking for other kinds of work.
No, with a But…
At it’s core, pitching a script to a development executive is the same thing as applying for a job. You wouldn’t put “I applied to a job at [company], but they rejected me” on your resume, right?
Resilience is good; you should keep trying after you get rejected. But no one else needs to know how often you’ve applied and failed. It’s called “social proof.” At a certain point, they’ll start to wonder what everyone rejecting you knows that they don’t.
So, no, you can’t put it on your resume, but it is good life experience.
Yes, with an If…
As former TAPAs have written, when you’re applying for a PA job, you should never mention that you’re an aspiring writer. The only thing worse than that is saying, “What I really want to do is direct.”
But PAing or assisting is likely just a stepping stone for your career. Having a pitch rejected can be helpful in advancing your writing career, if you frame it correctly.
Name dropping is a perfectly valid tactic. When you’re meeting with an agent or manager, you can absolutely say, “Oh, yeah, I met so-and-so to pitch a project. It didn’t go anywhere, but you know how it is. He’s a good guy! Maybe we can show him this other script I wrote.”
That’s jujitsu social proof right there.
Be Prepared
All of that is advice for someone who’s had opportunities to pitch their story ideas. Not everyone is at that point, yet.
Are you still at the start of your career? Do you really want to be ready to get started? Join us for one of our resume editing webinars, where we’ll show you how to create a resume for the entertainment industry, built from the ground up–
