Author: ChilltownTV

I'm primarily a writer. Sold a few series to tv networks and production companies but never had anything get on the air. So I taught myself how to animate and completed 3 digital series, launching two. The first, Chilltown has been named one of "Five Web Series That Should Be on Your Radar" by ABCNews/Univision and a "Show to Watch" by Tubefilter. The second, Lele's Ratchet Advice Show, garnered a fanatic cult following. As a result, I now do Lele's 60 Second Wrap Up, a weekly comedic entertainment report (which I write & perform) that airs on urban radio stations Rhythm 105.9fm and the Just Wake Up Morning Show on WWRNfm.

Leesa Dean: Adventures of a Web Series Newbie #90

Chapter 90 – Kill Your Darlings
by Leesa Dean

Bye, darlin'!
Bye, darlin’!

Short post this week cause I am BUSY!! Mostly doing rewrites, tightening, tweaking and finishing up the final few episodes of the Lele Show relaunch which has proved more daunting than I counted on.  I’m preparing a ridiculous amount of material and there’s so much to organize, write and polish.  But the one thing that stands out is: Kill your darlings.

What does that mean? It’s a phrase (possibly) coined by writer William Faulkner (“In writing, you must kill your darlings”) and, in general, known among a lot of writers, particularly screenwriters. It refers to throwing out jokes, lines, phrases, writing that you absolutely love love love but that don’t further the narrative. And that take away from it being tight and cohesive. Argh! It’s very tough to do. Especially when you’re writing comedy. And have to crank out joke after joke.

I’m raking the scripts over the coals. Tightening the narrative. Driving myself insane by cutting, tweaking, cutting.  Mourning the loss of certain punchlines. Making sure the tone remains intact. And redefining and settling/on accepting that tone. Reading different versions to a select group of trusted friends for opinions. And the conclusion I’ve come to is: The only thing that really helps is…time.  To give the piece space to gel and remove myself a bit so I can what really truly works. And…kill your darlings. read article

Leesa Dean: Adventures of a Web Series Newbie #89

game

Chapter 89: Game-Changer
by Leesa Dean

So, big news in the internet world this week.

First: Woody Allen partnered with Amazon Studios to do his first tv series. Which means it’s gonna be on Amazon Instant Video. Which is a game changer. It’s big. And says a lot about how things have been shifting in the world of tv. read article

Leesa Dean: Adventures of a Web Series Newbie #88

orange

Chapter 88: Hitting the Ground Running
by Leesa Dean

Happy New Year everybody.  I’m really looking forward to 2015.  A lot of exciting things happening.

I started off the year in a good way, meaning chilling a bit but mostly writing.  I connected with an old friend and we discussed some real building possibilities which I’m SUPER excited about.  It’s too soon to talk about them but if/when they progress, you’ll be hearing about it here first.

So, I did a lot of thinking over the holidays and really honed in on my strategizing.  Since I’m working on a number of projects I’m working on, I decided to actually lay out a time plan so I literally write/produce/promote one and once it’s off the ground, start on the next. Needless to say, the first one I’m focused on is the new and improved Lele Show.  I readjusted my plans for the show, tightened the writing and still have a bit more to finish.  I feel so good about what’s already in the can, it’s just a nice place to be. read article

Leesa Dean: Adventures of a Web Series Newbie #87

Chapter 87 – Ending Out The Year
by Leesa Dean

A lot of stuff going on.  Finally finished writing Season 2 of the Lele Show–well, mostly.

yt The scripts are done.  But the way the show is formulated, there are tons of inserts that need to written and thought out.

So, I have another month of doing that and recording the voiceovers.  Then I’m in production!! read article

Leesa Dean: Adventures of a Web Series Newbie #86

Chapter 86 – Learning from Justin Simien
by Leesa Dean

dearwhitepeopleSo while I’m still caught up writing, I’m also starting to focus a bit on promo, or, at least, getting a promo blueprint under way.

A great way to start, for me, was watching a talk with Dear White People director Justin Simien that was sponsored by Creative Live.

Justin started out as a publicist and worked for 8 years doing that at Paramount Pictures as well as a few other places in Hollywood. He actually specialized in online promo and social media campaigns. read article