# Pilot — Series Format

> The first episode. Sales pitch + first episode. Most important script in a series.

## Format basics

- Length: matches series (22 min sitcom, 60 min drama, etc.)
- Establishes world, characters, tone
- Promises what audience signs up for
- Hook for episode 2

## Pilot's three jobs

### 1. Sell the show
- To network/streaming buyer
- To critics
- To audience
- Demonstrates ongoing potential

### 2. First episode
- Self-contained satisfying story
- Proper 3-act
- Standalone enjoyable

### 3. Establish world
- Characters introduced naturally
- Setting clear
- Tone set
- Rules/conventions established

## Structure (60-min drama pilot)

```
COLD OPEN (0-5 min)
- Hook
- Mystery/situation
- Often visceral

ACT 1 (5-15 min)
- Establish protagonist's normal world
- Inciting incident specific to show's premise
- First-act break

ACT 2 (15-35 min)
- Pursuit of episode-specific problem
- Introduce supporting cast
- Establish key dynamics
- Show what each episode might be like

ACT 3 (35-55 min)
- Resolution of episode-specific
- Setup of ongoing arcs
- Hook for episode 2

TAG (55-60 min)
- Quiet character moment
- Or major cliffhanger
- Audience commits to next episode
```

## Sample pilot beats

### Breaking Bad pilot
- Open: Walter White in underwear in desert, recording goodbye
- Establish: chemistry teacher, cancer diagnosis
- Inciting: police ride-along, sees drug bust
- Decision: cooks meth with former student
- End: situation deepens, hooked

### The Wire pilot
- Open: McNulty observing crime
- Establish: police world, drug dealers
- Inciting: case develops
- Multiple POV introductions
- End: war declared between sides

### Succession pilot
- Open: Logan Roy's birthday
- Establish: family + business
- Inciting: succession question
- Reveal: Logan won't step down
- End: power struggle begins

## Key principles

### Show what every episode will be like
The pilot is a promise. If pilot is murder mystery + romance + police, every episode should have those elements.

### Establish all main characters
Save guest stars for later. Pilot needs core ensemble in.

### Tone consistent with series
If series will be dark drama, pilot is dark drama. Don't mislead audience.

### Worldbuilding through action
Show setting through events, not exposition. Audience learns by watching.

### Strong hook for episode 2
Pilot ends with question/hook that demands episode 2.

## Sample pilot concept

```
TITLE: "Karavan" (drama series pilot, 60 min)

GENRE: Family drama + crime
LENGTH: 60 min
LOGLINE: When the patriarch of a Baku coffee importing family is
murdered, his three estranged children must reunite to run the
business — and find out which of them is next.

COLD OPEN (0-5 min):
- Wide of Baku at night, Caspian glittering
- ARIF ALIYEV (70) walks through his coffee warehouse, alone
- Phone call: someone is asking about a shipment
- He knows something is wrong
- He hides a small package in a coffee bag
- Returns to office
- Heavy footsteps approach
- He turns. Recognizes who's there. Says one word: "Sən?"
- Cut to: wide shot, Arif on warehouse floor, dead

(MAIN TITLES — Karavan logo with deep cinematic theme)

ACT 1 (5-15 min):
- Three children get the call
- ELDAR (40), corporate lawyer in London — takes call in middle of meeting
- NIGAR (37), restaurateur in Tbilisi — at her restaurant
- RAMIN (32), university lecturer in Berlin — at home with family
- Each prepares to travel to Baku
- We see their lives haven't intersected in years

ACT 2 (15-35 min):
- They arrive separately
- Family lawyer reveals: business goes to all three jointly
- They must work together to keep it
- The murder investigation begins
- Police suspect industry rivals
- The siblings tour the warehouse, the office, their father's home
- They discover their father had been investigating something
- A missing shipment of coffee from Yemen
- Documents hidden in his desk
- They start to suspect the murder was business-related

ACT 3 (35-55 min):
- Eldar wants to sell, return to London
- Nigar wants to investigate
- Ramin wants to walk away from everything
- They fight
- A second murder: their father's business partner
- Now they realize they may all be in danger
- They make a choice: stay together, run the business, find the killer

TAG (55-60 min):
- The three siblings stand together at the warehouse, late at night
- They close it up for the night
- As they walk to their cars, NIGAR pauses
- She has spotted the package their father hid
- She picks it up
- Inside: a USB drive
- She looks at her brothers
- She doesn't tell them yet

(End on: Nigar pocketing the USB, looking at her brothers,
choosing what to share and what to hide.)

(Score: Hans Zimmer-style suspense build.)
```

## Common pilot mistakes

- Too much exposition
- Tone inconsistent with series direction
- Pilot-specific story doesn't represent typical episode
- Saving "best stuff" for later
- Weak hook for episode 2
- Bloated cast (too many characters introduced)
- Genre confusion

## When to write pilot

- New series sale attempt
- Network/streaming buyer pitch
- Festival pilot programs
- Calling card script
- Series spinoff

## Pilot vs film

| Aspect | Pilot | Film |
|--------|-------|------|
| Resolution | Partial (sets up more) | Complete |
| Characters | Beginning of journey | Full arc |
| World | Establishing | Established |
| Length | 22 / 30 / 60 min | 90+ min |
| Hook | For episode 2 | For credits |
