SeriesFest

🎟️ FREE EVENT - Denver, CO | Join Claire Taylor Smith, SeriesFest Chief Programming Officer, for a conversation on the evolving trends in episodic storytelling and the future of building IP across film, television, digital, social, and beyond.

Writer Square in Downtown Denver, CO
Saturday, October 3
5:30 PM

No tickets required. Be sure to arrive early and check the map to find us!

Learn more: cinematoasthouse.com

Meet the pitchers taking the stage at the Pitch-A-Thon! Roadshow at Twin Cities Film Fest!

On Saturday 10/17, three original series will be pitched live to an expert panel featuring Michael Rucker (EP, Director, PROJECT RUNWAY), Erich C. Smith (Senior Talent Agent, TCA MGMT), and Crystal Holt (EP, Saviaj Media).

Taking the stage to pitch their projects:

🎬 Nicole & Michael Sebastian (Divine Guidance Institute) — “The ONE”
🎬 Tahara Lopez (Tahara) — “Dough Minguez”
🎬 Jasia Ka (Jasia (Ya-sha) 🔭🌸🌴🏴‍☠️) — “Flyover State”

Each pitch will have the floor for 5 minutes, followed by live feedback from the panel. One winner will receive a pass to SeriesFest: Season 13 in Denver, CO, April 23–27, plus air travel courtesy of Twin Cities Film Fest.

📍 Twin Cities Film Fest | Edina Mann Theatre, Edina, MN
📅 Saturday, Oct 17
⏰ 2:15 PM CT
🎟️ twincitiesfilmfest.org

A special thank-you to our panelists for lending their time & expertise, for providing expert pitch coaching to our selected creators, and to Twin Cities Film Fest for their continued partnership on this event.

Meet the mentors and writers of the Next50 Foundation + SeriesFest TV Writing Lab!

This October, 3 emerging writers will come together in Denver for an intensive three-day lab focused on developing original episodic stories that challenge perceptions of aging through nuanced, authentic, and surprising portrayals of older adults.

We’re thrilled to welcome our 2026 writers:

⭐️ Hannah Cheesman - Writer, BADGER
⭐️ Jenny Rachel Weiner - Writer, MULE
⭐️ Elijah Guo - Writer, CECIL’S WORLD

They’ll be joined by an incredible group of industry mentors:

⭐️ Teri Weinberg - President, Yellow Brick Road
⭐️ Elsie Choi - Head of Scripted TV, CJ ENM America / Studio Dragon Global
⭐️ Alex Maggioni - Head of Television, LAIKA Live Action
⭐️ Betsy Leighton - Producer / Writer, Call to Adventure Media

The TV Writing Lab takes place October 28-30, 2026, in Denver, Colorado, in partnership with Foundation, with support from and Call to Adventure Media.

We can’t wait to see where these stories go next!

seriesfest.com/next50-lab

🎉 Congrats to 18 to 35 co-creators Charlie Whalley & Rahul Chaturvedi for their winning pitch at our Pitch-A-Thon! Roadshow in Toronto! Fantastic work 🤝

Special thanks to the other pitchers Preeti (DEMONS) and Weston McElhaney x wade mcelhaney (CODEPENDENT) as well as our industry expert panelists: Neil Haverty, Leslie Cohen, & Christina Fon, and to TIFF & Working Artist Group for their incredible support.

Submit for your chance to pitch at our next event at SeriesFest.com.

TIFF

This Welcoming Week, is proud to be a founding partner of Patchwork of Us — a collective digital quilt celebrating what welcoming looks like across Colorado. 🪡

At SeriesFest, we believe storytelling is a powerful way to broaden perspectives and create a sense of belonging. Through our work with artists and storytellers, we strive to ensure more voices have the opportunity to be heard, both here in Colorado and around the world.

We’re proud to join and fellow organizations across Colorado in showing what welcoming looks like in our communities.

Meet the panelists and pitchers taking the stage at the Pitch-A-Thon! Roadshow at TIFF: The Market 🎤

This Tuesday 9/15, three original series will be pitched live to an expert panel featuring Neil Haverty (Director of Membership & Talent Development ), Leslie Cohen (Acquisitions Advisor Rola Entertainment), and Christina Fon (VP of Strategic Partnerships & Scripted Content, Shaftesbury), moderated by SeriesFest CEO & Co-Founder Randi Kleiner.

Taking the stage to pitch their projects:

🎬 Weston McElhaney + Wade McElhaney — CODEPENDENT
🎬 Charlie Whalley + Rahul Chaturvedi — 18 TO 35
🎬 Preeti Torul — DEMONS

Each pitch will have the floor for 5 minutes, followed by live feedback from the panel.

📍 TIFF: The Market | Metro Toronto Convention Centre, Stage 4
📅 Tuesday, September 15
⏰ 5 PM EDT

We can’t wait to see these creators take the stage in Toronto!

Meet the industry experts who will hear the pitches at the Pitch-A-Thon! Roadshow at Twin Cities Film Fest 🎤

We’re thrilled to welcome Michael Rucker (Executive Producer / Director), Erich C. Smith (Senior Talent Agent, TCA MGMT), and Crystal Holt (Executive Producer, Saviaj MEDIA) to the expert panel.

There are just a few days left to submit! Selected creators will have five minutes to pitch their original series live to the panel, followed by feedback from these industry professionals.

Submissions close September 17.

👉 Submit at seriesfest.com

The Pitch-A-Thon! Roadshow takes place at Twin Cities Film Fest in Minnesota on October 17, 2026.

🎬 There’s still time to get your application together!
The Early Bird Deadline for the Women Directing Mentorship with shondaland is September 15: Your last chance to submit at the reduced entry fee.

One selected director will receive the opportunity to shadow a director on an episode of a Shondaland Original Series, gaining firsthand experience inside a professional television production.

Head to seriesfest.com/wdm to learn more about this exciting professional development opportunity and apply for consideration.

SeriesFest and Artie the Dog are teaming up for a free webinar exploring new ways for creators to fund their projects.

Learn how Artie is connecting creators with brands and other funding partners right NOW, including two new opportunities with a major cosmetics brand and a consumer hardware brand offering up to $150,000 to fund original series on YouTube Shorts.

✨ Register at SeriesFest.com and the link in our bio.

We’ll cover:
✅ What Artie is and how it supports creators
✅ Current funding opportunities
✅ How to apply through the Artie platform
✅ How Artie assists with tax credits and 3rd party investment
✅ A Fireside Chat with Chris Brancato, led by SeriesFest
✅ Q&A with the Artie team

During the fireside chat with Showrunner and Artie Advisor Chris Brancato, we’ll explore the evolving creator landscape and how new funding models are getting projects made.