We get cold pitches every week at Bano Studios. Some are great — clear, specific, well-targeted. Most are not. The difference rarely comes down to the quality of the underlying idea; it comes down to how the pitch is structured. This is the playbook we wish every director had read before sending us their cold email.
Step 1 — Research before you write
Most rejected pitches die in the first sentence because the writer didn't bother to research the company. We've gotten pitches for romantic dramas (we don't do those), for crypto thrillers (we don't do those), for two-hour documentaries (we don't do those). All would have been deflected with five minutes of research.
Before you pitch any production company, answer:
- What kind of films do they make? Watch at least three from the last 18 months.
- Who do they typically partner with? Directors, writers, producers — see the credits.
- What's their recent press? Are they raising? Acquiring? Hiring?
- Do they have an open submissions policy or do they only take referrals?
If your pitch doesn't reflect any of this research, the company will assume you spam-emailed every studio in the country. They're usually right.
Step 2 — The 1-paragraph logline
The logline is the entire elevator pitch in one sentence. If you can't write it in one sentence, you don't have a pitch yet — you have an idea.
The structure that works:
"When [protagonist] [inciting incident], they must [goal] before [obstacle/stakes]."
Examples that work:
- "When a young Lagos undertaker discovers her latest body is the cousin she never met, she must solve his murder before his family arrives for the burial in 48 hours."
- "After her father's death, an Abuja architect inherits a half-built mansion that the local community believes is cursed, forcing her to choose between finishing it or burning it down."
Examples that don't:
- "It's a story about love and loss." (No protagonist, no stakes, no specifics.)
- "It's a thriller in Lagos." (Genre + location is not a logline.)
- "It's like Get Out meets City of God meets Black Panther." (Comparisons are fine in addition to a logline, never as a substitute.)
Step 3 — The 1-page treatment
If the logline gets a yes, the next ask is a 1-page treatment. This expands the pitch into:
- The protagonist (who they are, what they want, what's stopping them). 1 paragraph.
- The world (where this happens, what makes it specific). 1 paragraph.
- Act 1 setup — the inciting incident and the protagonist's response. 1 paragraph.
- Act 2 escalation — what makes things harder, who opposes them. 1 paragraph.
- Act 3 resolution — the climax and how it changes them. 1 paragraph.
One page. Not five pages. Not three pages. ONE. If the producer can't read your treatment in 90 seconds, they won't read it at all.
Step 4 — The pitch deck (only if asked)
Don't send a deck unless requested. Pitch decks are for projects with locked scripts, attached cast, or financial structures. If you're an unrepresented director with an idea, you don't need slides.
If they DO ask, the deck should have:
- Cover (title, your name, contact)
- Logline + tagline
- Protagonist (with reference image — an actor headshot, a still from another film)
- Visual world (4-6 reference images: paintings, film stills, photography)
- Tone (3-5 word descriptors + comparable films)
- Synopsis (1 page max, the same as the treatment but visually formatted)
- Why now / why this team (one paragraph)
- Budget range (a number, not "TBD")
- Closing (the ask — co-production? Funding? Equipment?)
10-12 slides max. PDF, never PowerPoint. Designed by a real designer if you can afford it; otherwise use a clean template like Canva's "minimal portfolio."
Step 5 — The cold email
Subject line: "[Genre] pitch — [logline shortened]". Example: "Thriller pitch — undertaker discovers body is her cousin." This forces the producer to decide in 2 seconds whether to open it.
Email body, in this order:
- One sentence on why you're writing TO THEM SPECIFICALLY. Reference a recent film of theirs. Show you did the homework.
- The logline. Standalone. One sentence.
- Three lines about you — what you've made before, why you're qualified to direct this. Brief.
- The ask. "Would you be open to reading a 1-page treatment?" Not "I'd love your thoughts" or "Let me know if you're interested." Specific request.
- Sign off. Name, link to portfolio (1 link, not 5), phone if you want them to call.
Total: 6-8 sentences. If your cold email is longer than your logline can fit on a phone screen without scrolling, it's too long.
Step 6 — The follow-up
One follow-up at one week. ONE. If they didn't reply, follow up with: "Wanted to make sure my email reached you — happy to resend if needed." That's it. No new arguments. No more selling.
If still no reply after the follow-up: silence is the answer. Move on. Don't keep emailing. Don't DM their personal accounts. Don't show up in their office.
What kills pitches
- "I have a great idea but no script yet" — you have nothing to pitch. Write the script first.
- "I want to direct AND produce AND star" — pick one. Maybe two. All three signals you'll be impossible to work with.
- "I need ₦50M to make this" — without a comparable film budget breakdown, this is just a number. Show the math.
- "This will be the next Squid Game" — comparison to the highest-grossing show in history doesn't help.
- NDAs in the first email — no producer signs an NDA before reading your idea. The legal protection on your idea is your execution, not paper.
What works at Bano Studios specifically
We respond best to pitches that:
- Are for short-to-medium length (10-40 minutes) projects, not features
- Are set or shootable in Nigeria
- Have a script that's at least at first draft
- Show evidence the writer/director has finished something before (link to a finished short, however small)
- Have a clear ask (co-production? Equipment? Mentorship? Distribution?)
Send your logline + 1-page treatment via the contact form with subject line starting with "Pitch:". We respond to every pitch within 14 days, even with a no.
