Publishing

Tune into live conversations with authors, editors, and literary agents sharing their journeys and expertise in the world of publishing.

Screenwriting

Watch live panels featuring screenwriters as they break down their techniques for crafting compelling scripts and navigating the entertainment industry.

Filmmaking

Discover live streaming events where directors, producers, and cinematographers discuss the creative and technical processes behind their films.

I Finished My Script—Now What?

October 7, 2026
Timothy Michael Cooper shares the insights earned during his decades-long career, teaching you how to interpret and incorporate feedback, find the true heart of the story, focus your rewrites,cut away characters and scenes that aren’t pulling their weight, and build strategic relationships to get your script into the right hands.

Book Pipeline

Book Pipeline connects writers to publishers, agents, and the film industry through competitions and workshops, providing hands-on support to bridge the gap between emerging authors and the industry since 2014.

Script Pipeline

Script Pipeline connects writers with producers, agents, and managers, facilitating over $8 million in sales through competitions and ongoing industry support, helping launch major films and secure high-profile representation since 1999.

Film Pipeline

Film Pipeline connects filmmakers and writers with agencies and executives, focusing on diverse storytelling and playing an active role in developing and promoting projects, reviewing thousands of submissions annually since its launch in 2018.

Stop Waiting for Permission. Write and Produce your Proof of Concept Short!

Scheduled

Wednesday, October 14, 2026

Time

7 pm EDT / 4 pm PDT

Duration

2 Hours

Cost

$35

Subjects

Filmmaking, Screenwriting

Topics

Business, Craft

Have you written a great feature or series, but struggle to get anyone to notice? 

Frustrated by gatekeepers and waiting for someone to validate your work?

It’s time to take your career into your own hands.

Today, you don’t need an executive to pluck your script out of the slushpile or a studio green-light to build momentum. Instead, you can create your own ultimate calling card.

In this Symposium, award-winning screenwriter and filmmaker, Merridith Allen, guides you step-by-step through making a proof-of-concept short film that will get you noticed ... and expand your options for either financing or representation.

You’ll learn:

  • The Strategy: What a well-executed proof of concept actually does for your career.
  • The Format: Key types of short films and how to select the best structure for your story.
  • The Case Studies: Famous examples of proof-of-concept shorts that launched hit feature films and series.
  • Concept to Script: How to adapt your larger project into a standalone, high-impact short script.
  • Script to Screen: Practical tactics for producing, directing, and marketing your short on a realistic budget.
  • Inside the Industry: Navigating the festival circuit, networking effectively, and leveraging your short in a shifting market.

* To understand the power of having a proof-of-concept script, listen to Imani Davis, founder of Proof Film Festival, who was a guest on Reckless Creatives Podcast.

Questions about registration? Check our handy FAQ page.

Events are recorded and emailed to all who register.

*NOTE: If you want the recording sent to you, do not check off the box in the Zoom Events registration process that restricts us from obtaining your email address and do not unsubscribe from Symposium emails.

Confirmation emails come from Zoom Events—search your inbox for noreply-zoomevents@zoom.us—not Pipeline Media Group.

Host

Merridith Allen
Merridith Allen is a theater-trained performer and storyteller with an extensive background in martial arts. She writes about women wrestling with their demons (read: kicking their demons in the teeth), with a special focus on female-driven martial arts, drama, action, and dramedy. Excerpts from Merridith's produced plays can be found in over a dozen anthologies through […]

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Upcoming Events

I Finished My Script—Now What?

October 7, 2026
Timothy Michael Cooper shares the insights earned during his decades-long career, teaching you how to interpret and incorporate feedback, find the true heart of the story, focus your rewrites,cut away characters and scenes that aren’t pulling their weight, and build strategic relationships to get your script into the right hands.

Stop Waiting for Permission. Write and Produce your Proof of Concept Short!

October 14, 2026
Award-winning screenwriter and filmmaker, Merridith Allen, guides you step-by-step through making a proof-of-concept short film that will get you noticed ... and expand your options for either financing or representation.

A Book Proposal Coach’s Secrets To Selling Your Non-Fiction (or Fiction) Book

October 21, 2026
Even your fiction book can benefit from examining it like a business person. Because that's what editors and publishers do. Your proposal, which outlines your project for a publisher, has to be so good that editors fall in love with it and believe that readers will, too. In fact, writing a proposal will set you up for success even if you plan to self-publish. The problem? Most writers have no idea how to create a winning proposal. They simply don’t think like business people which is exactly what's needed. And this is a problem for authors. But Amy B. Scher is going to change that.

Latest Streaming

One-on-One: Explore Historical Fiction Writing with Adam Sikes

September 30, 2026
Jeanne Veillette Bowerman chats with novelist Adam Sikes to dissect the processes they each use when writing their historical novels. Join us for a casual conversation, including your questions, as they dive into the strategies that have helped them as well as the challenges of bringing history to life in a dynamic, and fictional way.

Multidimensional Comp Titles

September 23, 2026
Caroline Malloy's dynamic presentation is designed to help you weed through overwhelming possibilities to hone in on the books that will make yours shine. Her comp title secret: it's not about working to show what you know about other books; it's about getting the books to work for you. Comp titles, ultimately, prove your book is a deep, thoughtful, pleasurable, multidimensional read.

One-on-One with Professional Screenwriter Corey Mandell

September 17, 2026
Corey Mandell joins our Symposium converstaion to dive into the essentials every screenwriter needs to know, including what it takes to launch your career in the current marketplace. Plus, we'll sprinkle your questions into the conversation.

Symposium, presented by Pipeline Artists, is a year-round virtual conference empowering creatives with honest, no-nonsense guidance across the arts. Through seminars, industry panels, and Town Hall discussions on screenwriting, filmmaking, publishing, and career-building, Symposium offers grounded advice from working professionals to help you forge your own unique path.

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