Production Concept: Channel 4 commissioning info

Channel 4 receives thousands of submissions every year, many more than we can
commission. So we prefer a brief version of the idea for initial consideration and the
most effective method is to submit a synopsis of your idea no longer than 300
words. If a commissioning editor is interested, they will ask for more information and
suggest what budgets they have to develop ideas further.

To ensure your idea has the best possible chance of succeeding there is a lot you can
do by way of preparation – you may want to consider some of the following
questions.

- Which Channel would this piece work best on?
- What time do you see it being broadcast? Weekend or Weekday? Daytime or
Peak? Pre or Post watershed?
- Do you see your work in a particular strand? (eg. First Cut, 4Funnies,
Dispatches, Random Acts…)
- Will it be a one-off or a series? How many episodes, of what length, will there
be?
- Will there be an accompanying digital media aspect? If so, what? (eg.
website, mobile, online video, game, social media…)
- Who would watch your programme?
- How will the programme be made: the visuals, the style, the format?
- Who will be in the programme? (presenters, contributors, key talent)
- Who will make the programme? It is helpful to know who the director,
producer and other key production roles might be
- Why should this programme be made now?

Over and above these specific questions you should also be familiar with our output
– many ideas are rejected because they overlap with programmes we are already
doing, or cover subject areas that are overly-familiar.

The purpose of the synopsis is to give a clear and concise summary of your idea and
how it will look on screen. A useful exercise is to think about how you would write
the TV listing for your programme once it is made. Often those few sentences are all
you have to encourage viewers to watch the programme – how would you ‘sell’ the
programme to the British viewing public?

By submitting a clear and concise synopsis, you enable us to give you a swift
response, which will allow both of us to focus on the ideas we are interested in.

You should always make sure that you have read the commissioning requirements
for the relevant department before you submit your idea.