Do Ideas Matter?

I take pitches for reality shows all of the time. Guess what? There are no new ideas. (Ok, maybe a few, but you know what I mean) There are variations of old ideas. Some are good, most are not. But the thing that separates the good from the bad on tv is simple. It’s really not all about the idea. It’s really all about execution. That’s the difference between quality and well, crap. And the truth is that there are not that many great executors out there. And I mean execution in every facet from shooting to editing to music to graphics. It’s like the old saying that you can’t make a good movie out of a bad screenplay but you can make a really bad movie out of a good screenplay. In tv, the saying would go something like, “you can’t make a good show with poor execution even if you have a stellar idea, but you can make a terrible show with poor execution even if you have a stellar idea.”

When I meet with people, just as important as the idea they are pitching is the skill set they bring to the table. You can tell a lot about what someone has to offer by how they prepare their pitch. Is it just an idea on a piece of paper or did they shoot a little tape and edit a 30 second piece to show their idea. Execution matters most, even if it’s just for the pitch.