Heather Hale
Heather Hale is a film and television director, screenwriter, producer, author, speaker, and consultant with over 200 hours of produced credits, which have won Emmys, ACE, Telly, “Best New Series Pilot,” New Media and other awards.
Ms. Hale is the Senior Producer of Lifestyle with Roy Ice. She directed, produced and co-wrote the million-dollar thrillerAbsolute Killers (2011), which was marketed by distributors at Le Marche du Film (the Cannes Market) and the American Film Market then sold retail at Walmart, Best Buy and Amazon.
The 5.5 million dollar Lifetime Original Movie The Courage to Love (2000) was produced off her spec script after she attached Vanessa Williams to star, opposite Stacy Keach, Gil Bellows and Diahann Carroll.
Heather's Books
The art of the pitch
Pitching is an art form that brings together content and communication channels. Regardless of What you’re pitching . . . Where, When and to Whom . . . the principles are universal. It’s how you pitch that matters ― and there are countless strategies that combine elements in different combinations.
Story Selling details all of them, their construction and applications, in a fun and interactive way that inspires readers to create memorable and saleable pitches in order to get their projects made.
25% off at Michael Weise Productions
Heather’s Guide for Content Creators!
How to Work the Film & TV Markets takes independent filmmakers, television, and digital content creators on a virtual tour of the entertainment industry’s trade shows ― the circulatory system of the entire global media landscape. This book highlights the most significant annual events around the world, details a dossier of all the players that frequent them, and examines all the elements that drive the market value and profitability of entertainment properties. In-the-trenches insights from our modern, real-world marketplace are contextualized into immediately implementable practical advice. Make the most of your finite investments of funds, time, and creative energy to optimize your odds for success within the mainstream, business-to-business circuit but learn how to select, apply, and scale prudent, proven principles to drive your own Do-It-Yourself/Direct-to-the-Consuming-Crowd fundraising, distribution and promotional success.
Heather Hale demystifies these markets, making them less intimidating, less confusing, and less overwhelming. She shows you how to navigate these events, making them far more accessible, productive ― and fun!
Buy on Amazon
Routledge | Taylor & Francis Group (Focal Press Imprint)
Longer Bio
Ms. Hale was the Independent Film and Television Alliance’s Industry Liaison for the American Film Market for whom she helped launch the Producers Workshop. IFTA (the non-profit that runs the AFM) approved her as a qualified independent producer to pitch projects to NBC/Universal for their annual independent producer development fund during the four years of Comcast’s acquisition.
Ms. Hale served as the Director of Event Programming for NATPE (the National Association of Television Program Executives) then consulted for years, helping to design Producers’ Boot Camps hundreds of professionals polish their pitch packages and sizzle reels and coaching them to pitch their TV concepts at the annual TV markets. She interviewed television executives for NATPE’s “How to Pitch TV” series as well as secured their annual mandates. All of that expertise was poured into her two books above.
For over two decades, Ms. Hale has served as an international keynote speaker, teacher, moderator, panelist, curriculum creator, custom “on-the-lot” workshop facilitator and embedded event producer for film and TV markets, festivals and writers workshops galore. She also lectures at colleges, universities, Chambers of Commerce and delivers week-long creative adventure retreats around the globe. Ms. Hale has produced VR/AR, branded entertainment and social media embedded events at NAB for StoryTech as well as facilitated their VIP tours at CES.
Ms. Hale has directed, produced and written several commercials, infomercials, industrials, computer-based training (for Mazda), professional certification web content (Regulation U Stock Margin trading), edutainment and in-flight sommelier programming for Delta. She directed, produced and co-wrote the Independent proof of concept pilot Ghost Writer, starring Barbara Bain and Carmen Argenziano. She consults and teaches popular webinars and online classes for the Writers Store, Screenwriters University and Stage 32.
Heather is a voting member of The Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (The “TV Academy,” the entity that awards the Emmys), Film Independent (the Indie Spirit Awards) and ShowBiz Mensans.
After her Bachelors of Arts in Creative Writing from SDSU and a Professional Screenwriting Certificate from UCLA, in 2023, Ms. Hale graduated (as a non-traditional student), achieving the terminal degree in the entertainment industry: a Master of Fine Arts in Film and Television with an emphasis on Directing.