When it comes to formatting a script, there's little difference between writing a

feature film script and a TV pilot. You follow the essential formatting directives

between both mediums.

However, how you structure a TV pilot script requires a little more nuance.

With that in mind, here is a simple and straightforward breakdown to help you

learn the basic guidelines and expectations of the TV pilot structure.

Read More: The Screenwriter's Simple Guide to TV Writing

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Table of Contents

What Does "Structure" Mean?

The Two Elements TV Pilots Need to Have
General TV Pilot Structure Breakdown
Half-Hour-Long TV Pilot Structure
3 Additional Ways to Learn TV Pilot Structure and Format

What Does "Structure" Mean?

The general story structure is fairly simple — Beginning, Middle, and End.

This has been the story structure followed by mankind since the days of telling

stories around the village fire or etching cave paintings on stone walls

depicting worthy stories of hunting for prey (beginning), confronting the prey
(middle), and defeating the prey (end).

The three-act structure in cinema is the most basic and pure structure that

most films — no matter what gurus and pundits say — follow.

● Setup
● Confrontation
● Resolution

How you build on that basic structure creates many additional variations.

Read More: 10 Screenplay Structures Screenwriters Can Use

For television, four-act and five-act structures (see below) — as well as many

other variations — are just additions to the core three-act structure of any

story. However, the television platform has many unique differences

compared to cinematic storytelling.

With movies, you have a general 90-120 minute (or beyond) window to tell a

single story from beginning to end. But with television, you're telling an

overarching story that spans multiple episodes and multiple seasons.

Because of that unique platform dynamic, the structure of your story changes.

For TV pilots, you're tasked with having to tell not only the beginning chapter

of an overarching story but also introduce the world of the story, as well as the

characters within. You're basically using a TV pilot to sell the structure, tone,

atmosphere, genre, characterization, and narrative of a whole series.

There's also the unique element of commercial breaks (for network shows)

and how you go about breaking your single-episode story into commercial

breaks, which encompass your act breaks. The structure is where you

accomplish all of this hard work. It's almost formulaic at first sight. Because of

that, the TV pilot structure doesn't have to be as difficult as it is made out to

be.

Cobra Kai (2018)

The Two Elements TV Pilots Need to Have

Before we dive into the basic TV pilot structure, let's talk about the two

elements that will help your TV pilot stand out the most.

In movies, the concept is everything. Sure, character-driven pieces can

succeed (usually in the indie market), but Hollywood is driven by the concept
when it comes to feature scripts. The concept is what gets your script read —

that mash-up of a protagonist dealing with a compelling and engaging conflict.

However, in series writing, concepts change season-to-season — and

conflicts change episode-to-episode. If you look at the multiple seasons of a

successful series like Cobra Kai, you'll see that the central protagonist's focus

changes, as does the immediate villain and threat. The same can be said for

any series.

But the core elements remain the same.

● The revisiting of Daniel and Johnny decades after their initial story
ended.
● The world of karate and how those characters collide with it.

As you develop your series before writing the TV pilot script, make sure it has

these two elements to increase your chances of successfully getting the pilot

into the hands of networks and streamers.

Read More: What is a Story Engine and How Can it Help Your TV Pilot
The White Lotus (2021)

Compelling Characters

Tony Soprano, Walter White, June Osborne, Rick Grimes, Lucy Ricardo, Mary

Richards, Don Draper, Michael Scott, George Jefferson, and countless other

amazing television characters force audiences to watch their series, whether

the characters are hilarious, intriguing, entertaining, or deplorable.

You can't have a compelling TV pilot without an equally compelling lead

character.

Read More: How to Create Memorable and Resonant Characters

The answers to how you create such characters can only be found within your

own imagination. We could endlessly list the character traits of the

aforementioned iconic television characters and try to come up with some

secret formula for creating Emmy-worthy characters, but it's impossible. There

is no secret formula, and anyone who tells you they have it is trying to sell

something.

An excellent compass that can help you create such compelling characters

involves developing conflicted characters with flaws.

You can certainly create a cast of intriguing characters as well. Friends, ER,

Game of Thrones, Lost, The Walking Dead, The Big Bang Theory, Modern

Family, The White Lotus, and Euphoria, among many others, offered a cast of

characters whose dynamics engaged us from episode to episode. The key

way to create a cast of hopeful icons is to play with the differences between all

of the characters. You can do it for both comedic results in sitcoms or for

dramatic results in drama or genre.

You just want to make sure that these are quality characters worthy of

devoting a series to. But even that's not enough.

Breaking Bad (2008)

Intriguing Worlds

The Mafia (Sopranos), meth-dealing (Breaking Bad), a totalitarian society

where women are property (The Handmaid’s Tale), a zombie apocalypse

(The Walking Dead, The Last of Us), 60s-era advertising (Mad Men), office life

(The Office), rich people on vacation at a high-end luxury resort (The White

Lotus), a look into the lives of teens amidst the world of drugs, sex, trauma

and social media (Euphoria) — these are the worlds that are brilliantly

matched with compelling characters.

Read More: When Worlds Collide: The Art of World Building

Find those compelling characters living in those intriguing worlds that

audiences will want to live vicariously through — or watch those more morally-
challenged ones fall.

A, B, and C Stories

Lastly, before we get into the simple and straightforward structure of a TV

pilot, let's discuss the content within your structure.

Networks and streamers always want two or three-story strings flowing and

integrating together throughout a single episode. It offers more depth for the

audience.

"A" Story — This story encompasses the main protagonist(s) dealing with the

central conflict presented in the concept of the story and series.

"B" Story — This secondary story relates to the secondary wants, needs, and

desires of the main protagonist(s) or how side story elements eventually relate

to and connect with the A story.

"C" Story — Smaller side stories within the overall story arch are usually found

in sitcoms — moments of little funny repetitive nuances that eventually work

themselves out.

Rather than break down multiple examples of A, B, and C stories, go watch

your favorite drama, genre, and sitcom series. Try to identify the A, B, and C

stories for each.

Read More: Tips for Coming Up with an Idea for Your TV Spec Episode
General TV Pilot Structure Breakdown
We'll start with one-hour TV pilots.

Hour-Long TV Pilot Page Count Structure

Hour-long TV episodes generally range from 45-63 pages. The sweet spot

page count to shoot for would be 50-55 pages.

Utilize the basic one-page equals one-minute guideline. With a 60-minute

episode for network television (ABC, NBC, CBS, Fox, TNT, AMC, etc.), you

obviously need to account for commercial breaks. If you go above 60 pages,

you're already over an hour. Use the one-page equals one-minute guideline

as a gauge. It's not an exact science by any means, but as a novice television

writer, it's a good barometer to work from.

With five-act television scripts (see below), you generally want to keep each

act between 9-12 pages, give or take a page. The old benchmark was 15

pages per act for four-act television scripts, but with additional commercial

time these days — not to mention more story — it can now often break down

differently.

Hour-Long TV Pilot Act Breaks

With an hour-long television series episode, you will break the story down into

four or five acts.

● Teaser (2-3 pages)

● Act One
 ● Act Two
● Act Three
● Act Four
● Act Five (optional)

Teaser

The teaser is the compelling hook that introduces your protagonist, the world,

or the core conflict of the episode/series — preferably all together. This isn't

the first act of your story. It's a moment that entices the audience to keep

watching. You tease the tone, atmosphere, genre, world, concept, and

conflict. And then, at least if it makes it onto television, the scene then cuts to

a commercial break.

For shows like Breaking Bad, Grey's Anatomy, The Last of Us, or any other

hour-long episode, you'll often see the character either in peril by the end of it

or the conflict of the story will be teased. Then when the first act starts, the

stories either flash backward, flash forward, or switch to the protagonist(s) and

their ordinary world.

Check out the teaser for the hit HBO series The Last of Us:

https://youtube.com/watch?v=TIWiuvjTQJM&si=EnSIkaIECMiOmarE

None of the main characters were introduced. However, we're teased with the

world that is about to be in the series.

Not all hour-long TV pilots utilize teasers. However, we strongly suggest that

you include them in your TV pilots to help entice the reader to read on.
Formatting Necessities: You'll start the teaser with a centered teaser heading

and then write the script below.

ACT ONE

After the teaser, you'll then start a new page with the centered ACT ONE

heading.

Act One is where you introduce the main and supporting characters within

their ordinary world. You've teased the peril, struggle, conflict, or situation that
the episode will tackle, but now you're getting things really started by setting

the stage as far as where the characters are and what is leading up to the

point of the next act where they will be confronted by the situation at hand.

The end of the first act usually offers you the opportunity to present a

cliffhanger to keep the audience invested. You actually want to do that at the

end of the first three acts for the same reason.

ACT TWO

After ACT ONE, you'll then start a new page with the centered ACT TWO

heading.

Act Two is where you introduce the "A" story (as well as any "B" and "C"

stories). This is where the characters are dealing with the conflict in full swing.

● They're struggling with it.

● They're figuring out how to get through it.

Much like the beginning of the second act of a feature film script, the

characters often still have some hope or chance. By the end of this act, the

audience feels like the characters may figure things out — until, that is,

another hook is introduced that flips that hope or chance on its head, forcing

the characters to face the fact that they may not succeed.

ACT THREE

After ACT TWO, you'll then start a new page with the centered ACT THREE

heading.
Act Three is where the characters are at their lowest point, and the bad guys

or conflict is winning. Where the second act gave the audience, hope that

they'd figure it out, the third act is usually where that hope was proven to be

false. By the end cliffhanger of this act, audiences will want to tune in to see

how the characters will prevail despite such odds against them.

ACT FOUR

After ACT THREE, you'll then start a new page with the centered ACT FOUR

heading.

Act Four is where the characters, against all odds, begin to prevail again.

They start to take action, triumph and win. They've learned from their missteps

in the first and second acts, and now they're applying the lessons learned to

confront the conflict in full force.

ACT FIVE

After ACT FOUR, you have the option of starting a final act with the centered

ACT FIVE heading.

Act Five can work as a closure for the episode. For TV pilots, it can also act

as a gateway into the rest of the series. You have the option of ending your

TV pilot (or any episode) with a fourth act, or you can also end the fourth act

with a significant cliffhanger or hook and then use the fifth act to close things

up with a finale.
To write a pilot like Mirzapur, focus on building a character-driven crime story
set in a grounded, regional world with a deep-seated legacy of power and
violence. The pilot must establish the show's core conflict, introduce
characters with strong, clear intentions, and end with a high-stakes event that
propels the series forward.

1. Establish a distinct world and power structure

● Create a real-world setting. Like Mirzapur, base your pilot in a specific city or
region, using its unique cultural fabric to build an atmosphere. The location
should feel like a character itself, with its own unspoken rules and history.
● Draw inspiration from local issues. While Mirzapur uses the carpet industry as a
front for its crime family, your pilot can use a different local trade or economic
activity. Grounding your story in a believable, tangible setting makes the world
more compelling.
● Set up the legacy. Show the existing power dynamics and how they operate.
Mirzapur begins with Akhandanand "Kaleen Bhaiya" Tripathi's established reign,
which immediately frames the high stakes and the immense power his
successor would inherit.

2. Introduce characters with strong intentions

● Protagonists with a clear motive. Give your main characters a driving desire that
clashes with the existing power structure. In Mirzapur, brothers Guddu and Bablu
are initially driven by distinct goals—one by simple ambition, the other by a
craving for status—before they are forced into the world of crime.
● Antagonists with understandable flaws. The villains in your pilot should be more
than just "bad." Kaleen Bhaiya is a ruthless crime boss, but his internal struggles
with his incompetent son Munna make him a complex figure. The audience
should understand their motivations, even if they hate their actions.
● Use subtext to reveal character. Characters in crime dramas often don't say what
they really mean. Use this technique to build tension. The subtext of a
conversation can reveal hidden grudges, shifting loyalties, or power plays
happening beneath the surface.
3. Weave plot and character development together

● Start with a compelling hook. Open with a "teaser" that immediately grabs the
audience and sets the tone, whether it's an action sequence or an intense
confrontation.
● Build the central conflict. The main plot of your pilot should arise from a specific
incident that disrupts the status quo. In Mirzapur, a wedding procession incident
forces the paths of the Pandit family and the Tripathi family to collide, triggering
a chain of violent events.
● Balance character and plot. The plot should serve to reveal character, showing
who they are and what they're willing to do. In the Mirzapur pilot, the brothers'
differing reactions to their new position reveal their true natures.

4. Create impactful and memorable dialogue

● Listen to how people actually speak. To make your dialogue feel authentic,
observe real conversations. Note how people use pauses, interruptions, and body
language to communicate, and incorporate these elements into your script.
● Give each character a unique voice. A savvy crime boss, a brash young heir, and
a righteous lawyer should all sound distinct. Their speech patterns, vocabulary,
and rhythm should reflect their backgrounds and personalities.
● Use dialogue to build tension. Avoid conversations where characters simply
agree with each other or state obvious information. Instead, create conflict
through dialogue, where each character has an objective and an obstacle to
getting what they want.

5. Structure the pilot for a series

● Balance the microcosm and macrocosm. The pilot should tell a contained story
arc for the episode while also establishing the tone and central conflict of the
larger series. It needs to show how the show "works" each week.
● Leave a compelling cliffhanger. End the episode with a major turning point or a
shocking revelation that leaves the audience desperate to know what happens
next. The pilot's ending should pay off a setup from earlier in the episode while
 planting new seeds for future episodes.
● Write a series bible. To pitch your pilot effectively, you will need a "series bible."
This document outlines the overall series, including the concept, character
profiles, episode summaries, and themes.