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Three IBL reality show treatments:
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"IBL Ballers"
Original Series Treatment
The young star on the cusp of making the big time….
The former standout trying to recapture former glory…..
The aging veteran playing for the love of the game—
These are the faces of minor league professional basketball.
Follow five players chasing their dreams during a season in the
International Basketball in a reality series that transcends sport.
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Overview
The appeal of reality programming to television audiences is undeniable. Shows like Survivor, American Idol and others have become mainstays at the top of the Nielsen ratings. While viewers are drawn to the competitions and activities that define many of these programs, the common denominator that makes these shows so appealing is the access to the genuine emotions and humanity of the ‘stars’ that the term reality implies. IBL Ballers will offer both the intriguing backdrop of professional basketball and the stories of real athletes striving to reach their goals—the show will offer a candid look at the players’ frailties, egos and dreams.
IBL Ballers will follow five of the most intriguing players in the International Basketball League, showcasing the highs and lows of life in the minor leagues. The IBL features several ‘types’ of players with engaging personalities and compelling stories to tell—such as:
- The rising star with a shot at making it to the NBA
- The already famous streetball player trying to prove he can play ‘legitimate’ basketball
- The fallen hero striving to recapture former glory
- The aging veteran continuing to play for the love of the game
- The league itself provides ample fodder for storylines, as the IBL fights to thrive in an industry often characterized by failure. The goal of succeeding in professional basketball is not limited to players, as the IBL has many colorful owners of various means and backgrounds struggling to live their dream as well.
Style and Format
IBL Ballers will be shot documentary style—offering viewers a completely authentic look at life in the IBL. This ‘behind the scenes’ approach will feature the IBL players as people rather than just athletes. Storylines will emerge organically, as the players deal with winning, losing, travel, their ‘regular’ jobs, etc.
Audience and Appeal
Because the focus of IBL Ballers is the human aspect of people chasing a dream, the potential exists for a very broad audience. Certainly the audiences for Dancing with the Stars and American Idol are not limited to dancing and singing enthusiasts. Engaging reality programming is ultimately about people, regardless of the backdrop, and Ballers will offer stories that transcend sport.
While Ballers will appeal to a wide range of viewers, the draw for a sports-minded audience can hardly be overstated. The dream of becoming a professional athlete and earning the fame and fortune that come with it is common enough to be cliché’. Literally millions of young dreamers have swung a bat in the yard or made a jump shot in the driveway while imagining that they were doing so in front of the masses. Watching the players struggle to achieve their dream of the ‘big time’ will resonate with a large audience because so many of us have shared that very same dream.
IBL Ballers will allow viewers inside an intriguing industry, creating a backdrop that produces heartwarming victories and crushing defeats on and off the court—this is a show that will attract both sports fans, and fans of reality television.
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"IBL Game of the Week"
Theme: the IBL game is indeed fantastic, 127 points in 2 hours. See how many points we score.
Type of show/Overview: An IBL game
Audience & Appeal: What sets this show apart? What is the viewer attachment?
• People want to see if a player will hit for 50
• People will want to see if teams go for 150
• Also, there is curiosity—who the heck is the IBL and why are they on TV?
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Current status of show: To adequately and professionally produce one game, the IBL would need to have $20,000. The IBL has not committed to play a ‘game of the week’ at this time for the 2007 season; however, the IBL plans to play such a game by the 2009 season. The IBL is currently seeking an investor or network to fund the show and receive quite a bit of the upside.
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"IBL Return of the Fast Break"
Theme: Features the concepts of—fast break, fun basketball. Features teams and coaches and players that want or wanted basketball to be fun. Interviews with Paul Westhead of Loyola Marymount, clips and interviews with Magic Johnson of the 1980’s Lakers, the UNLV Running Rebels of the 1980’s and the Kings of the 1990’s all will draw parallels to what the IBL is trying to do now in 2005, 2006 and 2007. Restated theme: we are the fastest league in the world and we modeled our game after those eras that you love, so check us out and support us, fall in love with basketball again. Another theme will be that- many of our players are putting up big numbers and people are catching on, you need to catch the action too. If you used to love basketball but fell away, come back because the IBL is here to revive your love for basketball.
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Type of show/Overview: A documentary style show featuring the passion behind the IBL, the reasons why the IBL was formed and the rationale of speeding up the game. This IBL show will be similar to And One where we would be telling the same basic story over and over, pushing the same theme but with different venues, scenes and people each week.
Outline of show: This 30-minute show would contain: 9 minutes of commercials, 7 minutes of ‘history of the IBL, about the IBL and the parallels drawn to the fastbreak teams mentioned above’, 7 minutes of ‘IBL highlights and music’ and 6 minutes from a featured game (And One style, where we show the game progress, highlight the one game from the tip to the buzzer) and 1 minute to close with the best highlights and music.
Audience & Appeal: What sets this show apart? What is the viewer attachment: People love extremes and the IBL is extreme. People like to attach to causes and they will attach to the IBL cause— make the game athletic and fun and keep the game in perspective. People will get behind efforts, so we will show people what the IBL is trying to do (we will show them our effort) and the viewer will root for us to succeed.
Current status of show: The IBL is currently seeking an investor or network to fund the show and receive quite a bit of the upside.
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