If you're not already familiar with him, Henry Louis Gates, Jr. is an Emmy Award-winning filmmaker, literary scholar, historian, and the Alphonse Fletcher University Professor and Director of the Hutchins Center for African & African American Research at Harvard University. You can join Professor Gates in exploring the connections that bind us and our shared histories through iconic series like Gospel, or some of his previous work, Making Black America, Finding Your Roots, and more.
From the blues to funk to hip hop, African-Americans have been the driving force of sonic innovation for over a century, and while individual musical styles come and go, there's one sound that has been a constant source of strength, courage and wisdom - from the pulpit to the choir lofts on any given Sunday - and that's gospel. As a genre, it has been at the heart and soul of so much music, and in 2024, PBS is releasing a new docu-series to explore it's origins and its influence. Gospel, hosted by preeminent filmmaker and scholar Henry Louis Gates Jr., will premiere with a weekend long celebration in February, and PBS wants to get audiences excited to join Professor Gates on a joyous exploration of this incredible art form.
The goal of this project is to create an impactful social media post that celebrates gospel music, the community around it, and the faith that links it all together. We say "post" because there's a lot of flexibility in how you can approach this: it can be original artwork and illustrations, GIFs, or actual video content if you want, and PBS is open to 1x1 or 9x16 aspect ratios - whichever you think serves your vision best. PBS really wants to see creativity and artistry shine here, and while they have provided a collection of video assets from the docu-series that you can incorporate or pull from, we want to be clear that we're not looking for a re-cut trailer or some kind of simplistic montage. Think a little more outside the box, and consider even mixing original artwork or design with existing assets to create these posts. PBS has also provided their brand guidelines to help orient you further on their brand and handling their assets.
While text on the designs is welcomed, it is actually not a mandatory. The network itself will handle any additional information in the captioning of these posts, so your artwork and the design should do the heavy lifting. Gospel music and community should be front and center in your social asset, and we want you to think about how these social assets will live on the PBS social channels, so if you have an idea for an even larger design that can be broken up into a carousel, or an idea for a series of images with similar elements, we'd love to see it. If you want to create a very short video or a GIF, you can, but we're mainly after impactful, static executions for this project. Importantly, PBS also wants to bring over audiences who may only think of PBS as a station with kids programming, so let's avoid anything that feels like its targeting children.
For the pitch phase, we're asking that you create a sample proof of concept asset using the provided assets below, your own illustrations, or a little bit of both. Your sample asset should demonstrate how you would approach and execute the final deliverable. Up to three proof of concepts will be greenlit by PBS, and PBS is willing to greenlight same creator for multiple posts. For more information check out the Background section, and for any questions or other project updates, check out the Project Forum.
DELIVERABLES: There is one total asset per greenlit pitch.
EXPECTED TIMELINE: HERE
RELEVANT ASSETS: HERE
EXPOSURE: We expect content will be used on the platforms below. You should also review our Music providers in the Project Requirements, as well as the platform best practices.
TARGET AUDIENCE:
TONE/FEEL: Inspirational, soulful, warm, joyful, thoughtful
EXECUTIONAL MANDATORIES:
By participating in this project, creators acknowledge that the Sponsor is under no obligation to greenlight a submission. Though most projects do move forward, we'll notify you in the event the Sponsor decides not to fund any submissions via the Project Forum. Regardless of the result, all submissions will be reviewed and evaluated by the Sponsor and project team.
In order to be considered, include the below materials in your submission. For examples of effective pitches, check out this gallery. All Pitches remain private, even after a Pitch is selected, and Tongal strives to have Pitch selections made by the end of the Evaluation period, but additional time may be required by the Sponsor, depending on any number of factors.