Wingo’s World – Austin Film Festival Strategy Guide

Director/Producer: Hoag Kepner

Pilot Episode: 10′ 54″ | Comedy · Music · Puppet | Austin-set

Festival Listing: 2025 Austin Film Festival – Juried Festival Selection - Produced Digital Series

He’s Austin’s top record producer. Ego the size of Texas. Heart of gold. Oh — and he’s a bat puppet.

1. Positioning & Festival Fit

Wingo’s World is an offbeat, Austin-based pilot where the city’s top record producer just happens to be a bat.

It captures Austin’s creative weirdness while celebrating its music and humor — perfectly suited to AFF’s spirit.

AFF values inventive storytelling, and your local pedigree (Austin-based musician, filmmaker, and puppeteer) makes this pilot a natural fit.

Emphasize its cross-genre nature — comedy, music, puppetry — and its short runtime that keeps audiences engaged and programmers receptive.

2. Leveraging Your Producer’s Badge

Your Producer’s Badge gives you full access to panels, parties, and screenings. Use it strategically to connect with festival staff, attendees, and industry professionals who handle short-form and digital content.

  • Attend comedy, web-series, and indie-TV panels.

  • Carry one-sheets or cards with a QR code to your teaser.

  • Mention that the pilot is part of a developing series.

  • Use Q&As and mixers to talk about Wingo’s Austin roots and Two Player’s involvement.

  • Follow up with emails referencing your screening slot and any conversations.

3. Post-Festival Trajectory

After AFF, leverage the screening as validation of concept and tone. Use laurels and buzz for press, pitch decks, and grant applications.

  • Draft a press release announcing AFF inclusion.

  • Add festival laurels to your website and email signature.

  • Share behind-the-scenes posts and screening reactions on social media.

  • Consider limited online release or private link for industry outreach.

  • Begin pitching Season 1 development — local sponsors, grants, or digital networks.

4. Logistics & Promotion Checklist

  • Confirm screening time and prepare concise Q&A remarks.

  • Bring printed and digital materials.

  • Capture audience reactions for marketing.

  • Coordinate posts during the festival using #AFF2025 and #WingosWorld.

5. Goals & Metrics

  • Establish 2–3 meaningful industry connections.

  • Generate local press or online coverage.

  • Use AFF as a springboard to meetings with streaming or digital content platforms.

  • Gather measurable audience feedback and engagement data for your next funding phase.

1. Positioning & Pitch Strategy

A. How to Pitch It

  • As a proof-of-concept series:

    Emphasize that the pilot demonstrates tone, humor, and production quality. Pitch it as the first of 6–8 short episodes (~10 min each) for a streamer, branded digital platform, or YouTube-funded mini-series.

  • As a music-industry satire:

    “What if the top record producer in Austin were a demanding, egomaniacal bat who knows the city better than anyone?”

    It’s Flight of the Conchords meets The Muppets meets Barry (without the murder). The absurdity is grounded in relatable creative-industry dynamics.

  • As a crossover brand vehicle:

    Wingo embodies Austin’s weirdness — perfect for partnerships with local or national brands that value authenticity, creativity, and humor.

B. Key Selling Points

  • Distinct visual style (puppetry + live action).

  • Recognizable Austin landmarks, giving the show regional appeal.

  • Built-in music crossover through Two Player and the city’s music culture.

  • Family-friendly tone, but clever enough for adults — broad demo potential.

2. Potential Avenues & Partners

A. Digital Platforms

  • YouTube Originals / Channel partnership – use AFF laurels to get meetings.

  • Roku / Tubi / Peacock Shorts / Dropout.tv – short-form outlets that look for weird, tight storytelling.

  • Austin PBS or Texas Monthly Studios – local content partnerships that expand reach.

B. Streaming or Cable

  • A limited-run anthology (Wingo’s World Presents: The Scene in Austin) could fit Adult Swim, FX Digital, or Netflix Comedy Shorts.

  • Package it as a “mini-universe” where Wingo hosts other Austin musicians or creators. Spin-offs and specials like my “Talk To the Hand” series.

C. Festival Path

  • AFF → SXSW → ShortFest → Tribeca NOW → SeriesFest.

    Each helps position Wingo’s World as a short-form comedy IP rather than a one-off short.

3. Brand & Sponsorship Tie-Ins

Local Austin Partners

  • Waterloo Records / KUTX / Antone’s – Austin music credibility.

  • Lone Star Beer / Tito’s Vodka / Austin Eastciders – easy fit for the show’s humor and tone.

  • Alamo Drafthouse – themed screenings or “Wingo hosts movie night” crossover content.

National / Lifestyle Brands

  • Spotify or Apple Music – co-branded “Wingo’s Picks” playlist.

  • Airbnb / Visit Austin / Texas Tourism – city branding through a humorous lens.

  • Yeti / Vans / Red Bull Music – culture-driven, edgy humor that fits a puppet-in-the-studio world.

Product Integration Possibilities

  • Wingo uses a specific mic or DAW brand — could be a real partnership.

  • Music sessions “sponsored by” an Austin label or gear company.

  • Animated “studio tip” shorts produced with brand support (like Between Two Ferns style vignettes).

5. Immediate Post-AFF Steps

  1. Collect professional stills and audience reactions at your screening.

  2. Update wingothebat.com with an “Official Selection” banner and press blurb.

  3. Contact Austin PR firms that handle entertainment to push a short news cycle.

  4. Reach out to local sponsors using AFF inclusion as your hook (“We just premiered at AFF—want to help us make the next one?”).

  5. Create a 3-page pitch deck:

    • Slide 1: Logline, tone, and visual style.

    • Slide 2: Series overview and character bios.

    • Slide 3: Brand and festival traction.

6. Long-Term Vision

  • Build Wingo’s World into a recurring short-form comedy IP rooted in Austin.

  • Spin off into live-action/puppet hybrid music interviews (think Hot Ones for Austin creatives, aka “Talk to the Hand”).

  • Explore licensing or syndication for streaming micro-series platforms.

  • Maintain creative control by developing under your 1980 Entertainment banner.

4. Expansion Concepts

Season 1 web series (6×10 min)

Continue the absurd studio stories.

Build IP; attract streamer.

Short-form “Talk to the Hand”

Wingo interviews real Austin musicians (half-scripted).

Blend fiction and real talent.

Live event at ACL Fest / SXSW

Wingo & Two Player on stage; filmed for web.

Audience engagement & press.

Branded TikTok/Reels content

Wingo reacts to music trends.

Social reach & sponsor integration.

Merch line

Shirts, plush, pins.

Fanbase building.

Children’s version (spin-off)

“Wingo Junior’s Studio Tips.”