Agile Chronicles: Using Scrum to deliver a Blockbuster TV Series ?

As a Scrum Practitioner I often wondered, how it can be applied to other fields and sectors. One area that I believe Scrum has the potential to make a significant impact and to be fair this popped up also because of my interest in Entertainment especially TV series.

Now you don’t have to be a television producer or show runner, to understand that creating a successful series requires a high level of collaboration, iteration, and adaptability. It's a complex process that involves a wide range of creative and logistical tasks, such as writing and casting to budgeting and scheduling. One way to streamline this process and increase the likelihood of creating a blockbuster TV series is by using Scrum as a delivery framework.

Scrum is a popular project management method originally developed for software development but has been applied to various fields, including television production. So, how can you use Scrum to create a blockbuster TV series? Here's a step-by-step guide:

1. Define your goal and vision.

It's crucial to have a clear understanding of what you want to achieve before using Scrum! This means defining your goal and vision for the series, including the theme, tone, genre, and target audience. This will help you stay focused and aligned as you move through the production process Or you might end up looking like Homelander below.

2. Assemble your team

In Scrum, the team is the foundation of everything. The team is responsible for delivering the product (in this case, the TV series) and making decisions about how to do it. To create a blockbuster TV series, you'll need a diverse team of skilled professionals, including writers, directors, actors, and crew members.

3. Break down the work into small chunks

One of the key principles of Scrum is to break down the work into small, manageable chunks called "sprints." A sprint is a time-boxed period (usually two to four weeks) in which a specific set of tasks is completed. By working in short sprints, you can focus on one thing at a time, get feedback from the team and stakeholders, and adjust your approach as needed. The goal is to ensure we accomplish a portion of the work in every iteration in an incremental fashion this way any issues/challenges or adjustments can be tackled. This will also allow us to measure how much change is coming in the way of day to day operations as we keep accommodating for it.

4. Create a backlog!

The backlog is a list of all the tasks that need to be completed in order to achieve your goal. It's a living document that should be constantly updated and prioritized based on the needs of the team and the project. In the case of a TV series, the backlog might include items like writing scripts, casting actors, scouting locations, etc.

5. Plan and execute each Sprint

At the beginning of each sprint, the team meets to review the backlog and plan the work for the upcoming period. This is called the sprint planning meeting. During this meeting, the team defines the scope of the sprint and selects the tasks that will be completed. Once the iteration begins, the team focuses on completing the tasks as efficiently as possible.

5. Review and adjust

At the end of each sprint, the team conducts a review and retrospective meeting. During the review, the team demos the work that was completed to stakeholders and collects feedback. During the retrospective, the team reflects on what went well and what could be improved, and develops a plan for making changes in the next sprint.

So if you thought you had no idea, well now you have some and the rest requires your due diligence, I just covered above in brief how you can use Scrum as an agile delivery framework to deliver a blockbuster TV series. This is not possible unless it is a collaborative, iterative, and flexible environment. Of course, Scrum is just one of many project management methods you can use, there are other frameworks to be used but it's essential to find the approach that works best for your unique tv show idea.

In conclusion, using Scrum as a delivery framework can help streamline the process of creating an awesome TV series and increase the likelihood of success. By defining your goal, assembling a skilled team, breaking down the work into small chunks, creating a backlog, planning and executing each sprint, and reviewing and adjusting your approach, you can create a collaborative, iterative, and flexible process that increases your chances of creating a successful TV series. Don't limit this to beginners even expert filmmakers can use the above framework to achieve great success, now it's just a matter of finding a creator/filmmaker who can put my theory to test, any takers?

About the author

Pranav Menon is a highly skilled Scrum Master with experience in various industries and a track record of helping organizations transition to Agile frameworks.

He is skilled in stakeholder management, identifying new market opportunities, and serving as an Agile Coach. In his downtime, Pranav is a huge advocate of using Scrum for non-IT development, such as creative writing and entertainment product development, as well as for learning new skills. He also loves to travel and go on long rides on his Royal Enfield Meteor 350 as a distraction from work Life