High Idea Screenwriting Defined: Learn how to Write High Idea Films

High Concept is actually a term that is been confused, misunderstood and misused by writers for decades. The standard belief is that it really is any movie that may be pitched in 1 sentence. A man who battles his wife for custody of their youngsters is 1 sentence, but it really is a million miles from becoming High Concept. obat maag alami

Others define it by describing it as ?one film crossed with yet another film.? In Robert Altman?s The Player, the writers pitch their project to a producer as Out of Africa meets Pretty Lady. Which is not what a High Concept film is. What they applied is actually a framing approach that is given before pitching your project to prepare the listener for what?s coming. You cross two properly recognized films that touch upon the material you are about to pitch so the producer has some idea exactly where you are going together with your pitch. Which is an instance of a standard pitching approach and not what defines High Concept.

Story tips, treatment options and screenplays can all have High Concept premises. But only High Concept projects could be sold from a pitch simply because they are pitch driven. Non-High Concept projects cannot be sold from a pitch simply because they are execution driven. They?ve to be study to be appreciated and their appeal isn?t obvious by merely operating a logline previous a person. This can be the reason why films like ?Pulp Fiction,? ?Star Wars? and ?Sideways? could never be sold from a pitch. obat maag alami ma31

In defining High Concept, we talk regarding the premise of one?s story, not what takes place in Acts 1, two and 3. The premise or logline will be the core of High Concept. My extensive definition of High Concept is comprised of five specifications, every single of that is mandatory. The five specifications are in descending order of importance. Hence, numbers 1 and two are probably the most critical along with probably the most hard to attain. But meeting only a couple of from the specifications will not be enough. All five specifications have to be met for results in attaining the ?slam dunk? project everyone is interested in.
Requirement #1:
YOUR PREMISE Should really be ORIGINAL AND Special
A logline is frequently 1 to five sentences, with the average becoming three. Hence, you must pitch your material inside a compressed, economical manner which captures the essence of one?s story and showcases its originality. Most of my pitches are 1 or two sentences lengthy. Every single writer really should practice pitching his or her work by boiling down their story into only 1 sentence regardless if their story is High Concept or not. obat maag alami ma32

In seeking originality, we are not speaking about reinventing the wheel. We can take standard subject matter that is been performed just before and add a hook or twist to it which then qualifies the material as original. Using the kidnapping plot, there have already been dozens of films which covered that subject area just before. In the film Ransom, Mel Gibson plays a wealthy businessman whose son is kidnapped. That story in itself offers absolutely nothing new. The hook from the movie which makes it original is that instead of paying the ransom, Gibson utilizes the ransom cash to spend for a contract hit on the kidnappers. That twist makes the film original and as a result High Concept.

Staying with the similar kidnapping genre, the comedy Ruthless Men and women follows the same pattern. Danny Devito plays a wealthy man whose wife, played by Bette Midler, gets kidnapped. Difficult convention, Devito refuses to spend the ransom mainly because he hates his wife and sees this as the opportunity he?s been waiting for to finally do away with her. Now the bungling kidnappers are stuck with an impossible woman that they?ve no idea what to complete with. Yet again, it really is that exceptional hook that makes this a High Concept film.
Requirement #2:
YOUR STORY HAS To possess MASS AUDIENCE APPEAL
That means it really is feasible to meet Requirement #1 by producing an original story that is never been performed just before. But that story may perhaps be so odd or strange that the appeal exists only in the mind from the writer who created it. No one else.

An instance could be if a girl woke up 1 morning, turned into a butterfly, and flew for the land of Shangri-La. That?s never been performed just before but who cares? Mass appeal means that nine out of ten people today who you pitch your story to would say that they?d spend ten dollars to see your movie initial run based solely on your pitch. You have to decide either you are writing for your own enjoyment or you are writing to sell. If it really is to sell, then you must take the marketplace into account.
Requirement #3:
YOUR PITCH HAS To be STORY Distinct
That means that within your pitch, you must have distinct specifics which make your story unique and adds color and depth. Let?s take the bank robbing plot. For those who came up with a story about three people today who want to rob a bank by digging a tunnel underneath it, the response could be, ?So what?? A twist on that genre will be the movie Going In Style. It really is about three senior citizens who try to rob a bank. The wheelman has had his license revoked, the lookout is visually impaired, and the brains from the operation is 75-year-old George Burns. Those distinct specifics enhance the story and keep it from becoming stale and generic.
Requirement #4:
THE Possible IS Obvious
If you?re pitching a comedy, then the prospective for humor must be obvious within your pitch. Men and women really should smile or laugh when you tell it. If you?re pitching an action movie, the listener must be in a position to envision the action scenes in his head as your pitching. I sold a project to Miramax known as My Kind of Town with the Wayans Brothers attached to star. It truly is about two guys who want to make a brand new start off in life. They pack up their car and take off with no particular destination in mind. Getting into City Hall in some tiny Southern town to obtain a map, the roof collapses on them and they sue. They win the lawsuit however the town cannot afford to spend them so they?re given the town. The prospective for humor is obvious when the Wayans Brothers are given a Southern town to complete whatever they please with it.
Requirement #5:
YOUR PITCH Should really be 1 TO Three SENTENCES Long
Most pitches must be this length while some set-ups may perhaps be even more, but you shouldn?t go over five to six sentences. You are not telling what takes place in Acts 1, two and 3 unless you are asked to complete so later. You are providing the premise of one?s story. I?ve spent days shaping my loglines to consist of as a lot details in as few words as possible.

I?ve had a large number of projects pitched to me in over twenty years and writers mistakenly believe that the longer the pitch, the greater the story. No one desires to listen to a pitch that is a half hour lengthy when I could study the script in much less time. I tell writers ?Pitch me your story inside a couple of sentences.? Most can not simply because they don?t know what the five specifications are and lack the practice in condensing and fine-tuning their pitches ahead of time.

When you are pitching, you are telling what your story is about, not what takes place in the story. You don?t want to start your pitch with, ?My story is about a 26-year-old woman named Jill, who lives in Chicago. She?s unhappy with her life. She goes to her office exactly where she confronts her boss. She quits and goes household exactly where she fights with her boyfriend.? Which is not pitching. Which is a dull unfolding from the story which you wish to keep away from at all fees.

The reaction you wish to hear when you pitch is ?Wow! Why did not I feel of that?? or ?That?s so excellent why hasn?t somebody produced that movie just before?? When the faces in the room light up right after you deliver your pitch, you realize you have got them. That?s the sought right after ?slam dunk.? That?s what High Concept is all about.

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Source: http://wmstafford.org/high-idea-screenwriting-defined-learn-how-to-write-high-idea-films/

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