How To Write A Logline

Another good one from THE SCRIPT LAB!

How To Write A Logline

Just before elections, a spin-doctor and a Hollywood producer fabricate a war to cover up a presidential sex scandal. – Wag the Dog (19 words)

Wow! Now that’s a logline, and when it comes to getting someone who matters to read your script, the logline is GOD.

It’s the single most important sentence you’ll write, that – if done properly – can be the difference between your script getting sold or tossed in the trash.

When an asteroid is headed for Earth, an elite blue-collar deep-core drilling team is sent to nuke the rock and save the world from Armageddon. – Armageddon (25 words)

A dysfunctional family takes a cross-country trip in their VW bus to get their seven-year-old daughter to the finals of a beauty pageant. – Little Miss Sunshine (23 words)

The thing is, in Hollywood, nobody reads. Scripts live and die everyday from “the pitch”.

There’s a big difference between a logline used to explain your story and the one used to “sell” your script.

So you must think of your logline as a “marketing tool” and follow these three fundamental tricks of the logline trade:

(1) Be brief, under 25 words if possible, 

(2) Stay simple, yet incredibly enticing, and 

(3) Be direct, no hinting allowed

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Dialogue: Five Strategies

ANOTHER GOOD POST FROM THE SCRIPT LAB!

Dialogue: Five Strategies

The beginning screenwriter often uses dialogue as a crutch, thinking it is his best friend.

Sure, most characters do have dialogue, but remember that action reveals character. SHOW us the emotion, the situation, the tension, etc. Don’t tell it. 

Characters react to a situation; they don’t just show up and give us a whole bunch of talk.

That doesn’t mean that we aren’t blessed with fabulous scribes that deliver memorable, engaging dialogue. Quentin Tarantino, Billy Wilder, Charlie Kaufman all come to mind.

And I can’t tell you how many scripts I have read that are full of it, lots and lots of talk. 

So here are five simple strategies to improve your dialogue:

1. Avoid static dialogue scenes.

2. Talk about one thing, mean something else.

3. Argue about one thing, but transfer it to something else.

4. Never repeat yourself.

5. Dialogue doesn’t have to be funny, action is funny.

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