Saturday, August 3, 2013

More on creating a film proposal

The synopsis.

So, next up in our film proposal is the synopsis.

Which is a very short, clearly written overview of your story.  In previous posts, I've discussed the creative process and creating and adhering to good habits,  so you should have no problem with this because back at the beginning stages of the writing process, you wrote your idea out in the paragraph form. Right? Ie; writing an overview should not be new to you.

The story synopsis can be either one or two paragraphs in length. It should convey to the reader exactly what type of story it is.

Everything in the synopsis that should be clear. For example, when I read your one page synopsis I should immediately understand that your story is a comedy, that it’s character driven, and that it’s a coming of age story. Or I read it and understand it’s an action drama, a heist gone bad story.

You get the point, whatever your story is; the reader should get it with this synopsis. Lastly, think of this synopsis as bait. When your potential investor reads it, you want them to be excited and intrigued. You lose them on the first page of the proposal and you’re dead. So be precise, and like you did back when you were developing and writing your script, have many people read it over. Get their feedback and make sure it works before you sit down for that all important lunch.  

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