A "high concept" is a story that can be described in 1-2 lines. BUT...it has to be a story a studio would want to make. I have made the mistake (we all have) of writing something that I know "I" would see, but never bothered to ask myself the question - Is this a movie? Is this something everyone will pay $10 to watch for 2 hours? If the answer is no, then I do not have a "high concept". I have learned so much here at your site, Scott, and this is the most important 'thing' I have learned, the talk of "high concept". The loglines I submitted, to me, were great, but upon further review, I understood why I wasn't chosen to go on the Quest. I didn't 'hook' you with the logline(s). THIS IS THE VERY FIRST THING A READER, PRODUCER, AGENT, MANAGER, whatever SEES! It is the key to unlocking the door to a world we wish to delve into. I'm reading OZ right now, and to me, it goes like something you wrote for your concepts class - "Terry Rossio, the co-screenwriter (with Ted Elliot) of movies like the Pirates of the Caribbean series...his thoughts about the importance of story concepts: “As a screenwriter, your choice of film premise is your calling card. Not your witty dialog, not your clever descriptions. Not your knowledge of structure and subplot and subtext." There is nothing spectacular about the way it is written. It moves fast, it it succinct, trim, hits all the right plot points. But I think it is the whole 'concept' that sold the thing. Not to slam the writers, although so far I am riveted to the script, there is a certain magic to it, I just imagined it would be mind-numbingly GREAT, and it's not, it's just writing. Ok, I am rambling. A high concept is a story that can be explained in 1-2 lines AND would make a movie that SOMEONE will be willing to spend money on to package/create/produce AND people will be willing to spend gajillions to watch - Avengers, Avatar, Bourne, Bond, Pixar. Scott, you guys are doing something very special here. Keep it up!

Michael Hauge ~~ "Take a movie like The Help – it was an extremely successful film, but it is the antithesis of a high concept movie: it’s a drama, and a period piece, about a subject that sounds heavy and depressing. But it was financed because it was based on a hugely successful book, and then was so well done that it had great word of mouth, great reviews, and garnered lots of rewards. This is what led to its box office success, not just the concept. Basically, a high concept movie is a genre film (action, suspense thriller, comedy, romantic comedy, horror, science fiction or family film) that is easily expressed in a single sentence. It promises big, big conflict for the protagonist, has familiar elements we have seen in other movies and some unique element we’ve never seen before. If your story has all of these qualities, then it’s high concept, and is likely to have commercial potential. Remember, always, that a high concept is no measure of artistic success. Nor is it an indication of how much satisfaction you will derive from writing it. But if you ignore the financial potential of your story concept, you are likely to end up with a screenplay that never reaches the screen." Yeah, that's what I meant to say!! LOL

I like to refer to former Disney studio head Jeffrey Kaztenberg's definition in the January 1991 "Katzenberg memo": > The Lowdown on High Concept > One of the most misunderstood and misused phrases in the Hollywood lexicon is “high concept.” The phrase was introduced by Michael for internal use by creative executives at Paramount as a guide for evaluating ideas. But it quickly spread throughout Hollywood and has since been widely misinterpreted and abused. > “High concept” was intended to describe a unique idea whose originality could be conveyed briefly. The emphasis was supposed to be on “originality” but has come to be placed on “briefly,” so that today “high concept” is thought to mean an idea that can be summarized in a logline in TV Guide. > This is unfortunate, because “high concept” is a useful, complex, thoughtful encapsulation of what we should all be working toward. It makes a link between movie making and movie marketing. It embellishes the concept that “the idea is king” by asserting that the idea that forms the basis of a film should not only be one that is compelling but also one that can be communicated. > The real meaning of high concept is that ingenuity is more important than production values. This is why we should constantly be looking for creative solutions, not financial ones.

Huh, I guess I was wrong in my definition of high concept. I thought it was a story idea with a more universal appeal, as opposed to something more indie and niche. An idea that can potentially hit all four quadrants or big percentage of one or two of them.

As a community, it would be great to create a Story Concept Filter. We don’t want to use our elephant gun shooting at mice and squirrels, do we? I’ll take a stab at it (please feel free to add and subtract to what I have). 1. Does the idea stand up against… Jaws: A man-eating great white terrorizes a small New England town. Jurassic Park: Re-engineered dinosaurs in an amusement park run amok. Star Wars: Arthurian knight join cowboys to rescue princess as an outer space adventure. Top Gun: Navy jet fighters compete to see who the best of the best is. The 6th sense: A child psychologist helps a kid who can see dead people. Groundhog Day: a weather reporter relives the Groundhog Day over and over. The Hangover: Groomsmen lose the groom at the bachelor party and retrace wild night out. True Lies: A spy cons his wife in believing she’s a spy to revitalize their marriage. Terminator: a machine is sent back into time to kill the savior of mankind before he’s born. Seven: Two cops track down a serial killer who uses Seven Deadly Sins as his modus operandi. Fatal Attraction: A married man has a one-night-stand with a psychopath. Back to the Future: A teenager travels back in time and jeopardizes his own existence; has to play Cupid to his own parents. ET: a lonely boy hides an alien in his room and helps it get home. Home Alone: a young boy left home alone prevents burglars into his house. Gladiator: A general turned gladiator fights for the crowd against the emperor. Ghostbusters: Three unemployed parapsychology professors set up shop as a ghost removal service. Forrest Gump: A simpleton influences major landmark events over the Baby Boomer’s lifetime while his true love eludes him. The Exorcist: A priest who questions his faith must exercise the Devil out of a little girl. The Graduate: A college graduate has an affair with an older woman and falls in love with her daughter. National Treasure: A treasure hunter looks for clues on American pieces of history. Halloween: The real life Boogeyman terrorizes teenagers on Halloween night. 2. Has elements for MASS appeal ICONIC person/event/history/holiday, etc. Commonly known situations made special Commonly known item/profession made special Recycled story with a twist (e.g. Pretty woman is a take on the Cinderella story) 3. Given the okay by the Brain Trust: (James Cameron; Steven Spielberg; Christopher Nolan; Alfred Hitchcock; John Carpenter; Jerry Bruckheimer). Ask: if Steven Spielberg was in pre-production with Jurassic Park, would he even consider dropping it and make my idea? Ghostbusters or my idea? Would they even think about it? 4. If I pitch my idea to someone and let 15 minutes go by, can they repeat it back? Is it memorable? 5. If I screened my movie at a local high school basketball game, who would stick around to watch it? Would little kids leave? Elderly people, men, women, etc.? Again, feel free to edit these filters. A challenge to the community: create an almost bullet-proof filter for high concept.

I think it's always been a troublesome term. James N Frey (How to Write a Damn Good Thriller, St Martins Press 2010) says it's a "Hollywood term. It refers to the germinal idea of a project that excites producers and makes their hearts go thumpety-thump when they hear it." He goes on to say that it's "usually something fresh, something that you think is original and will have broad appeal to a large audience. Because Hollywood producers can't pay attention for anything more than 9.4 seconds, a high concept must be expressed in one sentence, and that sentence should never be more than thirteen words long." Frey points out that the idea of 'high concept' is subjective, and is often used by film critics almost as a genre cliche to can movies that are designed to appeal to mass audiences but lack depth and substance. A high concept often garners a lot of its resonance from pop culture or current news trends and is, therefore, drawing on subject material already close to 'top of mind', which is what makes it 'high concept'. High concept is an idea with immediacy in its expression, it's a short circuit between the mind of the idea generator (not always a writer) and the idea receiver. The immediacy means the visual concept can be witnessed without thinking any deeper, and is up for the widest range of interpretation ... how it's treated is of no matter because the idea is central. If anyone can get it in one sentence, thirteen words or a few seconds, and see its potential as a movie, then it's likely to get some support.

For me, high concept is a big idea simply expressed that suggests a visually exciting narrative. It's a kind of storytelling shorthand, one that often borrows or melds pre-existing tropes.

I like this ~ But I like simple too, like the explanation below - "6. davidbishop on July 27, 2012 at 3:12 AM said: For me, high concept is a big idea simply expressed that suggests a visually exciting narrative. It’s a kind of storytelling shorthand, one that often borrows or melds pre-existing tropes."

John, I meant to reply earlier. I love this idea! I hope that when the forum is live there will be space where we can have these kinds of discussions over a longer period of time, too. Here are two link to older posts where Scott has gone into these topics in detail, and I hope they may help your filter project: 1. Story ideas: test your concept 2. The 10-part series Is my script big enough to be a movie?

The Scriptwriter's Network just announced their 3rd Annual High Concept Screenplay Competition, wherein they wisely define "high concept". Here's what they have to say: A high concept screenplay: - has a great premise - the idea is king (Big) - has a memorable title - it conveys what the movie is about (Wedding Crashers) - has a visual logline - you can see the movie (40 Year Old Virgin) - has universal appeal - all demographics "get it" (Star Trek) - has a simple throughline, clear conflicts, high stakes, a hook, a ticking clock and/ or a twist (The Godfather, Liar Liar) - can be summed up succinctly in 25 words or less (Seven, Home Alone)