A LOGLINE EXAMPLE MOVIE

Trust no clichéd loglines! See a pattern on these movie posters? Taglines often influence loglines in the wrong way. How does this particular fear tie into the story? Whether the fear is a universal one or it is a fear unique to the character, it should ideally reveal what it is and why he/she must confront it.Ī magician must face his biggest fears when he confronts a killer clown.Ī traveling-circus magician who had a traumatic childhood incident involving clowns is targeted by a killer clown who hates magicians. Must face his fears/Must face her nightmares Now, his paranoia increases as he sees evidence he may be stalking him despite moving across the country to a farm.Ģ. Why it's a problem: If the premise involves the hunter becoming the prey, then your logline should illustrate how.Ī corrupt cop learns the wrongly-convicted genius he helped put behind bars twenty years ago is released. This is a clichéd tagline that appears in loglines.Ī corrupt cop discovers the man he helped put behind bars twenty years ago is released and angry. In most cases, the solution is to simply be more specific as to what you want to communicate. So, here are some to avoid using in your loglines along with how you can overcome them. Keep in mind that using these cliches in your loglines can scream “novice writer” to a reader. These patterns reveal clichés based on expressions and idioms hammered into our heads in taglines we’ve seen on movie or show posters, or in voiceovers we've heard in trailers by the late, great Don LaFontaine.

When you read logline after logline, patterns emerge.

A logline example