Hey, all you "Fancy Hollywood Writin'" Writers!
Your Mission, if you choose to accept it: Watch the attached 1984 music video, then choose a genre and create an original feature screenplay logline based on said video. Please note that if MY version goes from script to screen, I'll make a cameo appearance in the role of The Score-keeper.
GENRE: Raunchy Teen Comedy.
BROCK'S LOGLINE:
A down-on-their-luck Broadway cast, completely unprepared for Opening Night 24 hours away, enlist the medicinal healing powers of various street drugs to make them shine during an anxiety-filled, all-night rehearsal.
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Hi Bill, the warrior, I love this song
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Lol that was what Maestro was missing; more drugs screen by Bernstein. Dont kid yourselves, many of our celebrated artists, living or dead, are druggies. :) i alway wonder how theater actors do 7 to 10 shows a week without some extra "juice" in their bodies.
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That'd be a funny movie, Bill Brock. Here's my movie:
Genres: Action Fantasy Musical
Logline: After being swept away by a hurricane to a savage land, a timid singer trains to defeat a silver warlord so she can return home before her little sister is taken away by the state.
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Your logline is more of a really short synopsis, Shawn Coleman, but interesting, unique concept. But this game is just for fun, so who cares what the logline looks like. :)
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Dueling factions in a post-apocalyptic wasteland engage in a fierce dance battle for control of the underground network of tunnels.
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Genre: Rom-com
logline: A newbie fashion designer struggling to find inspiration for her look book, gets sucked into the underworld of her local theatre group. Can she unfasten herself from the lustful clutches of the lead in time to present her finished looks to the designer of her dreams.
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Just what we need for teens. Street drugs to the rescue! How about this: they buy all these drugs and all of them are laced with fentanyl, and when the show doesn't start on time, the cops find all of the cast members dead in their dressing rooms. You know, a rom-com with a twist. :)
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After eating a pizza topped with strange mushrooms, a 35 year old accountant travels back to the Eighties and dances with chicks draped in fishing nets.
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Adam Brandt Ha! Fierce dance battle! Hilarious!
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Sophie Sherwin Ha! Sophie! You had me at "sucked into the underworld of her local theatre group!" Sounds so DANGEROUS!!! Good job!
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Jenean McBrearty Just joking about the teen / drug connection. I wanted it to be so over the top and beyond ludicrous. Plus, there are ZERO teens in the video, which adds to the lunacy!!
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E Langley HA! Dances with chicks draped in fishing nets. As an accountant, she was probably crunching the numbers in her head regarding the fish net budget.
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These were a lot of fun, Everybody! I really enjoyed reading them. I came up with this idea last night and wasn't too sure how it would play out. So thanks for picking up the ball and running with it. I do consider it a fun exercise in creating and expanding unique narratives that go far beyond what's presented in the video. BRAVO!! Personally, I was 21 when this video hit the MTV airwaves in very, very heavy rotation. Fell in love with singer Patty Smyth and considered her my FAKE Girlfriend at the time. Years later, she would become my FAKE ex-wife.
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Maurice Vaughan WOW! Great logline. Defeat the powerful warlord and race home to save the kid sister by dinner time!
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Dan MaxXx Ha, Dan! Former stage actor here with 22 play titles to my credit. Thankfully, never needed the extra juice during a performance! My pre-show diet usually consisted of a protein bar that I washed down with a medium Starbucks.
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Shawn Coleman Whoah, Shawn! Wasn't expecting that Scooby-Doo ending, which makes it AWESOME!! "WHY, GRANDPA, WHY???!!!!"
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Billy Kwack Agreed, Billy! This song DEFINED the 1980s!!! Ah! Was a big fan of the NEON back in the day.
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You're welcome, Bill Brock. This was fun. My movie is like THE WIZARD OF OZ set in an 80s Action movie, mixed with a Musical. I changed the tornado to a hurricane.
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After nefarious Conservatives clone Ronald Reagan and get him re-elected president, he signs executive orders to roll the US back to the Eighties then commissions a song and dance celebration called Nuke Russkiesthon.
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Hi Bill, I was karaoke-ing with friends yesterday and my buddy Tejas sang that song
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E Langley Hahahahhah, E! Another home run! You had me at "Nuke Russkiesthon! You have an AWESOME imagination!
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Shawn Coleman You're very welcome, Shawn. I invite a warm welcome to break away from all this serious screenplay talk with some "shits and gigs" once in a while. Thanks for playing along.
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Billy Kwack OMG! Billy! I, too, love karaoke. Must get back into it. I have this strange ability to morph my voice into the following bands and artists-- The Ramones, The Police, The Killers, David Bowie, U2, Big Country, and Elvis Costello. My vocal training stems from having been the lead singer in a garage rock band back in the early '80s. Good Times.
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Drugs don't help, they only harm
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Nah, Bill Brock. I just hate Russkies. :) Thanks.
That imagination stems from copious amounts of drugs.
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Check out this logline template, Shawn Coleman:
“After/when ______ (the inciting incident/the event that sets the plot in motion), a _______ (an adjective that describes the protagonist’s personality and the protagonist's position/role) tries to/attempts to/fights to/struggles to/strives to/sets out to/fights/battles/engages in/participates/competes/etc. _______ (goal of story and try to add the obstacles here) so/in order to ________ (stakes).”
The inciting incident can also be at the end of the logline: “A _______ (an adjective that describes the protagonist’s personality and the protagonist's position/role) tries to/attempts to/fights to/struggles to/strives to/sets out to/fights/battles/engages in/participates/competes/etc. _______ (goal of story and try to add the obstacles here) so/in order to ________ (stakes) after/when ______ (the inciting incident/the event that sets the plot in motion).”
And Christopher Lockhart has a great webinar on loglines. It’s called “How To Make Your Logline Attractive to A-List Actors, Producers, Directors, Managers, Agents, Financiers and Development Execs” (www.stage32.com/webinars/How-To-Make-Your-Logline-Attractive-to-A-List-A...).
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Hi Bill, awesome, me and my buddies karaoke twice a month, we like choosing songs from the 80s and 90s
You're welcome, Shawn Coleman.
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I haven't seen "American Hustle," Shawn Coleman. I've heard of it though. "The Archimedes Box." That's an interesting title.
Sounds like a fun movie, Shawn Coleman! How far along are you on the script?
Cool, Shawn Coleman. It's always exciting to start a script. Keep us posted on your script.
Genre: Horror
A toxic zoologist, whose emotional scars on women turn physical, is hunted by a David Bowie impersonator who's new damaged look sends her career into the stratusphere.