Everything Screenwriters Need To Know About A High Concept Story - Kaia Alexander

Have you ever been told that your story was not high-concept enough?

I had to pause the video and Google what "Bi Queer" mean...
Huh! America!.

High concept , translate high ROI potential. Imo

So if it’s about girls and it’s easy to sell, that’s ’high concept’..?
Let’s not confuse marketing with a great story.

I want to hear about process not insider angst.

Hi film courage great stuff as usual. High concept to me, universal theme, which explores the human experience.

This is an extremely lazy culture of thinking for the ones "developing and marketing" the script. She mentioned they do this because it is easier... that is not a high concept, but semantics so that those who do not have the skill or effort to write an entire screenplay can visualize it from a log line to sell it easier.... wack

so,"Emily goes to Paris" "Sex In The City" "Game of Thrones" "Girl Across From The Neighbor's Dog's Sister's Owner's Cousin In The Window "

I guess it is a matter of meaning we're assigning to the words, but what was described in this video is not a "high" concept for me, but a "broad" one. "High Concept" - for me personally - is an intellectually advanced concept that requires its viewer / reader / consumer to invest his/her-Self into it, in order to fully understand what it conveys. Writing a story with the sole intention of selling it, makes your story small. Telling a good, fascinating story from a place of passion and love is the way it should be done and whatever comes next, it comes. You were creatively fulfilled and rest is up to the world / other peoples. You've done your part.

PS: On the second thought, not only intellectually advanced but High Concept may also be simply profound, touching fundamental values in a very deep manner. Such as the nature of personal reality and its relation to objectified reality we all share outside of Self.

High Concept to me is crazy high concept. It has to:
1. Have its own universe
2. Have its own society
3. Have its own system if its fan/sci fi
4. Must be designed to be a series
5. Must be original
6. Must dominate a category, for example, pirates of the carribbean owns the pirate category. Finding Nemo owns the ocean category, which is why shark tales will always pale in comparison to it, and which is also why finding Nemo has a sequel and shark tales doesn’t.

She evaded defining high concept and deflected by talking about how marketable high concept scripts allegedly are. High concept is a plot driven story with concise premise and a very clear three act structure. Low concept is character driven and the atmosphere they live in. Compelling conflict? High concept. Great characters and dialogue? Low concept. The plot in low concept is almost secondary. Comedies are often low concept. My Dinner with Andre and Frances Ha are low concept. If you can write great characters and dialogue that's low concept. Don't let that discourage you from low concept because it all comes down to what you are trying to do creatively and what you are trying to say about the human condition. Regardless, Write your script! If you don't write it you can't sell it whether it's high or low.

Barbie is not "high concept". It is catering only to an american female audience. Yet the marketing was great... as the production design.

Why they still call them "strong female protagonists". Hasn't it became almost a meme? Why not just say "a female protagonist"? Are there any "weak female protagonists"?

"Coda" is quite over rated. It was the right time for the flick, It won for its 'inclusivity" more than its creativity.

This is why movies are boring remakes or repetitive. Because theyre trying to sell concepts and not stories

Spielberg once described “high concept” as a story you can hold in the palm of your hand.

informative interview

High Concept- Also known as high on greed & smug indifference to your audience while trolling your agenda. Getting that lid nailed down on creativity for the coffin of the film industry.

This is the opposite of what I thought. I thought “high concept” meant films with a focus on unique ideas, like Inception

Basically commercial material. Shouldn’t this be renamed LOW concept?

hmm.... batman vs superman would make me turn away immediately lol

HIgh concept : high on concept, and low on story. ex : what if dinosaurs can play basket ball?

The most poorly named thing in the universe. Simple concept would be more apt, there's nothing high about it.

I've got a high concept story that's a pixar type of film. Distinctive idea and very sympathetic and dynamic lead role of a girl. Influenced by Miyazaki and Pixar. It's like a hybrid of the 2.

How can Apple not know how Coda would perform? They took a highly successful foreign movie and adapted it for an American audience… they had a ready made recipe for a success…

Don’t use Coda as your example if you don’t know that… 😂

For all her talk about high concept and what at least to me sounds an attempt to create a recipe, she doesn't seem to understand why super hero movies are failing lately, despite being "high concept." The movies that are being churned are made NOT to entertain a large audience. They're made to entertain small groups that are not usually interested in the franchises. Captain Marvel and its sequels, for example, were made to appeal to the feminist sector. The recent Star Wars films as well. Forced representation is, or has, become the standard, instead of creating something original for an audience you are trying to capture. They change characters in order to make them one race or another

My takeaway from this 8 minute video is an understanding of what "high concept" means, but her discussion leaves me dissatisfied.

Oh dear, high concept sounds like lowest common denominator. Your guest is so gracious, she seems to understand this.

Ill make it easy- 'high-concept' is the term used when mainstream filmmakers want to pitch exploitation films- they really are 'b films'. The title, the plot, possibly the outlandishness of the elements- refined from a genre flick into 'high-concept'. To everything, there is a season. To every 'Jaws', there is a 'Grizzly'. To every Jurassic Park, there is a 'Food Of The Gods'

I LOVE THAT JACKET

High Concept movies are great for the box office but don't win Academy Awards.