Logline, or not a logline?

[javachip]

A logline is supposed to identify the protagonist, the goal, and the antagonist. Here are some one-sentence blurbs from a film festival program:

"A blow-up doll develops a soul and falls in love with a video store clerk."

"A Brooklyn-based cartoonist pulls out all the stops to win back his girlfriend."

"Set in 1899, a carefree young man must prepare to take over his family's banking empire."

"A tragic series of events leads a 'good son' to commit murder."

"A hotel clerk falls in love with a beautiful lounge singer."

"A real-life experiment of an attractive woman who lives her life as a man for six months."

"An elderly photographer with a dark secret finds an unlikely confidant and apprentice."

"A young boy searches for his pet donkey in war-torn Kashmir."

"A Korean adoptee and his birth mother struggle to bond without a common language."

"Coming-of-age story of a girl who feels she can keep her family together by winning the science fair."

"Quirky high school student attains the power to leap through time."

"Former beauty queen seeks new enlightenment by attending secretive yoga class."

What do you think? Are they loglines? Or are they best described by some other label such as "teaser" or "plot summary?" They do not seem to meet the "requirements" of a logline, and yet they all succeed in making me want to watch the film.

[mscherer]

Javachip,

First, welcome to the GITS Club. Hope you have the opportunity to learn from and share with your fellow members.

As for the 'blurbs' -- to me, and this is only my opinion, they feel more like concepts.

A blow-up doll develops a soul and falls in love with a video store clerk

is a concept for a movie. The logline might be completely different.

My take on loglines... a logline should include the following:
1. A protagonist with a flaw.
2. An antagonist with a plan.
3. A situation that takes the protagonist out of his normal life.
4. High stakes.

One man's opinion -- mileage may vary -- batteries not included.

[javachip]

Thank you for the reply and for the welcome! These "blurbs" all came from a program for an Asian Film Festival, which means a couple of things.

1) The filmmakers may not speak English as their first language.

2) Independent films, especially foreign films, tend to do things differently.

How the logline/blurb is worded depends on its intended reader. If the logline/blurb is intended to catch the interest of a Hollywood producer, then maybe it should follow your guidelines above. If it is intended to catch the interest of a potential movie viewer, maybe it should offer a teaser of some sort, without necessarily including all your suggested components. Or a logline/blurb may have another purpose, earlier in the process: it may help the screenwriter stay focused on what the story is really about.

[mscherer]

Javachip,

...intended to catch the interest of a potential movie viewer, maybe it should offer a teaser of some sort...

Exactly! Substitute Producer for viewer and you have what a high concept is: A brief, succinct sentence that tells you what the story is about and why it is unique. Unique being the key to a high concept.

A logline tells the complete story: the Hero; the Villain; the Situation; the Stakes.

Keep Writing!

[joea]

I'll agree most of those are sketches rather than loglines, though the one about the blow up doll has some hilarious possibilities.

How about:

A lonely magician must fight to win back the heart of a blow up doll he's made come to life after she leaves him for a video store clerk.

If Pixar ever decides to make an "R" rated movie that could be a funny premise.

Joe