Twitter Rant: @RachaelPriorMBE on Treatments and Outlines

Earlier this week, @RachaelPriorMBE went on an informative Twitter ‘rant’ about treatments and outlines. Reprinted by permission:

https://twitter.com/RachaelPriorMBE/status/571805463370596352

These are relatively nebulous terms for a (by and large) prose document that tells the story of your movie from beginning to middle to end.

There is no real consensus on what constitutes an outline vs a treatment, but generally a treatment is a detailed doc between 10–40(!) pgs.

An outline is shorter, maybe 2–6 pages max. More of a broad overview than a beat for beat telling of the story.

I’ve talked on here before about my deep loathing of treatments, and I know many writers feel the same.

That said, for some writers, it’s an incredibly helpful part of their writing process. For some producers, likewise.

Historically I’ve seen prods get heaviest on treatments where A. It’s a huge movie and major $ is being paid to nail a four quandrant story.

B. They are working w/a newer writer & want to feel confident said writer has shape/tone of the story clear in their head before commencing.

Asking for a treatment in these cases is completely legit. Actually, your prod asking you for anything you are getting paid for is legit.

I’m not saying you have to like it…

My issue w/treatments (which I’m not going to talk about beyond this) is that the format can feel like it’s working at odds w/final medium.

So, my preference on the whole is for outlines. And given samples of outlines are the thing I get asked most for from new writers…

I thought it might be worth tweeting on.

What makes a good outline? What’s the appropriate format? What’s the correct length? Etc.

Let’s assume this outline is to either get you a meeting on an idea, or for a prod company to use to find dev financing for your draft.

(Outlines you do for yourself as part of process can be whatever you want them to be, obviously).

They key thing to remember is this is a selling doc. It might be working both as pitch doc & proof of narrative. A good outline does both.

A good outline is something an exec can read in a matter of 5–10mins. It doesn’t get stuck in the slush pile. It’s not weekend read.

It’s something that can be dealt w/& responded on between meetings, in office hrs. It should be designed to get a quick & positive response.

So, there’s a skill to this. You need to practice, practice, practice your shorthand for conveying character…

You know what will do this more effectively than 3 paragraphs? One line of dialogue.

Drop it in at an opportune moment — An event happens, this is how your character reacts, OR this is their internal monologue.

Use rhythm of language to convey tone. This can be remarkably effective when writing outlines for horror, thriller or drama in particular.

https://twitter.com/RachaelPriorMBE/status/571812479199682560

There is probably a bad analogy to be had here to do with buying a house from plans vs a 3D visualization.

The other very important thing is that you do not cheat your reader of a full narrative. Even if you are only across 2–3 pages.

One of the most frustrating things to read in an outline (pretty much guaranteed to arrive during 3rd act climax) is AND HILARITY ENSUES.

It’s ok to be sketchy about exactly how you get from A to B, or K-L, but you should know your beginning, middle and end.

You won’t gain anything from withholding that from your reader. This isn’t a teaser trailer. These are the plans to a glorious building.

Same as an architect, you can’t just say “I’ll do something spectacular on the roof, you’re going to love it”.

https://twitter.com/RachaelPriorMBE/status/571815004128718848

Interesting to learn about Rachael’s understanding of ‘outline’ and ‘treatment’. As she notes, they are “relatively nebulous terms” in movie and TV development circles. But the process and content Rachael details in this rant are all spot-on. More importantly, what you’re getting here is an expression of a development exec’s expectations about story summaries.

My advice: Since one person’s ‘outline’ is another’s ‘treatment,’ ask them specifically what it is they want to read. A 1-page synopsis? A scene-by-scene breakdown? Treatment? Outline? Beat sheet? Discuss in advance the details of the story summary they expect. That way you are more likely to deliver something on the money and less likely to go off the mark.

If you are on Twitter, follow @RachaelPriorMBE. She is definitely on the mark!