How to Come Up with a Movie Idea
Understand the essential parts of a movie idea., Make your movie idea out of these three simple elements., Set aside time to brainstorm., Find inspiration in real life., Decide on a genre., Tweak existing movies into something original., Come up...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Understand the essential parts of a movie idea.
Most people get stuck because they want to come up with the entire movie at once, instead of starting with the necessities and building from there.
Many movies are made up of simply mixing and matching three things
--setting, character, and conflict
-- until you get a new movie.
Sometimes, if one of them is unique enough, this is all you need to start writing (Cabin in the Woods starts on a government-run horror movie factory, which is a unique enough idea to kick off the plot).
No matter what type of movie you want to make, you'll be well on your way if you just come up the following:
The Setting:
Where does your movie take place in time and space.
Do you envision a space epic or a medieval earth? Or is it simply in a small town somewhere? The Protagonist(s):
Who is the main character? You don't need traits yet, just a vague outline of a person.
Are they a space pilot? Are they a stable boy? A dental hygienist? The Conflict:
What does your character want? Do they want to be a hero? Do they want to fall in love? Do they hate their job/boss? -
Step 2: Make your movie idea out of these three simple elements.
All movies, from the odd independents to the biggest blockbusters, are just a matching of these three concepts.
Don't worry about the intricacies, subtlety, or finer points yet
-- these come from writing the idea.
You need a strong base idea to build upon.
Space Epic + Pilot + Desire to be a Hero = Star Wars.
Medieval + Stable Boy + Hero/Love = A Knight's Tale.
Small Town + Dental Hygienist + Hate Job = Horrible Bosses.
Juvenile Detention + Idealist Councilors + Kid Who Don't Want Counseling = Short Term
12. , Ideas rarely, if ever, appear out of thin air.
The reason why some people seem to come up with great movie ideas is because they take time to do it.
This is as simple as grabbing a pen and paper, removing distractions, and taking some time to think.
If you need help, give yourself some prompts.
Most importantly, write everything down
-- on the subway, at home, at work.
These will be the building blocks of bigger ideas."What it..." are the two most important words for brainstorming.
Jurassic Park, for example, is the result of "What if people brought dinosaurs back to life?" "What would happen if two of my favorite movies collided?" Look up a news event that interests you.
What would happen if you were there? Write about your interests
-- any of them.
Clerks was built out of nerdy passions and rooftop hockey, Superbad comes from a love of classic teen-party movies, Lincoln was written by people passionate about history.
Nothing is off limits. , In any major newspaper right now there are likely 5 stories that could be turned into good movies.
Real life is often stranger than fiction, and you'll find that news stories are a great launching point for new stories.
How did the person who just won the World Hotdog Eating Contest become a professional eater? Why is the local country club shutting down? What was it like for the cop in the police blotter to respond to a call about "missing bacon?"Use these things as jumping off points
-- the starts of plots or ideas that your imagination can then take off with. , Genre is the type of movie, and while many movies can be said to have multiple genres, most films fit closely in one or the other.
Genres include Comedy, Romance, Sci-Fi, Action, Horror, Drama, or Documentary, but there are also many combinations, like Rom-Com, Dramedy, Action Horror, etc.
The beauty of genre is that it helps you develop a movie plot
-- giving you focus for brainstorming.
For example:
Do you love horror films? Then your movie idea must involve coming up with a good villain.
Once you have the monster or bad guy, you have your movie idea.
Do you love Rom-Coms? Then you need a girl and a guy who don't seem like they should fall in love (Republican and Democrat, one is married, one's an alien, etc.) Do you love Sci-Fi? Think of an invention you wish existed, from time-travel, space ships, or teleportation to a device that builds new planets.
Your story will be the repercussions of that invention. , You will never come up with a completely original idea.
Though that sounds harsh, it is actually incredibly liberating.
No movie ever made didn't draw influence and ideas from movies and art before it, and yours will be no exception.
How can you twist or change something you enjoy into something new? Ideas include:
Austin Powers is simply a comedic twist on spy movies, particularly James Bond, that had dominated the theaters.
The plot is the same, it just happens to have jokes instead of action scenes.
O Brother Where Art Thou is a retelling, nearly scene for seen, of Homer's The Iliad, but it is set in the bluegrass soaked world of the rural South.
Avatar is strikingly similar to Dances With Wolves, but by setting it in space James Cameron was able to get a brand new take on things.Warm Bodies has all the trappings of a Rom-Com, but one of the main characters is a zombie.
This quick "mash-up" of movie types helped it stand out immensely. , Log lines are quick, one sentence summaries of your script.
Good log lines tell you three things: the hook (what makes the movie different), the conflict, and the characters/settings.
To learn how to write good log lines, check out some famous examples.
Back to the Future:
A young man is transported to the past where he must reunite his parents before he and his future are gone forever.Jaws:
A police chief with a phobia for open water battles a gigantic shark, in spite of a greedy town council who demands that the beach stay open.
Ratatouille:
A Parisian rat secretly teams up with an untalented chef to prove that anyone can cook, despite what the critics, and pest-control, might think. -
Step 3: Set aside time to brainstorm.
-
Step 4: Find inspiration in real life.
-
Step 5: Decide on a genre.
-
Step 6: Tweak existing movies into something original.
-
Step 7: Come up with your log line to cement the idea.
Detailed Guide
Most people get stuck because they want to come up with the entire movie at once, instead of starting with the necessities and building from there.
Many movies are made up of simply mixing and matching three things
--setting, character, and conflict
-- until you get a new movie.
Sometimes, if one of them is unique enough, this is all you need to start writing (Cabin in the Woods starts on a government-run horror movie factory, which is a unique enough idea to kick off the plot).
No matter what type of movie you want to make, you'll be well on your way if you just come up the following:
The Setting:
Where does your movie take place in time and space.
Do you envision a space epic or a medieval earth? Or is it simply in a small town somewhere? The Protagonist(s):
Who is the main character? You don't need traits yet, just a vague outline of a person.
Are they a space pilot? Are they a stable boy? A dental hygienist? The Conflict:
What does your character want? Do they want to be a hero? Do they want to fall in love? Do they hate their job/boss?
All movies, from the odd independents to the biggest blockbusters, are just a matching of these three concepts.
Don't worry about the intricacies, subtlety, or finer points yet
-- these come from writing the idea.
You need a strong base idea to build upon.
Space Epic + Pilot + Desire to be a Hero = Star Wars.
Medieval + Stable Boy + Hero/Love = A Knight's Tale.
Small Town + Dental Hygienist + Hate Job = Horrible Bosses.
Juvenile Detention + Idealist Councilors + Kid Who Don't Want Counseling = Short Term
12. , Ideas rarely, if ever, appear out of thin air.
The reason why some people seem to come up with great movie ideas is because they take time to do it.
This is as simple as grabbing a pen and paper, removing distractions, and taking some time to think.
If you need help, give yourself some prompts.
Most importantly, write everything down
-- on the subway, at home, at work.
These will be the building blocks of bigger ideas."What it..." are the two most important words for brainstorming.
Jurassic Park, for example, is the result of "What if people brought dinosaurs back to life?" "What would happen if two of my favorite movies collided?" Look up a news event that interests you.
What would happen if you were there? Write about your interests
-- any of them.
Clerks was built out of nerdy passions and rooftop hockey, Superbad comes from a love of classic teen-party movies, Lincoln was written by people passionate about history.
Nothing is off limits. , In any major newspaper right now there are likely 5 stories that could be turned into good movies.
Real life is often stranger than fiction, and you'll find that news stories are a great launching point for new stories.
How did the person who just won the World Hotdog Eating Contest become a professional eater? Why is the local country club shutting down? What was it like for the cop in the police blotter to respond to a call about "missing bacon?"Use these things as jumping off points
-- the starts of plots or ideas that your imagination can then take off with. , Genre is the type of movie, and while many movies can be said to have multiple genres, most films fit closely in one or the other.
Genres include Comedy, Romance, Sci-Fi, Action, Horror, Drama, or Documentary, but there are also many combinations, like Rom-Com, Dramedy, Action Horror, etc.
The beauty of genre is that it helps you develop a movie plot
-- giving you focus for brainstorming.
For example:
Do you love horror films? Then your movie idea must involve coming up with a good villain.
Once you have the monster or bad guy, you have your movie idea.
Do you love Rom-Coms? Then you need a girl and a guy who don't seem like they should fall in love (Republican and Democrat, one is married, one's an alien, etc.) Do you love Sci-Fi? Think of an invention you wish existed, from time-travel, space ships, or teleportation to a device that builds new planets.
Your story will be the repercussions of that invention. , You will never come up with a completely original idea.
Though that sounds harsh, it is actually incredibly liberating.
No movie ever made didn't draw influence and ideas from movies and art before it, and yours will be no exception.
How can you twist or change something you enjoy into something new? Ideas include:
Austin Powers is simply a comedic twist on spy movies, particularly James Bond, that had dominated the theaters.
The plot is the same, it just happens to have jokes instead of action scenes.
O Brother Where Art Thou is a retelling, nearly scene for seen, of Homer's The Iliad, but it is set in the bluegrass soaked world of the rural South.
Avatar is strikingly similar to Dances With Wolves, but by setting it in space James Cameron was able to get a brand new take on things.Warm Bodies has all the trappings of a Rom-Com, but one of the main characters is a zombie.
This quick "mash-up" of movie types helped it stand out immensely. , Log lines are quick, one sentence summaries of your script.
Good log lines tell you three things: the hook (what makes the movie different), the conflict, and the characters/settings.
To learn how to write good log lines, check out some famous examples.
Back to the Future:
A young man is transported to the past where he must reunite his parents before he and his future are gone forever.Jaws:
A police chief with a phobia for open water battles a gigantic shark, in spite of a greedy town council who demands that the beach stay open.
Ratatouille:
A Parisian rat secretly teams up with an untalented chef to prove that anyone can cook, despite what the critics, and pest-control, might think.
About the Author
Henry Ferguson
Professional writer focused on creating easy-to-follow practical skills tutorials.
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