A fully revised guide to turning your movie idea into a treatment that can persuade even the most jaded movie producers
As Hollywood insiders know, the first step in selling your story idea for film or television is preparing a treatment, the brief pitch that sells the concept to a busy producer or agent. Now including updates on the latest trends in the industry, writers-producers Kenneth Atchity and Chi-Li Wong tell readers everything they need to know to create an effective and saleable treatment, one that incorporates such key elements as conflict, likeable characters, plot twists, a climax, and visual drama. Using dozens of the latest examples from actual productions, Writing Treatments That Sell distinguishes between scripts designed for feature films, episodic television, and made-for-TV movies, and shows step-by-step how to prepare a selling treatment for each. Also included is essential information on copyrighting and acquiring rights along with a comprehensive glossary of industry terms. This book is essential for anyone hoping to get a foot in the door of the exciting scriptwriting business.
Walter's name is synonymous with excellence in motion picture screenwriting. The guru of the completed script (he previously wrote Screenwriting: The Art, Craft and Business of Film and Television Writing, LJ 11/15/88), he here offers a tour de force of information for everyone who has ever contemplated writing a movie. While most how-to titles dwell on the three-act structure, strong character development, and other technical skills, Walter urges writers to draw from their own experience. He cheers for films with substance rather than today's matinees that may be shiny and shapely but void of any real soul. Equally impressive is Writing Treatments That Sell, a debut by two Hollywood writer-producers. Though some of their basic information seems to be a rehash of material found in just about every screenwriting book, everything pertaining to the actual writing of the treatment is original and fresh. There is no better book specifically on treatments. Both titles are highly recommended for appropriate collections.?Marty Dean Evensvold, Magnolia Branch Lib., Tex. Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Review
"At last-someone wrote the book every screenwriter has needed for years. It can make the difference between success and failure in the industry."-Linda Seger, author of Making a Good Script Great and From Script to Screen
"Essential material for the beginning screenwriter and the established writer, both."-Dale Pollack, producer of Saturday Night Fever
With more than forty years experience in the publishing world, and over fifteen years in entertainment, I absolutely love being a "story merchant"--writer, producer, teacher, and literary manager, responsible for launching dozens of books and films. My life's passion is finding great storytellers and turning them into bestselling authors and screenwriters--and making films which send their stories around the world.
I've produced 26 films, including "Joe Somebody" (Tim Allen; Fox), "Life or Something Like It" (Angelina Jolie; Fox), "The Amityville Horror" (NBC), "Shadow of Obsession" (NBC), "The Madam's Family" (CBS). "Meg" (New Line), "Demon Keeper" (Fox 2000), "Henry's List of Wrongs" (New Line), and Ripley's Believe-It-Or-Not (starring Jim Carrey; Paramount) are approaching production. Full film bio at www.imdb.com.
My 14 books include books for writers at every stage of their career. Based on my teaching, managing, and writing experience, I've successfully built bestselling careers for novelists, nonfiction writers, and screenwriters from the ground up. Clients include bestsellers Steve Alten, Royce Buckingham, Jamise Dames, Noire, Shirley Palmer, Tracy Price-Thompson, Ripley's Believe-It-Or-Not!, Cheryl Saban, and Governor Jesse Ventura. Now, as chairman and CEO of Atchity Entertainment International, Inc., my Story Merchant companies, www.aeionline.com and www.thewriterslifeline.com, provide a one-stop full-service development and management machine for commercial and literary writers who wish to launch their storytelling in all media---from publishing and film and television production, to Web presence and merchandising & licensing.
I was born in Eunice, Louisiana; and raised in Kansas City, Missouri, where I attended Rockhurst High School (and was editor in chief of The Prep News). After undergraduate work at Georgetown (A.B., English/Classics), and getting my Ph.D. in comparative literature from Yale, I served as professor and chairman of comparative literature and creative writing at Occidental College (Faculty Achievement Award; published articles, reviews, short stories, and poems in major journals and magazines throughout the world).
Editor of CQ: Contemporary Quarterly: Poetry and Art
Co-founder and -editor (with Marsha Kinder of Dreamworks: An Interdisciplinary Journal Devoted to the Relationship between Dreams and the Arts (authors published and/or advisory board included Joyce Carol Oates, Ursula Leguin, Ernest Cardenal, Federico Fellini, Ingmar Bergman, Paul Bowles, John Fowles, Hubert Selby, John Rechy, Stephen King, Georges Simenon, Carlos Fuentes, Eugene Ionesco).
Served as Fulbright Professor of American Studies at the University of Bologna
Distinguished Instructor, UCLA Writers Program
Regular columnist-reviewer for The Los Angeles Times Book Review (involved in establishing the Los Angeles Times Book Awards)
Vice-president of P.E.N. Los Angeles
I'ves made numerous radio and television appearances, and given inspirational keynote talks at writers conferences, speaking on the world of professional storytelling, the storyteller's market, the storyteller's process, creativity, dreams, and various academic and entertainment and publishing related subjects.
I wrote and served as on-camera talent for Synapse Technology's "Columbus: The Voyage of Discovery," and consulted for the Discovery Channel's series, "The Power of Dreams."
This review is from: Writing Treatments That Sell: How to Create and Market Your Story Ideas to the Motion Picture and TV Industry, Second Edition (Paperback)
I just finished this book about four days ago, and I've already completed my first treatment, in my case a television series "bible." This book gave me a lot of insights, and I'm quite satisfied. It's short, easy to read, direct and practical. There's even a section at the end about copyrighting and legal issues, which is very helpful and will come in handy for the next part of the process that awaits me.
By the way, a previous reviewer mentioned that this book deserves four stars instead of five because a sample treatment for big-screen movies wasn't included. In actuality, a sample television movie treatment was included. All you have to do is change the seven-act structure used for television movies into the three-act structure used for big-screen movies and that TV movie sample treatment can also be used as a sample treatment for a big-screen movie.
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For a person looking to write a movie treatment for the big screen, the first 20 or so pages outline the requirements very well. But just when you've finished the section on what makes a good movie treatment and are ready to see how all of the requirements tie together, THERE IS NO SAMPLE MOVIE TREATMENT TO REVIEW! NOT ONE! Absolutely bizarre. And yes, treatments vary in how they are written, but how about just one to look at and review? The book moves on to television and gives some sample treatments but they're for a 7 act TV movie which is much different than a 3 act big screen movie. Why is it that a book on how to create treatments omits the very thing that many people buy the book to look at and dissect?
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I know absolutely nothing about writing a movie treatment. Be aware, I am interested in writing a movie treatment NOT a full fledged script. So when I asked learned friends what book they suggested everyone named this one. I even asked for other references, everyone said this was THE book.
The book does give great details on the content of a treatment, the necessary parts, and insight into the industry, however I was waaaay disappointed that a sample movie treatment was NOT provided. Had the sample been included this book would have gotten a 5 star rating.
It would have been quite helpful to see a treatment dissected and the typing format!! Perhaps someone can email me a suggestion on a book that has the elements this book is missing
Take care--
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First Sentence:
The key to closing a deal in Hollywood is getting a player (as deal makers are called) to read your work. Read the first pageKey Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
pilot treatment, dramatic television series, beat sheet, spec script, writing treatments, pilot story, written pitch, inciting incident, continuing characters, dramatic rights, log line, action line
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
New Orleans, Harbor Police, Writers Guild, New York, Los Angeles, Walt Disney, Cuba Libre, United States, Treatment Pages, Amy Fisher, Benjamin Knapp, George Reed, Joe Somebody, Shadow of Obsession, Guild Agreement, Sylvester Stallone, The Hollywood Creative Directory, Indiana Jones, John Jones, Kansas City, Norton Wright, Sharon Stone, The Endless Train, Tomb Raider, Year Died
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