THE COUNTDOWN BEGINS

As you may have read yesterday, I have 3 more days to work on my outline before I officially start writing my first screenplay. With 100 pages to write in 30 days, I need to have a very clear idea of where I'm going and how I'm going to get there. I got a little freaked out tonight when I laid out my index cards with all of my ideas, so I thought I would spill it.

p.s. - It took one look at this album cover and this song is now in my head for the rest of the day. ugh. Their hair is awesome. I especially like the backlighting and the rolled up sleeves. 

Here's where I'm at:

-I've picked an idea

-I have a rough outline of my story

-I have my main characters, but they don't have names yet

-I have a working title

-I have a setting

-I have a twist (Don't you just love a good twist?)

Don't worry. Tomorrow I'll start giving details about the actual story. :)

Today I'll be working on my logline. A logline is basically a one sentence summary of a script. A good logline will keep me focused and help me easily explain my project if I ever need to. 

Below are some loglines from famous movies. See if you can guess them and post your answers below. (Please let me know at jennajbenton@aol.com if you're having trouble leaving comments. I need to know now if it's working for everyone.)

SEE IF YOU CAN GUESS THESE LOGLINES:

1.  "When a Roman general is betrayed and his family murdered by an insane and corrupt prince, he comes to Rome as a gladiator to seek revenge."

2.  "In a future where criminals are arrested before the crime occurs, a cop struggles on the lam to prove his innocence for a murder he has not yet committed."

3.  "A 17th Century tale of adventure on the Caribbean Sea where the roguish yet charming Captain Jack Sparrow joins forces with a young blacksmith in a gallant attempt to rescue the Governor of England's daughter and reclaim his ship."

4.  "An archeologist is hired by the U.S. government to find the Ark of the Covenant before the Nazis." 

5.  "A young man and woman from different social classes fall in love, must outwit her abusive fiancé, and find a way to survive aboard an ill-fated voyage at sea."