Post by Jamison on Jul 7, 2012 15:32:39 GMT -6
SERIES BIBLE DEVELOPMENT GUIDE, by Mike Jones
1. LOGLINE
The logline is a short proactive statement that distills your series into focused pitch. The Logline should be less than 30 words and depict clearly the Protagonist, their Flaw, their Objective, and the Antagonist.
For example the logline for Breaking Bad might be something like:
“When a high school chemistry teacher, struggling to financially make ends meet, is diagnosed with cancer and health insurance that wont cover the cost of treatment, he turns to selling drugs and cooking crystal meth to secure a financial future for his family.”
2. SYNOPSIS
The Synopsis of your series is short document of less than 1 page (4-5 paragraphs) that summarises the world of the story, the major characters and the central tension.
3. FORMAT
The Format of your series encompasses a number of structural elements of your series. These include:
- The Length of episodes
- The Number of episodes
- The Structure of the episodes and their story archs
- The Genre of the series
- The Release pattern of episodes (how often and how spaced apart)
4. AUDIENCE
Here you should clearly define your target audience; by age, demographic or interests - sometimes around particular network, channel or medium. You may also take into consideration the audiences of other shows and aim your project to appeal to the same audience as a similar series, or one in the same style or genre.
5. SETTING
Setting details the time, place and period of your series - the Where and When. The length of this document can vary depending on the genre of the series. A SciFi drama for example may need detailed description of the setting where as a suburban drama in the present day may be relatively short.
6. WORLD + BACKGROUND
The World + Background section outlines the world of your series going beyond the Where and When to encompass the Why - the circumstances, rules and given principles of the world your story plays out in. Consider:
- The Events that have lead to the current ‘situation’
- The Backstory of the characters
- Social groupings and hierarchies
- Character and World Relationships
- Established Behaviours and Attitudes
- Rules that govern the Tone of the story (certain types of humour, language, inflections)
7. SERIES OUTLINE
The Series Outline is a self contained document of 1-2 pages that overviews character and narrative archs over the course of the series. Much like a feature-film Treatment it focuses on the major events and the journey of the protagonists.
8. CHARACTERS
The Characters section should list all your major characters and in 2-3 paragraphs for each, outline their personal characteristics, wants, needs, obstacles and flaws. It should also clearly indicate the relationships between characters.
9. MINOR CHARACTERS
The Minor Characters section is a listing of minor characters in the story with a brief sentence on who they are.
eg: “Mary - a aeroplane pilot and friend to Bob.”
10. KEY LOCATIONS
Key Locations lays out the central locations in the series, the recurring locations that are important to the characters and the world and the dominant locations where the story will play out.
This section should list the locations and provide a 1-2 paragraph description of each.
11. EPISODE STORY OUTLINES
The Episode Storylines provide a focused summary of the major plot archs for each episode showing both the storyline within each episode and how each episode contributes to any over-arching story line across the series.
Each Episode should be summarised in 2-4 paragraphs.
12. CREATORS STATEMENT
The Creators Statement is an opportunity to clearly and succinctly spell out the thematic and conceptual ideas and premise behind your series. What are the metaphors and philosophies embedded in your story? How do your characters reflect the questions you wish to explore? What are the underlying beliefs that drive the story?
13. LOOK AND FEEL
The Look + Feel section details the intended visual aesthetics of your series. What is the Style of the show, how will it appear to audiences? What are the techniques, colours, compositions, and visual influences on the series?
14. VISUAL REFERENCES
A visual gallery of images that provide a mood-board and visual guide to the aesthetic style of the show. Interiors, exteriors, tones, texture, style, costume and design. This may also include images and elements drawn from other productions or artists that ‘resonate’ with you as relevant or informative to your project.
15. GLOSSARY
Many episodic series take place in a world removed from our own. This may be because of a SciFi or Fantasy setting, or it may be due to jargon of a particular sub-culture (eg the Military or Prison)
In such cases it can be useful to compile a glossary of terms and terminology to inform the writing and development of the story and contribute to a consistent and authentic story world as the series progresses.
To read the full article, click the link below:
www.mikejones.tv/seriesbible
1. LOGLINE
The logline is a short proactive statement that distills your series into focused pitch. The Logline should be less than 30 words and depict clearly the Protagonist, their Flaw, their Objective, and the Antagonist.
For example the logline for Breaking Bad might be something like:
“When a high school chemistry teacher, struggling to financially make ends meet, is diagnosed with cancer and health insurance that wont cover the cost of treatment, he turns to selling drugs and cooking crystal meth to secure a financial future for his family.”
2. SYNOPSIS
The Synopsis of your series is short document of less than 1 page (4-5 paragraphs) that summarises the world of the story, the major characters and the central tension.
3. FORMAT
The Format of your series encompasses a number of structural elements of your series. These include:
- The Length of episodes
- The Number of episodes
- The Structure of the episodes and their story archs
- The Genre of the series
- The Release pattern of episodes (how often and how spaced apart)
4. AUDIENCE
Here you should clearly define your target audience; by age, demographic or interests - sometimes around particular network, channel or medium. You may also take into consideration the audiences of other shows and aim your project to appeal to the same audience as a similar series, or one in the same style or genre.
5. SETTING
Setting details the time, place and period of your series - the Where and When. The length of this document can vary depending on the genre of the series. A SciFi drama for example may need detailed description of the setting where as a suburban drama in the present day may be relatively short.
6. WORLD + BACKGROUND
The World + Background section outlines the world of your series going beyond the Where and When to encompass the Why - the circumstances, rules and given principles of the world your story plays out in. Consider:
- The Events that have lead to the current ‘situation’
- The Backstory of the characters
- Social groupings and hierarchies
- Character and World Relationships
- Established Behaviours and Attitudes
- Rules that govern the Tone of the story (certain types of humour, language, inflections)
7. SERIES OUTLINE
The Series Outline is a self contained document of 1-2 pages that overviews character and narrative archs over the course of the series. Much like a feature-film Treatment it focuses on the major events and the journey of the protagonists.
8. CHARACTERS
The Characters section should list all your major characters and in 2-3 paragraphs for each, outline their personal characteristics, wants, needs, obstacles and flaws. It should also clearly indicate the relationships between characters.
9. MINOR CHARACTERS
The Minor Characters section is a listing of minor characters in the story with a brief sentence on who they are.
eg: “Mary - a aeroplane pilot and friend to Bob.”
10. KEY LOCATIONS
Key Locations lays out the central locations in the series, the recurring locations that are important to the characters and the world and the dominant locations where the story will play out.
This section should list the locations and provide a 1-2 paragraph description of each.
11. EPISODE STORY OUTLINES
The Episode Storylines provide a focused summary of the major plot archs for each episode showing both the storyline within each episode and how each episode contributes to any over-arching story line across the series.
Each Episode should be summarised in 2-4 paragraphs.
12. CREATORS STATEMENT
The Creators Statement is an opportunity to clearly and succinctly spell out the thematic and conceptual ideas and premise behind your series. What are the metaphors and philosophies embedded in your story? How do your characters reflect the questions you wish to explore? What are the underlying beliefs that drive the story?
13. LOOK AND FEEL
The Look + Feel section details the intended visual aesthetics of your series. What is the Style of the show, how will it appear to audiences? What are the techniques, colours, compositions, and visual influences on the series?
14. VISUAL REFERENCES
A visual gallery of images that provide a mood-board and visual guide to the aesthetic style of the show. Interiors, exteriors, tones, texture, style, costume and design. This may also include images and elements drawn from other productions or artists that ‘resonate’ with you as relevant or informative to your project.
15. GLOSSARY
Many episodic series take place in a world removed from our own. This may be because of a SciFi or Fantasy setting, or it may be due to jargon of a particular sub-culture (eg the Military or Prison)
In such cases it can be useful to compile a glossary of terms and terminology to inform the writing and development of the story and contribute to a consistent and authentic story world as the series progresses.
To read the full article, click the link below:
www.mikejones.tv/seriesbible
