"High Concept" has increasingly become synonymous with Hollywood blockbusters. It is even said that if a high budget movie cannot be condensed into a high concept, it will be difficult to find investment. However, even among industry insiders, there are often divergent views on what a high concept really is.
Jaws is recognized as the originator of high-concept films
Concept in film refers to the plan or intention of using ideas to form a coherent story, which determines whether the story can be interpreted in its entirety. But a good idea alone is not enough to constitute a high concept; it also requires a gimmick to capture the audience's interest.
According to American scholar Justin Wyatt, high concept means a narrative that is salient, easy to simplify, and at the same time offers a high degree of marketability. He defines high concept specifically in terms of the look, the hook, and the book, i.e., the appeal of visual images; adequate marketing opportunities; and easy-to-understand, simple and concise plot lines and The look, the hook, and the book
Spielberg's Jaws and Jurassic Park and Christopher Nolan's Inception are typical high-concept films.
Inception used to distinguish the real and dream gyroscope
As the scale of film investment continues to expand and commercial blockbusters are prevalent around the world, Chinese films are also beginning to explore their own path to blockbusters. 19 years after the hit Chinese film The Wandering Earth was a high-concept commercial film that made good use of its simple narrative and powerful special effects to generate phenomenal buzz and translate into box office records in Chinese film history.
Wandering Earth ：Science fiction brings hope
How to capture the core of the high concept and condense the story to make investors' eyes shine? How do you balance the high concept premise with the emotionality of the characters and the storyline? In this special event, Professor Irving Belateche from the USC School of Film shares how to make a good high-concept film from three perspectives: the definition of high-concept, creation methods and evaluation criteria.
Date & Time
March 4, 2021
12:00 - 13:30
Event Format
Online ZOOM meeting
Language
English, with translation
Presenter
Irving Berardje is a screenwriter and author. Not only has he written for top film production companies such as Paramount, Sony, Warner Brothers and television networks such as HBO and Syfy (NBC Fantasy Channel), he is also the author of the best-selling books The Secret of Einstein and H2O. His seventeen sold feature film scripts include Need for Speed, Perfect Pregnancy, and The Veil. He has worked with acclaimed producers such as Lawrence Bender (Lowlife), Joe Sewell (The Matrix), Robert Evans (Rosemary's Baby), Jason Blum (Drummer Fury, Ghostbusters) and Robert Zemeckis (Forrest Gump, Back to the Future) and Roland Emmerich (Independence Day) have worked together.
Registration method:
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