1 Page OUTLINE help

If your producer is asking for a one page outline, he's asking for a document that neatly sums up pretty much everything he needs to know about your project.

It should tell your story in a very general way but be specific enough to identify genre, audience, main characters, plot and progression of story including a sense of the ending and overall tone.

It should be something he can use to obtain a feel for the project as a whole, albeit in a very general way, and something he can use to pass on to higher-ups or other execs as a way of neatly summising what it is they might be investing in.

There are no hard and fast rules but you should certainly cover most of the above, if not all. You can think of it almost like a press release for your script - a document that sings its praises and encapsulates its content before the actual reading. Therefore your outline must accurately represent your script which is no easy task.

I have only limited experience writing outlines so I can't offer an exact play-by-play except to say that sticking to the guidlines above and any other advice you get below should have you heading in the right direction.

Write it in the present tense, use active verbage and make it as dynamic as you can. Single spaced, header with relevant info included, and as new characters appear write their name in caps.

Also don't end it with a variant on, "...will our hero survive? Will he save the girl? And if he does those, will he be able to save the President's padded velvetine toilet-seat from the terrorists?"

Write down how he saves himself, the girl and the seat.

It should also capture your voice as well.

Easy, eh?

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