High concept

High concept

High concept, in film or art in general, is a term used to refer to a succinctly stated premise describing the overall idea of production in just a few sentences or less.

The term is also applied, often disparagingly, to films that are pitched and developed almost entirely upon such a simply stated premise rather than standing upon complex character study, cinematography, or other strengths that relate more to the artistic execution of a production rather than simply an engaging high concept premise with broad appeal.

While nearly every production can be described in a briefly stated high concept synopsis, a movie described as being 'high concept' is considered easy to sell to a wide audience because it delivers upon an easy to grasp idea that is original, interesting, colorful, and sometimes humorous. The opposite of a high concept movie would be a film that artistically challenges its audience, leaves open ambiguity, and forces the audience to think and develop an opinion of what is happening rather than just serving up a simple, predictably obvious, and almost purely passive work of entertainment. POV-statement|date=June 2008 [http://www.writersstore.com/article.php?articles_id=609]

A "non-high concept" film is considered both more difficult to pitch to a studio and to sell to an audience, because it requires developing an appreciation for the artistic execution of the film rather than just producing a simple premise with an obvious potential for drama, comedy, or excitement.Fact|date=June 2008

An extreme example of a high concept film is "Snakes on a Plane" which put its entire premise in the movie title itself.

High concept movies typically feature relatively simple characters and a heavy reliance on the predictable conventions of film genre. Stylistically, high concept movies can be either big budget blockbusters or simple and cheaply made gag movies. In both cases, the movies often rely on pre-sold properties such as movie stars to build audience anticipation, and use cross-promotional advertising with links to a soundtrack, music videos, and licensed merchandise. They commonly apply market research and test screening feedback to alter the film to ensure maximum popularity. Some high concept movies are built as star vehicles for successful music and sports personalities to enter the movie business. Often high concept movies are pitched as combinations of existing high concept movies, or unique twists on existing titles.

The high concept style and mode of production was developed by Hollywood studios in the late 1970s. The term has also been claimed to originate from the marketing and management work of media executives Barry Diller and Michael Eisner at the ABC network in the 1960s. Steven Spielberg's "Jaws" (1975) and George Lucas' "" (1977) are commonly referred to as the first high concept movies Fact|date=April 2008. However, some argue that some blockbusters from the past such as "Casablanca" were high concept movies in that they explored broad themes with a universal appeal. Fact|date=June 2008

High concept movies often have themes based on an existing area of popular fascination--such as sharks, dinosaurs, flying saucers, the Titanic, and so on--and thus have a ready-built foundation of subsidiary issues and ever-ramifying facts that can feed the marketing machine, from magazine articles to weblog chatter, on levels ranging from the superficial to the intellectually or factually exhaustive.

Prime examples

*"Jurassic Park"
*"Jaws"
*"The Terminator"
*"Star Wars"
*"Independence Day"
*"Mrs. Doubtfire"
*"Snakes on a Plane"
*"Speed"
*"Die Hard"
*"Commando
*"Alien"
*"Home Alone"
*"The 40-year-old Virgin"

References

*Writers Store [http://www.writersstore.com/article.php?articles_id=609 High Concept Defined Once and For All]
*The ScreenWritersVault [http://www.screenwritersvault.com/creating/creatingintro.asp Creating High Concept]
*Wyatt, Justin. "High Concept". Austin: University of Texas Press, 1994. ISBN 0-292-79091-0
*Heitmuller, Karl. [http://www.mtv.com/movies/news/articles/1535928/story.jhtml "Sometimes 'High Concept' Is Just Plain Old Awful."] "MTV News", July 11, 2006.


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  • high-concept — [hī′kän′sept΄] adj. based on a simple idea regarded as certain to appeal to a large audience [a high concept film] * * * high con·cept (hīʹkŏnʹsĕpt ) adj. Designed to appeal to a mass audience, as by incorporating popular, glamorous features: a… …   Universalium

  • high-concept — UK US adjective [usually before noun] MARKETING ► based on an interesting and attractive idea that can be explained in a simple way: »They are what they call in Hollywood high concept movies in which you can say the story in one line …   Financial and business terms

  • high-concept — [hī′kän′sept΄] adj. based on a simple idea regarded as certain to appeal to a large audience [a high concept film] …   English World dictionary

  • high-concept — ˈ ̷ ̷ ˈ ̷ ̷  ̷ ̷ adjective : having or exploiting elements (as fast action, glamour, or suspense) that appeal to a wide audience high concept movies * * * high concept UK US adjective cinema a high concept film has a story that is quick and easy… …   Useful english dictionary

  • high-concept —   refers to the saleable or marketable elements of a film; a high concept (actually low concept in practice) refers to a film s main premise expressed as a simple formula in just a few words (as a one liner) that can be easily understood by all;… …   Glossary of cinematic terms

  • high concept — noun An appealing idea for a work that can be understandably summarized in a few sentences or less. Spielbergs opinion relates well to the vision of high concept expressed by other Hollywood representatives: a striking, easily reducible narrative …   Wiktionary

  • high-concept — adjective Date: 1985 having or exploiting elements (as fast action, glamour, or suspense) that appeal to a wide audience < high concept movies > …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • high-concept — UK / US adjective cinema a high concept film has a story that is quick and easy to explain and a subject and style that is likely to make it very popular and therefore make a lot of money …   English dictionary

  • high concept — high′ con′cept n. cvb a simple and often striking idea or premise, as for a story or film, that lends itself to easy promotion • Etymology: 1980–85 …   From formal English to slang

  • high concept — a simple and often striking idea or premise, as of a story or film, that lends itself to easy promotion and marketing. [1980 85] * * * …   Universalium

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