How to Write a Logline
A logline isn't just a one-sentence summary — it's a structural test. If you can't compress your story into one precise sentence following the formula below, the dramatic engine may not be fully formed yet. This applies whether you're working in classic three-act structure or something more unconventional — the formula reveals whether the engine exists.
The Logline Formula
A professional logline runs approximately 40 words, divided by function:
- 20 words — Plot
- The story's beginning, middle, and end in miniature. Not a full summary — the shape of the journey.
- 5 words — Character
- Who the story is about, distilled to the essential identity.
- 5 words — Theme
- What the story is ultimately about, beneath the plot.
- Genre/tone, woven throughout
- If the logline's word choice and rhythm can hint at the genre and tone of the film, even better — that's a sign of craft, not just structure.
The Central Theme
Every working story argues something about its world. Before testing your logline, name the single thematic statement your story makes — not a moral, but a claim about how the world works.
The Thematic Question
The thematic question is the single sentence that contains all four ingredients of a story at once: Character, Price, Desire, and World.
“Must a woman pay with her life to achieve freedom in a patriarchal world?”
This question format forces clarity on all four elements simultaneously — if you can't fill in one of the four blanks, that's the structural gap to address before the logline itself.
Common Mistakes
- Loglines that are too vague
- Loglines with no real opposition
- Loglines that summarize plot instead of capturing the dramatic engine
- Loglines that give away the ending without showing what it costs