What is Film Treatment?
Film treatment is the brief summary and overview of a story, which sheds light on the overall concept without giving away too many details or sharing dialogues. The film treatment is prepared before the script. It can be termed as the rough draft of a project which is shared with the filmmakers, actors, and producers, etc., to weigh the value of the project.
You cannot just randomly write two lines about the story and forward it to the concerned authorities, thinking they will approve the project. You have to follow a specific format and stick to some other basics too to make your film treatment engaging, interesting, and promising enough to be launched as a project.
Essential Components of Film Treatment
A film treatment is incomplete without these specific and essential components.
- Project title
- Logline
- Overview of story
- Main characters
- Opening scene
- Act details
- Last scene
- Brief summary
Keep scrolling down this article to explore all you need to know about film treatment, and make sure to ace it.
Top 3 Dos of Film Treatment
Screenwriters are often given the responsibility of working on the film treatment, so the authorities can give it a read and see if it is valuable not. If you want to convert it into a finished film project, then you have to be sure to add up the essential elements.
Here are some of the major dos of film treatment that you should never skip to ensure perfection.
1. Present Tense Write Up
The very first do of film treatments is writing in the present tense. No matter, your story is focused on the past or future, you have to narrate it in the present tense. Make sure you share the description of story development, dialogues, and action scenes all in the present tense so the authorities can get better insight into it.
2. Simple Roadmap
The next to do with writing effective and impressive film treatments is ensuring simple roadmaps. It means that everything is written and narrated in a simple and easy-to-understand manner. Even if there are numerous twists and turns or conflicts in the script, they should not be a part of the film treatment as they can make it tricky to understand.
3. Highlights and Conveys Emotions
One of the basic dos of film treatments is highlighting and conveying the emotions of the characters. It should not be too plain and simple as the concerned authorities will not be able to see the value of the project. Achieving this goal is not easy, which is a major reason many interested people hire film companies in Dubai and let experts and professionals work on film treatment as well as work on the project.
Top 3 Don’ts of Film Treatment
Film treatments are extremely important as the fate of your project depends on them. If you ignore it and take it lightly, your film treatment is bound to be doomed. However, you can ensure its success and effectiveness by avoiding a few mistakes.
Here are the most critical don’ts of a film treatment, ignoring which can cause hurdles in your work.
1. Longer Film Treatment
The basic don’t of film treatment is writing too lengthy and long pages. Film treatment should be less than five pages, and two pages are the best length. If it is longer, the authorities will not be able to read it while giving it their whole attention. It is not the script but general insight into the writing of the project, so make sure to keep it short or be ready to face the repercussions.
2. Using Image
Another basic don’t of film treatment is using images in it. The film treatment should be a simple write-up and should not have any type of unnecessary details and images fall in the same category. If you think that images are highly relatable, you can bring them up in later discussions and meetings, but avoid using them in film treatment as it will only be a waste.
3. Nonstandard Formatting
The last and most critical don’t of film treatment that you should specifically avoid is using nonstandard formatting. The film treatments require a standard format, and if you do not follow it, the authorities will not be able to understand and process it. If you are also facing difficulty in preparing one, you can hire professionals from film companies in Dubai and let them work their magic and take away all your worries.
Read also : Documentary Filmmaking
Work on your film treatment to ace the first step!
It will not be wrong to say that film treatments are the first step towards the progress and development of the project. However, if you are stuck at this, you cannot possibly progress. The best option is to contact the professionals, discuss your idea and let them work on it only to get a talk of town project in your hands.
