How do you (or other pros if you have links handy) define and differentiate the two, if at all?
Screenwriting : Elevated material vs high concept by Devin Overman
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I believe High concepts scripts are more relied upon as new ways of thought, or a theaory of such, like ininception, where as elevated material is based on history or a known fact, like Django, something based on real life slavery but taken a bit futher in its story.
At least thats what I believe
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Yes, there are differences. "High concept" means that the story premise is immediately visible at the logline or even at the title—you immediately can picture it in your mind. The emphasis of "high concept" is on a clear, striking, and easily communicable idea, which also makes it easily marketable. Snakes On A Plane is high concept. Sharknado is high concept. Whereas, "elevated" means the story concept or premise takes a known or basic concept and adds a new twist or a new, possibly ironic element to it, or perhaps blends genres to create something more dynamic. Silence of the Lambs is elevated. An FBI agent-in-training needs the help of a cannibalistic serial killer in order to track down another horrible serial killer. So... the agent-in-training has to catch a serial killer like you would expect, but... she needs the help of one in order to do so, therefore it is elevated. :) Hope that helps!
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Well... "high concept" does not necessarily mean anything "smart" or highly intelligent, rather the opposite. LOL! Again, its emphasis is on a clear, striking, and easily communicable idea. High concept hits general audiences really well. Ghostbusters is high concept. Pacific Rim is high concept -- giant man-made robots fight giant monsters; the concept is easy to picture. Whereas, Inception is elevated — essentially, a heist movie taking place in people's dreams. ;)
yeah I think the term is a bit confusing but high concept to me means "mostly concept" or you might even say "all-concept" . Its probably easier to sell on many levels. Small or low concept things can expand much more easily and organically. Whereas there is only so much you can do with Darth Vader. He can't go to a bar and put a quarter in the juke box without ruining your high concept.