Screenwriting : Decisions by Frank Hauser

Can't help ya. I'm strictly a "features" guy. Best of luck on your story-telling quest.

Frank Hauser if I'm making lunch in my kitchen, got the smoked turkey and prosciutto, sweet-hot honey mustard, black olives and cole slaw, etc., but is it on a stack of sourdough, a sub roll, onion roll or one of those nice squishy Hawaiian things?

Is it a sub, or a sandwich?

Anyway that's a terrible analogy. Metaphor?

For your story concept, a movie involves cinematic movement and action on screen, a TV show is more like a stage play that relies heavily upon dialogue scenes, lower-budget but more familiar and maybe turns into a series, which has even further story implications.

However since no one seems to remember Hitchcock anymore, "talky" flicks that more closely resemble TV show / stage-play dynamics now routinely get made into movies and the distinctions between the formats have long since been blurred.

But from a dramaturgalogical standpoint, the STORY contains within itself the answer to your question, and by working up the OUTLINE you will release its inherent magic into the predestined form for the ages.

Even better, if you write the novel you can always adapt it back into its optimal form, how do you want to contain it in time? Where would you like to see it go? What is the focus of the character web, how do they dramatize the story idea into a visual performative format to deliver in front of an audience or even into the editorial post-production environment, who what when where why and how?

In this time I believe movie format is a great entry point and can often be adapted to a pilot and series, a lot of people now however seem to be more focused on writing, pitching and delivering the format of streaming episodes as a package in a more visible trend at the moment, based on the multi-platform demand of streamers in a fast-moving yet low-revenue market and business model.

So it depends upon your creative preferences as authority to write it and what you see as the optimal form dwelling within the story!

I would do both! :D

Write it as a feature first to develop the story. Then if you think it has the legs to be a series, work on adapting the story for that.

There's a webinar coming up about that, Frank Hauser. It's tomorrow. www.stage32.com/webinars/How-To-Determine-If-Your-Story-Should-Be-A-Feat...

Features are generally plot driven (a funny story/a major quest) with, you hope, at least one compelling character, e.g., a hero you’d like to see achieve his goals (say, a Jack Reacher). TV series are generally character driven with, you hope, some compelling plot points that expose the characters’ dimensions (say, a Succession or Walking Dead).

This is why I love Stage 32 community. Love all the input. I have a really good vision of my characters arc, but struggling with how to sprinkle those morsels throughout what would be a series if I'm ever afforded the chance to make the show. My experience, and my brain, has been molded by writing features so I might write it as a feature. That might help me see the series potential and, worse case scenario, I've got a feature. Again, thanks for the input. Happy writing!

You're welcome, Frank Hauser. Happy writing! Let us know what you pick.

I'll probably never write TV on spec...so it's gonna be either short or feature...

Just start writing and see where it goes.

Thank you, Nick.

The amount of story will dictate limited series versus movie. If it is a universe then it is a series. The Walking Dead is a universe you can tell a thousand stories in.

So many different ways to determine what's best! Let yourself start to flesh the idea out first, it may naturally lean one way or the other.

Thanks again for all the input. I think I'll go the feature route and nail down my character's arc and keep an eye on the other characters/situations to see if they might be ripe for further development in a series. Happy writing everyone and enjoy the weekend.

It depends on the plot, the characters and their arc. That's my take on it. If the character arc is simple enough and trimmed enough for a worldwide audience, then it's a movie. However, if your character has to go through point A to point Z by overcoming a series of obstacles and gaining character growth, it's a series.

To Dan's point, maybe even a short film. Have you thought about that?

Map out the story to see how it plays. Sometimes when people consider making a movie treatment into a tv series, mapping it out as a show is a good way to see if the concept has enough going for it to sustain a whole season of tv. If it doesn’t, see how it can be told as a movie.