A film treatment is a condensed version of a script used to pitch a project to financiers and big stars. It presents the main features of the project, including the story sequence, characters, and production style. Treatments are used in the pitching stage and during the writing process.
A film treatment is a condensed version of a film or television script. It presents the main features of the complete project, usually so that financiers and big stars can decide whether to sign or not. The treatment is usually prepared before the creator invests the time in preparing a complete script, but it can also be used later as a tool for the writing team.
Movies and TV shows are expensive to produce and carry a high risk of failure. As corporate products, they have a very high upside and a very low downside. The window to determine if a project is successful is usually a matter of weeks, and there isn’t much leeway for product changes to accommodate a negative reception. If a film product fails, it fails quickly and the significant investment of funds to produce the project can be lost overnight.
Many people want to enter the entertainment industry with what they think is a cool idea for a movie or show. Lenders, including studios, can’t give every person time to submit a complete project. Also, the likelihood of a particular idea being picked up by a studio is small. It makes no sense for backers to request a completed script for a project they don’t have the time to read, or for a creator to request a completed script that may never be read. Instead, the parties trade a film treatment that gives the financiers enough information to make a decision without consuming the writer’s time completing a script that isn’t generating interest.
A film treatment presents the basic ideas and issues of the project in a story format. It is written in the present tense and covers the entire story sequence and some key scenes. The treatment should include information about the main characters and the places and angles of the story. Some treatments will also include the creator’s ideas regarding direction and production style.
It’s probably easiest to think of the cinematic treatment as a written summary of the project’s highlights. Unlike a traditional recap, however, the cinematic treatment features far more than the meat of the project. The document is often presented in a three-act structure, providing insight into the beginning, middle, and end of the story. Ultimately, the treatment must contain enough information to sell the project.
Film treatments are often used for two purposes. The most common type of treatment is used in the pitching stage of the project to pitch to backers or big stars. Treatments are also used during the writing process so that the writing team has a summary document to refer to as they work on the scripts.
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