Also known as log line
One or two sentences that capture protagonist, conflict, and stakes — the shortest honest pitch of the story.
Build the sentence around a person with a concrete want, a force that blocks them, and a cost if they fail. Irony helps when it reveals the trap; adjectives rarely do. If you cannot name the obstacle in plain language, the draft usually cannot either -- and neither can a reader in a crowded inbox.
Test the logline on cold listeners before you rewrite Act Two again. Confusion in one sentence almost always maps to a soft protagonist or stakes that do not change anyone's life. Revise the logline and the opening pages together so the promise you pitch and the pages you deliver actually match.
Keep the current logline on the project where coverage, one-pagers, and query materials can reuse it without drift. When a page-one rewrite changes the want, rewrite the logline first -- otherwise every pitch document will quietly sell last month's movie to the wrong audience. Keep that standard visible when notes arrive so the next pass stays honest.
One or two sentences is the discipline. If you need a paragraph, you are drafting a mini-synopsis -- tighten until the want, block, and stakes are unmistakable.
Only if it clarifies the promise without padding. Specific conflict usually implies genre; forced labels often hide a vague predicament.
Still want, obstacle, and stakes -- plus a hint of the ongoing engine. Buyers need to believe episode two is not a dead end.
Anytime the protagonist's want, antagonist pressure, or ending stakes change. A stale logline quietly sells the wrong draft in every meeting.
