How To Write A Treatment
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By Marilyn Horowitz
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Writing a treatment is a skill that can help any screenwriter succeed, at any point in the creative
process.
There are at least three parts of getting a screenplay sold or f inanced. Learning to write a treatment
can jumpstart a writer's career because it allows a screenwriter to communicate his or her screenplay
idea in a brief but compelling way. It also can be a powerf ul diagnostic and creative tool.
I am of ten asked if a writer has to actually write a screenplay, or can they just sell ideas?
You can't copyright an idea, only the execution. If you have a great idea, the only way to own it is to
write it. Writing a treatment is a f ast way to test out an idea bef ore the screenwriter commits to
writing a script. If it isn't terrif ic, move on.
Part of of succeeding as a screenwriter is to write at least one great screenplay. There is no
substitute f or craf t. Screenplays are hard work and take time to perf ect. If a writer has completed a
screenplay, writing a treatment can help the writer determine whether or not their screenplay is viable,
because the treatment creates distance. This allows the screenwriter to get an overview of their
work and look at it objectively.
If the basic story is not something an audience will want to see, no amount of rewriting can f ix it.
This is a problem I encounter over and over in my work as a writing coach. Screenwriters of ten f orget
that they are writing f or an audience. Writing a treatment bef ore you write your next screenplay can
help you work out problems and determine whether your story idea is a diamond in the rough, or just
a lump of coal. The goal is to combine stories told f rom the heart with a deep understanding of what
other people want to see.
Craf t and good ideas don't necessarily go together. I have worked on several scripts with great ideas
and poor execution and the reverse. The successf ul screenwriter must be able to master both
aspects. One tip: Always remember that a screenplay, unlike a novel, is not a complete f orm in itself
but a step along the path of making a f ilm, so the goal of any screenwriter is to see the f ilm made of
his or her screenplay. It's easy to f orget the goal when you are wrestling with your script.
Ideally, every serious screenwriter should have two really well written, well-structured screenplays as
writing samples. T hen it makes sense to devote time to learning how to write treatments because
they f orce the writer to f ocus on structure and character development. Once the writer gains a
comf ort level with this type of rigorous story development, years of struggling can be saved, If the
writer can attain writing excellence in his or her f ull length scripts, and can write treatments with his or
her intended audience in mind, success must be inevitable T he key is this: If the scriptwriter wants to
see the movie of the treatment he or she writes, then so will other people.
Writing a treatment helps a screenwriter assess his or her work wherever they are in their process. I
cannot recommend this process enough.
What Is a Treatment?
There is controversy about the length a treatment can be. Some say up to 60 pages, but the point of
the treatment is to communicate your story as quickly as possible, so brevity without sacrif icing juice
is the key here.
There seem to be three opinions about what a treatment is.
One opinion is that it is a one page written pitch. The second, which I agree with, is that it is a two to
f ive page document that tells the whole story f ocusing on the highlights. T he third opinion is that a
treatment is a lengthy document that is a scene by scene breakdown of a script. I consider this an
outline, and a waste of time as a marketing document, though it can be an important step in the
creation process In my experience, the two to f ive page version works best, and an example is
included in this article.
How To Write a Treatment
This two to f ive page document should read like a short story and be written in the present tense. It
should present the entire story including the ending, and use some key scenes and dialogue f rom the
screenplay it is based on.
What Should Be in the Treatment?
1. A Working title
2. The writer's name and contact inf ormation
3. WGA Registration number
4. A short logline
5. Introduction to key characters
6. Who, what, when, why and where.
7. Act 1 in one to three paragraphs. Set the scene, dramatize the main conf licts.
8. Act 2 in two to six paragraphs. Should dramatize how the conf licts introduced in Act 1 lead to a
crisis.
9. Act 3 in one to three paragraphs. Dramatize the f inal conf lict and resolution.
The Three Act Structure
Any discussion of treatment writing should at least touch on basic screenplay structure. Although
everyone reading this article is probably f amiliar with this inf ormation, revisiting the basics can be
helpf ul.
In his seminal book of f ragments, T he Poetics, Aristotle suggested that all stories should have a
beginning, middle, and an end. The writing method I have developed uses the expressions Setup,
Conf lict and Resolution as more evocative terms f or describing the movements of a screenplay.
Breaking the movement of a story into three parts, gives us a 3- part or act structure. The word "act"
means "the action of carrying something out."
Many screenplays are organized into a 3-act structure. The tradition of writing in this f orm comes
f rom the theater and was f ollowed by f ilmmakers. Think of it as a f oundation f or building a house
that others can easily identif y, even if the details are new and original.
Act 1, called the Set-up, The situation and characters and conf lict are introduced. This classically is
30 minutes long.
Act 2, called The Conf lict, of ten an hour long, is where the conf lict begins and expands until it
reaches a crisis.
Act 3, called The Resolution, the conf lict rises to one more crisis and then is resolved.
How To Write The Treatment
Find A Title
Whether the screenwriter is creating a new story or writing a treatment based on an existing script,
the f irst step is to make sure that the screenplay has a good title. The f irst contact a prospective
producer has with a script is the title. Pick a title that gives a clear idea of what genre the screenplay
is written in. (See my 2-part article that appeared in this magazine f or more detail on genre. A good
title can predispose a producer or reader to like a screenplay because it suggests the kind of
experience that is in store and arouses curiosity. Great classic f ilm titles include It Happened One
Night, Psycho and Die Hard.
A f ilm I recently consulted on is called, And Then Came Love. T his is a good title because it describes
the story and the style or genre it's written in - a light romantic comedy. The title does not determine
whether or the screenplay is good but it can be a great marketing tool. There's a f amous quote that
is helpf ul to keep in mind when naming screenplays: "What's in a name? That which we call a rose by
any other name would smell as sweet". Romeo and Juliet (Quote Act II, Sc. II).
If you want a producer to read your script, pick a name that matches your story.
Write a logline
The second step is to write a logline. Preparing a log line f or your screenplay is a basic marketing
tool that I have repurposed f or developing treatments. It is similar to the summary given in TV Guide.
It is a technique f or boiling down a plotline to its essence that has been described as trying to vomit
into a thimble.
Follow the example below when writing a logline:
And Then Came Love is a character- driven romantic comedy about a high-powered Manhattan single
mom who opens Pandora's box when she seeks out the anonymous sperm donor f ather of her
young son.
Write a synopsis
The third step is to a synopsis. Begin by expanding the logline into a three-act story Start with the
end. For example, Let's work with The Silence Of T he Lambs:
Act 3: Clarice Starling catches the killer and saves the intended victim.
Then break down into three acts. For example,
Act 1: While still a student at The FBI, Clarice is asked to help on a case. She's eager to help and
interviews Hannibal Lector who gives her a clue.
Act 2: With his help, she is able to overcome many obstacles, and f inds the identity of the killer.
Act 3: She conf ronts the killer, saves his intended victim and atones f or the death of the lamb. T he
scriptwriter should f ollow this break down f or his or her story, and then expand this into a synopsis.
Follow the example below of And Then Came Love:
Julie (mid 40s), a successf ul Manhattan reporter-turned-columnist believes she has it all - a great
job, a rent controlled apartment, a boyf riend and best of all, an adorable six-year-old son named
Jake, whom she conceived via an anonymous sperm donor.
Her perf ect world, however, is rocked when she's called in f or an emergency parent-teacher
conf erence and learns that her son has been acting up, needs to be 'tested' and is on the brink of
expulsion. Over-whelmed, Julie instinctively blames herself ... it's easy to do since her mother has
made her f eel inadequate f or not being a stay-at-home mom.
Julie, however, will not concede that her mother could be right, so she places genetic blame on Jake's
anonymous f ather. Through a private investigator, Julie learns the identity of the donor and meets
him - Paul, a struggling actor and law school dropout. Julie has neither intention nor desire to reveal
her identity to him, she simply needs to check her sources, get the f acts, and move on.
A child psychiatrist tells Julie that Jake does not appear to have ADHD, but could benef it f rom a
"f ather f igure" in his lif e. Julie's boyf riend, a charismatic photo-journalist is up f or the challenge and
proposes. Julie believes her lif e is back on course until Paul, the donor, shows up, hoping she'll
promote the of f of f Broadway show in which he's perf orming.
Jake instantly bonds with Paul. No matter how hard Julie tries to keep Paul f rom complicating her lif e,
the more he does as he begins to f all f or her, and she f inds she can not deny her f eelings f or him,
and her boyf riend is pushing to set a date. ( written by Caytha Jentis, writer/producer)
Writing Treatment
Once the synopsis is written, the preparation is complete and the screenwriter can take the synopsis
and expand it into a treatment by correcting structure and adding detail. Now write your treatment
f ollowing this sample movie treatment.
Good Luck, and don't f orget to register your treatment with the Writer's Guild of America.
About Marilyn Horowitz
Marilyn Horowitz is an award- winning New York University prof essor, author, producer, and
Manhattan-based writing consultant, who works with successf ul novelists, produced screenwriters,
and award- winning f ilmmakers. She has a passion f or helping novices get started. Since 1998 she
has taught thousands of aspiring screenwriters to complete a f eature length screenplay using her
method. She is also a judge f or the Fulbright Scholarship Program f or f ilm and media students. In
2004 she received the coveted New York University Award for Teaching Excellence.
Prof essor Horowitz has created a revolutionary system that yields a new, more ef f ective way of
writing. She is the author of six books that help the writer learn her trademarked writing system,
including editions f or college, high school, and middle school. The college version is a required text at
New York University and the University of Calif ornia, Long Beach.
Prof essor Horowitz has written several f eature-length screenplays. Her production credits include
the f eature f ilms And Then Came Love (2007). Her new novel, The Book of Zev will be published and
available f or sale on November 1, 2014.
