Script ideas for short films… ready for you to use or adapt!

OK, you’re looking for short film ideas. Maybe you’re just looking for good loglines, a premise from which you will write your own film screenplay. Just a few lines of description and that’s all you need to get started, right?

• Ideas for a short film: my list of log lines. Use or adapt as you wish.

Are you looking for a short film screenplay, or just a log line or idea? 

The internet is bulging with sites that offer brief film ideas for free.  Here’s why: It’s pretty easy to have an idea. It’s hard to craft an idea into characters that don’t all sound the same, a plot that’s neither rushed nor slow, and a payoff that satisfies the entertainment-hungry audience. All without resorting to high cost gimmicks (like celebrities, smashing large expensive objects, high risk stunts, elaborate special effects, you get the idea). People with 2 or 3 or 4 lines of a neat idea are leaving all the work for you to figure out.

I do things a little bit differently.

Free short film screenplays!

I give away a few free short film ideas, formatted as fake movie trailers. Of these, one includes someone else’s intellectual property and is just for fun. The other 3 are original (to my knowledge), and you can download them as PDFs (exported straight out of Final Draft).

• Review the free screenplay descriptions and download the ones you want.

More short film screenplays (almost free)!

I offer another 26 short film ideas as a collection for US$26. These are available in print or eBook, and 2 of the scripts include professionally rendered storyboards to help you plan your production.

• ready for more?  26 Short Screenplays for Independent Filmmakers – only $1 per script, free shipping wherever Amazon offers it.

Advantages of buying these short film scripts for a pittance, or using the free ones?

• The screenplay is already written – you can see where the story is going, it’s all put together for you.
• If you like my scripts but also have other ideas, you can rewrite  and add your own vision to my scripts.
• These ideas are all Creative Commons licensed, which means you’re invited to make derivative works (like films) with these screenplays. More about Creative Commons and why it is awesome for independent filmmakers
• If you happen to make money with your short film, web video, or whatever derivative work you base on these screenplays, you don’t owe me any royalties.

And if other people make films from the same scripts you do, that’s only going to show off the uniqueness of your directorial vision, actors, and production.

Bottom line: I give away script ideas for short films. And you can easily get them as ready-to-use screenplays, not just ideas. If you like, save time and get all 26 screenplays now. Happy filmmaking!

I also write feature length movie screenplays, webisode series, and other things. Please contact me if you want more information about realizing your own creative vision.