Magic in One Sentence: The Logline

Javert and Jean Valjean: The protagonist and antagonist are key components of a logline

This week, I’m continuing the Building Blocks of a Musical Series, with a Save the Cat analysis of our five sample musicals: The Lion King, Hamilton, Wicked, Les Miserables, and Newsies. 

Before I do, though, I want to state straight out that Blake Snyder’s 15 beats in Save the Cat are not the only helpful tools for evaluating and tightening up a musical’s story arc. They have, however, been helpful to me, and for that reason, I’m eager to explore whether and how they show up in the musicals we’re studying. And we’ll be exploring some additional tools a little later down the road. 

Save the Cat is most famous for its 15 beats, but before them, there’s the “logline.” This is a single sentence that tells what the show is about in a way that intrigues the audience, without giving the story away. According to Snyder, a great logline includes:

1. A protagonist - described with an adjective

2. An antagonist (or oppositional force) - also described with an adjective

3. A clear goal with real, relatable stakes. 

4. A hook – which involves some sort of irony and evokes a promise of how this story is going to keep us engaged. 

This is a must-do for every screenplay. It does not seem to be a standard for musicals, although Steve Cuden, recommends writing a very brief synopsis of no more than five sentences, which he calls a logline. His musical theatre logline for Jekyll and Hyde: The Musical is: “When a brilliant doctor discovers a chemical mixture that he believes will cure madness, he is denied the right to experiment on inmates of the insane asylum. He opts to try the chemical on himself unwittingly unleashing his murderous inner self. Unable to stop either his uncontrolled transformations or the numerous murders committed by his evil alter ego, the doctor must face the ultimate solution to his dilemma through his own death.”

I agree there is value in writing such a brief synopsis. But I see even greater value in the shorter, screenplay standard that strips a story down to its bare but exciting essentials. It allows us to zero in on the stakes - the primal drive behind the entire story, and to see and develop the hook. Both of these need to be kept top of mind when crafting a tight story. It also helps us identify who is the protagonist and who (or what) is the antagonist, so that we know how to manage their individual story arcs in a way that builds a satisfying story. 

Identifying protagonists and antagonists is not always as easy as it might appear. I realized that last week when I was writing about Beauty and the Beast and it suddenly hit me that the Beast, not Beauty, was the story’s true protagonist. The protagonist is the driving force – the person who is on the mission that the story is about. They are easiest to relate to and cheer for when they have a clear idea of what they want.  Meanwhile, the antagonist is the person or force that’s getting in the way of the protagonist achieving that goal. (Antagonists are often most fun when they see themselves as the protagonist in the story they want the show to become). Stories tend to be both more satisfying and more meaningful when the writers have a clear sense of the protagonist and their driving purpose. If that’s missing, it tends to lead to story problems that may not be solved by even the catchiest of songs or the most stunning feats in choreography. 

Reading successful loglines can be a good preparation for writing them. There is a list of 105 famous loglines here. 

I had some trouble finding loglines for some of the five we’re studying, which surprised me

Because loglines are not a standard component for musicals, I had some trouble finding a logline for some of our five, and they don’t all follow the Save the Cat formula. In some cases, I found several options for the same musical.

Young Simba and Scar.

The Lion King

Logline: “Tricked into thinking he killed his father, a guilt ridden lion cub flees into exile and abandons his identity as the future King.”

1. The protagonist: “a guilt ridden cub” 

2. The antagonist: this is not explicitly stated, but hinted at in the phrase “Tricked into thinking he killed his father.” 

3. Clear goal and stakes: the goal is hinted at with the phrase “flees into exile” which suggests that he is trying to survive. The stakes are “his identity as the future King.” 

4. Hook: the idea of an innocent cub being tricked into believing he killed his father grabs us with its injustice, and adds to our investment in his recovering his identity. 

A Save the Cat treatment of this story would be something more like: Eager to prove his worth, an exuberant lion cub is tricked by his conniving, ambitious uncle into believing he killed his father, and flees into exile, abandoning his identity as the future King. 

This would give us a better sense of the protagonist, the antagonist, the goal (changes from proving himself to surviving) and the stakes (his identity). The irony lies in his eagerness to prove his worth and his abandonment of his future kinghood. 

Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr

Hamilton 

Logline: The story of founding father Alexander Hamilton, whose ambition drove him from the position of Caribbean outsider and bastard child to American war hero. 

1. Protagonist: Alexander Hamilton

2. Antagonist: not stated

3. Goal/stakes: ambition

4. Hook: from Caribbean outsider and bastard child to American war hero. 

A Save the Cat treatment of this story would be something more like: Scrappy outsider Alexander Hamilton risks everything for country and legacy, against the advice of the scheming but cautious Aaron Burr. 

1. Protagonist: Scrappy outsider Alexander Hamilton

2. Antagonist: Scheming but cautious Aaron Burr

3. Goal/stakes: help his country and build a legacy at all cost

4. Hook: We know the scrappy outsider became a hero and founding father, and who is Aaron Burr anyway? 

   
   

Elphaba and the Wizard. Photo by Matt Crockett

Wicked

Logline: Elphaba, a misunderstood young woman because of her green skin, and Glinda, a popular girl, become friends at Shiz University in the Land of Oz. After an encounter with the Wonderful Wizard of Oz, their friendship reaches a crossroads.

1. Protagonist: Elphaba, green-skinned and misunderstood young woman

2. Antagonist: either “Glinda, a popular girl” or “the Wonderful Wizard of Oz”

3. Goal/stakes: friendship? 

4. Hook: a misfit friendship

A Save the Cat treatment of this story would be more in the lines of “When brilliant but green-skinned outsider Elphaba earns a face-to-face interview with the apparently all-powerful Wizard of Oz, for both herself and her privileged roommate Glinda, they’re both offered the acclaim they long for, but at a terrible cost. 

1. Protagonist: Elphaba, brilliant but green-skinned outsider

2. Antagonist: all-powerful Wizard of Oz 

3. Goal/stakes: the goal is acclaim. The stakes probably include friendship and something else that is terrible.  

4. Hook: the irony of a misfit friendship and the different reasons they may have for seeking acclaim;  curiosity about the cost.  

   
   

Javert and Jean Valjean. Photo by Matthew Murphy & Evan Zimmerman

Les Miserables

Logline: “After 19 years as a prisoner, Jean Valjean is freed by Javert, the officer in charge of the prison workforce. Valjean promptly breaks parole but later uses money from stolen silver to reinvent himself as a mayor and factory owner. Javert vows to bring Valjean back to prison. Eight years later, Valjean becomes the guardian of a child named Cosette after her mother's death, but Javert's relentless pursuit means that peace will be a long time coming.”

1. Protagonist: former prisoner Jean Valjean, 

2. Antagonist: relentless officer Javert

3. Goal/stakes: peace

4. Hook: the irony of a parole-breaker who reinvents himself as a mayor and factory owner.

Save the Cat treatment of this story: Jean Valjean, a former convict who broke parole, spends a lifetime seeking to emulate the saintly bishop who showed him astounding mercy, at the same time that he is being relentlessly hunted by a zealous and self-righteous police inspector. 

1. Protagonist: Jean Valjean, a former convict who broke parole

2. Antagonist: zealous and self-righteous police inspector Javert

3. Goal/stakes: to emulate the saintly bishop and show mercy

4. Hook: the irony that a man who has transformed to saintly continues to be hounded by a self-righteous police inspector

   
   

Jack Kelly and Joseph Pulitzer. Photo by Maura McConnell

Newsies

Logline: Newsboy Jack Kelly, dreams of a better life far from the hardship of the streets. When Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst raise distribution prices, Jack finds a cause to fight for and rallies his army of newsies to strike.

1. Protagonist: Newsboy Jack Kelly

2. Antagonist: Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst

3. Goal/stakes: Goal: a better life far from the hardship of the streets. Stakes: Purpose (a cause to fight for) and brotherhood/solidarity (rallies his army of newsies to strike)

4. Hook: there is irony in Jack’s longing to escape hardship in contrast to his picking a fight with powerful men. 

A Save the Cat treatment of this story: Newsboy Jack Kelly longs to leave the grinding streets of  New York for freedom, equality and a chance to make something of himself, but then self-serving publisher Joseph Pulitzer raises distribution prices and Jack finds himself rallying all the newsies of the city to strike. 

1. Protagonist: Newsboy Jack Kelly

2. Antgaonist: Self-serving Joseph Pulitzer

3. Goal/Stakes: Goal: to leave New York; Stakes: Freedom, equality, solidarity. 

4. Hook: The irony is that Jack doesn’t need to leave New York to get the things he longs for. 

For me, a Save the Cat approach to loglines brings the story into clearer focus. As a writer, it helps me to zero in on driving motives and ironic images that I’m going to want to give attention to. And they show me the heart of my story, the things I’m going to want to preserve when I go into revision. 

What about you? Which style of logline do you prefer? As a member of the audience, does it change how you see the story? If you’re a writer, would it change how you would write it? Are there any Save the Cat treatments above that you would write differently? Please share your thoughts here.