Every Picture Tells a Story

Photos and Loglines: For Photographers and Writers

Every picture tells a story, don't it, whoo
Every picture tells a story, don't it
Every picture tells a story, don't it
Every picture tells a story, don't it

My colleague from the English department (another shutterbug) and I tried to organize a photo walk for the students and faculty at our college. We made pamphlets, put together a couple of brochures, sent emails to 2,500 students and 300 faculty members. We even got the Dean of Students to put our colorful flyer – EVERY PICTURE TELLS A STORY. JOIN US FOR A BROOKLYN HEIGHTS PHOTO WALK – on the large digital display in the main lobby of the college. We expected a huge turnout. Okay, maybe not huge, but a turnout. Exactly ZERO people showed up. It took both of us superhuman self-control not to yell and curse at the top of our lungs. After we reined in our suppressed emotions, we went to lunch, gave each other commiserating hugs afterward, and retreated to our respective offices.

Perhaps I should have contacted

Wesley Verhoeve

beforehand for some pointers. He manages to effortlessly gather large crowds in Amsterdam for his photo walks. I understand, he’s a professional photograph with a large following. Okay. But not a single person?!

I was hoping to use some of the photos from the photo walk for my undergrads’ next assignment. Sure, I could have easily made the photo walk part of the assignment, i.e mandatory. But that would be too manipulative. They took a dramatic writing class, not a photography class. On the other hand, creative manipulation never harmed anyone.

But… since no one showed up, I took it upon myself to roam the mean streets of Brooklyn looking for photos my students could use for their assignment. I made using the photos a requirement. That’s where I put my foot down.

Below are the some of the photos I chose. See the assignment instructions below.

The Assignment:
Write a logline for a story about a recent immigrant to New York City

25-50 words. Two sentences max. Remember, you're not telling a story in a logline. You're presenting the essence of your script, its core concept.

Do not confuse a logline with a tagline. Taglines — short, catchy sentences — are for marketing departments, not for writers.
Examples of a tagline:
You can’t get millions of friends without without making a few enemies.
(The Social Network)
When you deal a fast shuffle, love is in the cards.
(Lady Eve)

A logline must have these three elements: protagonist(s), their goal, and the story’s central conflict.

The writer and story teacher Alexandra Sokoloff of Screenwriting Tricks for Authors refers to Logline as Premise
https://screenwritingtricksforauthors.com/whats-your-premise-identifying-the-action-line-of-your-story/

Examples:

The aging patriarch of an organized crime dynasty transfers control of his clandestine empire to his reluctant son. (The Godfather)

A former Roman General sets out to exact vengeance against the corrupt emperor who murdered his family and sent him into slavery. (Gladiator)

When Ronald Reagan falls into dementia at the start of his second term, an ambitious intern is tasked with convincing the commander in chief that he is an actor playing the president in a movie. (Reagan, unproduced)

____________________||||||||__________________

And here are a couple of examples of what the students came up with ( I got their full permission to post)

Jessica G.: In an act of protest against the war in Ukraine, a childless Russian couple uproots their lives to seek refuge in New York City. However, their quest for peace takes an unexpected turn when they get caught in the complex web of international diplomacy, challenging their beliefs and forcing them to redefine the meaning of home.

Jason T.: In the bustling streets of Brooklyn, an ambitious Nigerian entrepreneur fights against the odds to build a successful food truck business. Battling bureaucratic hurdles and facing discrimination, he discovers the true strength of resilience when he forms a partnership with a homeless man.

Submit your logline in the comments.