Is there a template for how to write a movie summarization?

Question

Is there an official or de facto standard for how to write a movie summarization for an encyclopedia, magazine, newspaper or other kind of media?

For instance, are there widespread templates, recommendations or rules of thumb? Is there a difference to summarizations of books or stage plays? Which elements have to be included, which can stay unmentioned? Does the text have to have an internal division in which sequence to tell what? To what degree are additional trivia like infos about the playwright, actors, pop cultural meaning, influences, technical aspects or a personal statement worth mentioning?

Answer 1

No there's no such thing. It depends on the medium you are writing for. You'd write something very different if it was for the back of a DVD then if it was for film review.

In general I'd follow the rules that dictate how to write a proper synopsis. So that means that you'd establish a setting, a protagonist, imply an emotional arc, touch on some of the major set-pieces in the film and provide some context on the production of the film itself.

Answer 2

By their very nature, such templates tend to be specific to individual publications. For example, the general shape of a recipe is universal and well known, but the details like whether to include a picture or a wine match, or substitutes for key ingredients, or a list of nutritional values, are specific to individual publications and to their business model and the market they serve.

Non-fiction should almost always be written for a specific publication. You don't write the piece and then try to sell it. You sell the idea of the piece and then follow the publication's guidelines for how to write it.

Answer 3

There may well be such guidelines but they'd probably be publication-specific and situation-dependent. They'd also have to be developed ahead of time.

For example, an encyclopedia would have only a certain amount of space available for entries, and might even have guidelines about entry length.

The format of a synopsis in film review would be determined by the reviewer, but the publication's editor would certainly have feedback.

Are you writing for a publication that focuses on actors? On special effects? On the design? Does the review talk about, say, the cinematography? The dialogue? If so, then mentioning the cinematographer and the script writer makes sense. Otherwise, perhaps leave them out; but some publications might want to use a capsule summary to give credit to people who otherwise might not be mentioned.