Story Ideas

Explore some of the following for ideas
  1. Write a screenplay based on a famous urban legend like The Babysitter and the Man Upstairs or Clown Statue.
  2. Create a short film about an incident—shown from the perspective of five different people. Watch films like Crash and Vantage Point for inspiration.
  3. The Age’s Oddspot features humours stories that could be the basis for an interesting short film.
  4. Make a film about the same incident playing over and over again—examples include Groundhog Day, Run Lola Run and Source Code.
  5. Make a film named Interview with an…Of course, you have to fill in the blank. Interview with an Invisible Man? Interview with a Hobbit?
  6. Create a stop motion animation using household objects. Check out the work of Pes for inspiration.
  7. Create a film in which the main characters are desperately vying to get their hands on a MacGuffin.
  8. Make a film about a conspiracy theory—like The Illuminati or human contact with extraterrestrials.
  9. Create machinema. Red vs Blue is a great example of the genre.
  10. Start planning your film by thinking of a twist—then work out how you’re going to lead up to it.
  11. Ghost stories like Paranormal Activity and Lake Mungo have been exceptionally popular in the last few years—can you put a unique spin on the genre?
  12. Create a video using kinetic typography. Zak and Sara and Duck and Cover are great examples of this style.
  13. Create a short film inspired by the style of a famous and distinctive director like Paul Greengrass or Wes Anderson.
  14. Create a film in which your main character is confined to one location—think Phone Booth and Buried.
  15. Make a film where the main character breaks the fourth wall and talks to the audience—like Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.
  16. Make a film which uses the main character’s diary as the source of narration.
  17. Create an animation in the style of Saul Bass. These remixes of The Dark Knight and Star Wars should give you inspiration.
  18. Use this random plot generator to think up an idea for your short film.
  19. Learn how to create one of the effects at Video Copilot and build your narrative around that effect.
  20. Make a documentary about a local club or sporting team.
  21. Create a cut-out animation in the style of Terry Gilliam. Here’s how it’s done.
  22. Make a film using your teddy bears. Sound awful? You haven’t seen Dawn of the Ted.
  23. Making a stop motion animation with people instead of models can create an interesting effect. Have a look at this short film for inspiration.
  24. There’s heaps of great poetry—like Flannan Isle—that might inspire a film. 
  25. Create a short film based on one of Shakespeare’s sonnets.