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VICARIOUS
By Morris Matthews
One mistake shattered a family. Only grace can bring them back
SYNOPSIS:
Vicarious is a gripping, emotionally charged drama about the devastating consequences of a single bad decision and the unyielding power of faith, family, and forgiveness. When high school football star Justin Livingston drives drunk after a party and causes a crash that kills his two best friends, his future is destroyed—and so is the trust of his family and community. Tried as an adult, Justin is sentenced to prison, forced to confront the weight of his choices, his fading dreams, and his need for redemption.
But the story doesn’t end with Justin. It shifts to his younger brother Jahmir, left behind in the wreckage of his family’s broken spirit. As Jahmir steps into his brother’s shadow—on and off the field—he must navigate grief, pressure, and the aching desire to be seen. With a father consumed by church duties, a mother quietly unraveling, and a brother locked behind bars, Jahmir fights to reclaim hope for them all. Vicarious is a redemptive, character-driven film about the ripple effect of pain—and the possibility of healing through honest conversations, second chances, and grace that no one deserves, but everyone needs.
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Hi, Morris Matthews. Your logline is more of a tagline (a catchy tagline). Here’s a logline template that might help: After/when ______ (the inciting incident/event that sets the plot in motion), a _______ (the main flaw the protagonist has to overcome in the script or an adjective that describes the protagonist’s personality) _______ (the protagonist’s title/job/career) tries to/attempts to/fights to/struggles to/strives to/sets out to/fights/battles/engages in/competes/etc. _______ (goal of story and try to add the obstacles here) to/so/in order to ________ (stakes).
The inciting incident can also be at the end of the logline: A _______ (the main flaw the protagonist has to overcome in the script or an adjective that describes the protagonist’s personality) _______ (the protagonist’s title/job/career) tries to/attempts to/fights to/struggles to/strives to/sets out to/fights/battles/engages in/competes/etc. _______ (goal of story and try to add the obstacles here) to/so/in order to ________ (stakes) after/when ______ (the inciting incident/event that sets the plot in motion).
Loglines are one or two sentences. A one-sentence logline sounds better, and it takes less time for a producer, director, etc. to read it. Try to keep your logline to 35 words or less. Long loglines can make producers, directors, etc. pass on a project.
Avoid using “must” in loglines. “Must” usually means the protagonist is forced to do whatever they need to do in the story instead of doing it willingly. You might need to use “must” in a logline though, like when the protagonist is forced by another character to do something. Using “must” to choose between two options is fine.
Names in loglines are usually for biopics, well-known stories, and franchises (like Mission: Impossible).
Sometimes I put the location and date that the story takes place in instead of the inciting incident if it’s a Period Piece script.
All stories don’t follow this logline template. Biopics, documentaries, and Experimental scripts might not follow the template. The series logline for a TV show can follow this template, but the pilot logline and episode loglines for the show might not.
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