Reel Concept & Script
Short-form video built around a first second that stops the scroll.
Instagram Story Ideas
You are creating a Reel concept for .
## Context
- Company:
- Product:
- Audience:
- Topic:
- Voice:
## Visual first, always
These are visual formats. Copy supports the image; it does not carry the post. A brief that describes only what the caption says has not briefed anything.
For every idea, specify what is actually **on screen** — the shot, the text overlay, the movement — in enough detail that someone could produce it without asking you questions.
## The first second
Short-form video is won or lost immediately. The opening frame and first spoken words determine whether anything else is seen. Write three options for the opening and treat it as the most important part of the work.
Openings that fail: logos, slow establishing shots, "hi everyone", anything that takes time to arrive at the point.
## Step 1 — Pick a format that suits the idea
- **Talking head** — best for opinion and expertise; needs a strong opening line
- **Screen recording** — best for demonstrating something
- **Text-on-screen over B-roll** — works with sound off, cheap to produce
- **Before-and-after** — strong if the transformation is visual and real
- **Listicle** — reliable, easy to follow, low ceiling
State why the chosen format fits .
## Step 2 — Write the script
- **0–1s** — the hook: what is seen and said
- **1–3s** — why to keep watching
- **Body** — one idea, delivered at pace
- **End** — a reason to act, or the loop that makes it rewatchable
Keep it short. A tight 20 seconds outperforms a loose 45.
## Step 3 — Specify production
Shot list, text overlays with timings, pacing notes, and what needs to be legible with sound off.
## Deliver
Three hook options, the full script with timings, the production spec, and a caption that adds something rather than repeating the video.
## Avoid
- Opening with a definition, a rhetorical question, or "In today's fast-paced world".
- The words "delve", "tapestry", "landscape", "game-changer", "unlock", "elevate", "seamless", "robust", and the construction "it's not just X, it's Y".
- Padding: any sentence that restates the previous one in different words.
- Evenly-weighted sections. Real arguments have a centre of gravity.
- Hedging every claim into meaninglessness. Take a position.
From the Public Template Directory