Readers sometimes ask for a good definition of “high-concept.”
This is what I mean:
Will Clark is set to direct “Pride and Predator,” which veers from the traditional period costume drama when an alien crash lands and begins to butcher the mannered protags, who suddenly have more than marriage and inheritance to worry about.
Not to be confused with Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, which is also high-concept, and sounds similarly awesome.
Not every high-concept idea is a mash-up, but every mash-up is inherently high-concept: the premise is the reason it exists. That doesn’t make it good or worthy or successful, but it’s easily summarized.