10 Steps Pre-Production Checklist
Thomas Edison famously stated that genius is made up of 1% inspiration and 97% sweat. This concept can be taken a step further in film production: a cinematic genius is 1% realization and 95% preparation.
Here’s a hard fact: even the most brilliant filmmaker won’t be able to capture a spectacular movie frame unless the right moment arrives. It’s a trap that many have fallen into, from film school students to big-budget Hollywood images. Too frequently, an author’s enthusiasm for a concept becomes so enthralling that he or she simply wants to dive in as soon as possible.
And I understand. I’ve been there. You get drunk on your amazing idea. It must be viewed by the entire world right away! However, getting behind the wheel of an automobile when inebriated is never a good idea. Making a movie is a complicated and winding journey, and the last thing you want your jaw-dropping vision to do is veer off the road, go down a cliff, and burst into flames, like a horrible scene from a movie. So, it’s time to calm your brain, drink some mindfulness coffee, and brew, brew, and brew.
This means pre-production. What is pre-production? It’s the process of getting everything you need together to successfully run your movie before you even start shooting. These are the weeks and months of planning, meeting, equipping, and staffing a project. And all serious production must.
Pre-production usually begins once you’ve developed your concept from a proposal to a polished script. From there, many things have to come together. The following is a step-by-step guide for filmmakers. Not all steps are always 100% necessary, and it is not necessary to follow the order I provided, but using this checklist can help any filmmaker prepare to create anything an advertisement, or even a feature film.
Pre-production checklist
1. Crew Up! (Part 1)
It’s time to find people who believe in your vision and are committed to bringing their own talents and work to the production. If you’re going indie, this could mean friends and family at first, and then professional colleagues afterward. And most of the time, the first thing you need is a fellow producer, someone who will share in the work of organizing the million and some things that need to happen for the movie to be made. In addition to filling crucial positions, this first stage of crewing adds energy to your effort and gives you the confidence to keep going. Many times in indies, each individual can wear many hats. As a result, that actor or director of photography could also be one of your producers. No matter how you go about it, having partners who achieve the same goal breathes life into the project.
2. Storyboard your vision
The next step is to bring the script to life with storyboards. Storyboards illustrated embodiments of the script. Looking like some kind of comic, they are a crucial visual aid showing how the edited movie will look, scene by scene, shot by shot. The initial effect for the filmmaker is surprising: for the first time, you can see what the work you wrote will look like. That is a very exhilarating moment. On a more practical level, though, the storyboard allows creators to express their inner vision with the cast and crew. Each individual performance on a film set can be informed by storyboards, from actors and set designers to cinematographers and even gaffers. It is the central visual tool that not only reflects the film but can even change its course.
3. Download your shot list
Your script already told the story, but now you have to figure out the logistics. Shot to shot, scene to scene, you need to outline as best as possible what will be needed to complete the camera image and movement for each cut. In this way, a take list is a form of pre-release. Before you get to the set, you will know what the lock should look like, in what order to do the camera settings and many other necessary details. This will help department heads determine the required crew and equipment, and help you map out a shooting schedule, budget, and more. The shot list, like the storyboard, emits from the creative side of the production, but actually bridges the real-world equations of making the movie. In addition to assisting in pre-production.
4. Break down your script
The script breakdown is essentially a scene-by-scene inventory of absolutely everything that will be needed during production. This includes but is not limited to props, costumes, camera and lenses, sound equipment, power supply, locations, makeup, crew members, cast, and absolutely everything you need in front of and behind the camera. It must be meticulous, no details must be left uncovered. It is best not to do this only if you can avoid it. Bringing department heads together to go to the order line through the order line makes this process much more efficient. Shared brainstorming will cover items you forgot and bring up opportunities you never thought of. Take your time with this one. It is a true hub of pre-production.
5. Plan a shooting schedule
Schedules have a profound effect on budgets and resource allocation. If a location appears in different parts of the movie, it will be much less expensive to schedule all those scenes to shoot in the same block of time. This is called “stacking production” and it facilitates logistics, shoots cheaper, and reduces production wear and tear. It’s just one of the many efficiencies a schedule offers. You can plan when to shoot day scenes and when to shoot night scenes. The limited availability of an actor or location can dictate when those scenes are shot and what scenes should be shot around them. Without proper timing, your simple viral video could be going around in frustrating circles as the shot becomes redundant and interruptions appear more frequently. Never skip this step.
6. Budget, budget and budget
This one speaks for itself. You have already outlined everything you will need with the steps above. Now is the time to attach a dollar amount to each budget item. You don’t have to go crazy. You can estimate some parts, such as equipment rental or transportation fees. Budgets can always evolve over time (for better or for worse), but you need to know what you can reasonably afford and what not to pay for upfront. Use spreadsheets to keep everything straight and adjust as you go. The budget stage can affect a movie before it starts. Scripts can change if budgets don’t allow certain scenes. Production may be delayed as more fundraising is needed. Or a surplus will allow you to get the chase you wanted there. Even those small expenses can add up. You owe it to yourself to know what resources are actually available for your vision.
7. Crew Up! (Part 2)
By now, you’ve probably gotten a good chunk of your core team. Producers, department heads, maybe even some actors. Now you need to make sure that you have all the crew members that your script requires. That means everyone – grabs, power, AP, drivers, prop crew, camera operators, boom operators – everyone. Start making calls. See who is available. Nail them to the shooting schedule. And make sure they have a backup team that can take their place in case something changes. Trust me, all the planning in the world won’t stop someone from doing it, so have contingencies in place and ready to go. You don’t want to be looking for a sound mixer from 5:30 AM!
8. Casting and table reads
Without actors, you have nothing. You have the potential to write the best screenplay since Casablanca. But, without Bogey and Bergman, the whole thing could have been a disaster. waste. Make a casting call. Audition times should scheduled. Get as many individuals to read for you as possible. Be demanding, or as fussy as possible, and look for actors on every corner: schools, advertisements, the web, through colleagues, whatever it takes. Program the table readings. Hear how the story sounds from real human voices. Change actors for different roles. Gather an audience of friends and colleagues to evaluate the work. This will help you make sure you have the right cast, one that has the ability to impact your audience in any way you want. I’ll also add what should be obvious: essays. But that should only happen after every aspect of the schedule is locked.
9. Wrangle Cabinet and Supports
You are about to shoot your masterpiece. Now you need to make sure the final surface touches are in place. Obviously, costumes communicate a lot about a character. Try on and have multiple sets of clothes for each of the main characters. Things get dirty, scene changes may require altered versions, such as rips or stains. The wardrobe must be cared for and kept in the correct state so that the shots taken at different times do not lose continuity. Then there are the accessories. Think of accessories as anything on the set that is not clothing or part of the architecture or setting. Some examples: cars, Frisbees, food, guns, baseball bats, televisions, a box of tissues, anything that is not nailed down and that is not being used.
Those are accessories. Hamburgers, Coke cans, ketchup bottles, napkins, a salt shaker, and perhaps ten more objects are required for a simple lunch scene. That’s a lot of inventory. Make a list, make sure each item is accessible and organized. Try not to buy accessories if you don’t have to. Borrow from friends, from your own home, go to Goodwill, get creative. And make sure everything you need is ready to roll.