Coursework: Pre-production - Shot list

The final aspect of your pre-production planning is to write a comprehensive shot list for every single possible shot we plan to film for our film trailer.

A shot list is a full list of all the shots in your trailer with detailed information for each of them (shot type, action etc.) Creative shot choices aside, it’s easy to forget that a shot list is a strategic document. Creating a shot list is essentially like creating a shooting gameplan for the day.

Here's our friend Darius with a reminder of the different shot types and angles:




Here are some top tips for writing a shot list:



...And here's a specific guide to shooting a dialogue scene:



Your a shot list needs to contain EVERY shot you plan to film for your trailer AND additional shots to create flexibility when editing. These additional shots are often close-ups, cutaways, alternative angles or similar.

We advise using a simple table on Microsoft Word to set out your shot list - you can find an example here. It makes sense to write your shot list by scene or location rather than a huge list of every shot in the trailer in chronological order. It's also important to remember that trailers require a range of shots from the whole 90 minute film - so make sure your shot list reflects this. 

Once complete, post the shot list to your Media 2 coursework blog.

Optional pre-production: Storyboard
Hollywood filmmakers will also storyboard every shot they plan to film. They use storyboard artists to create a visual representation of the shots they wish to film - and use it to communicate a visual plan to the film crew. If you are work well visually or are artistic you may wish to create storyboards for key shots in your trailer.