Chapter 16 — Key Takeaways
A one-page reference to screenshot and re-read before you plan a shoot. Pre-production is the cheapest place to solve a problem — this card is the toolkit that does it.
The core idea
Fix it in pre, not in post. A problem is cheapest to solve in the stage where it costs the least to move. In pre-production, changing the whole video costs a rewritten paragraph. On set, it costs the crew's morning and the light. In the edit, it can cost the video. Do the expensive thinking early, when thinking is all it costs.
Definitions
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Treatment | A short prose description (1–3 paragraphs) of the video you intend to make — logline, audience, format, tone, purpose, look — written before any script. The video described as if you'd seen it. |
| Script | The written blueprint of a video's content: what is said and what is seen, in order. Main forms: two-column (A/V) and outline. |
| Storyboard | A sequence of simple drawings, one per shot/moment, showing framing and action before the shoot. A comic strip of your film. |
| Shot list | An itemized, ordered list of every shot to capture — size, angle, subject, audio, priority — used on set as a checklist. |
| Schedule | The timed plan for the shoot: the order shots are captured in and how long each takes. |
| Budget | The plan for the resources a production consumes — money, time, and favors. |
The treatment — the six questions
| Question | What it fixes |
|---|---|
| Logline | The story in one sentence (not the topic). |
| Audience | Who it's for — the only attention that matters. |
| Format | Length, aspect ratio, where it lives. |
| Tone | The one or two adjectives that settle a hundred choices. |
| So what | What the viewer thinks, feels, or does at the end. |
| The look | The rough visual approach (observational vs. composed, warm vs. cool). |
Force a first image and a last image — a video without both has no shape. If the treatment survives swapping in a different subject, it's a topic, not a plan.
The pre-production document set — what, and when you need it
| Document | Use it when | Skip / lighten when |
|---|---|---|
| Treatment | Always — it's the cheapest prototype and the north star. | Never skip; a phone video still earns a sentence. |
| Two-column (A/V) script | Words are written in advance (narration, corporate, promo, explainer). | No scripted words at all. |
| Outline script | Words come from a real person (interview, doc, testimonial, vlog). | Fully scripted pieces. |
| Storyboard | Staged action, camera moves hitting marks, VFX, precise commercial shots, a designed open/reveal. | A plain talking-head interview — list it, don't board it. |
| Shot list | Always — the single most valuable on-set page. | Never skip. |
| Schedule | More than a couple of shots, or more than one person. | A single quick solo shot. |
| Budget | Always, even at zero dollars (it's in time and favors). | Never skip. |
| Recce (scout) | Any location new to you — at the time of day you'll shoot. | A space you already know cold at that hour. |
Which script form?
| The words are… | Use |
|---|---|
| Written in advance, spoken by you or a narrator | Two-column (A/V) script |
| From a real person you can't script | Outline script (beats + questions + B-roll) |
| Invented lines performed by actors | Screenplay (master-scene) |
Most documentary shorts use two-column (for the open/narration) AND outline (for the interview).
Shot-list template (copy this)
# SETUP SIZE MOVE SUBJECT / ACTION AUDIO P NOTES
--- ------------ -------- --------- ------------------------- ------------ --- ------------------
01 <location> WIDE locked <establish the place> <sound> 1 <light? release?>
02 <location> MEDIUM <move> <the action> <sound> 1 <lens? line?>
03 <location> CU/ECU locked <the detail / insert> nat sound 2 <cutaway to hide trim>
.. ... ... ... ... ... .. ...
-- ROOM TONE — — 30–60 sec, room quiet room tone 1 ALWAYS
Rules: P = priority (1 = must-have, 2 = want, 3 = if time). At least half your rows should be coverage/B-roll, not hero shots. Every setup needs at least one shot you can cut to (a cutaway) to hide a trim. Room tone is always priority 1.
Budget skeleton (three currencies)
LINE ITEM MONEY TIME FAVOR / DIY PATH
----------------- ------- ----------- -------------------------------
Pre-production $__ __ hrs the planning (you)
Location $__ — permission (a favor to repay)
Crew + talent $__ __ days a friend's day (owe one back)
Camera / lens $__ — own / borrow / phone
Audio $__ — borrow / starter kit
Light $__ — window/daylight = free (Ch.13)
Support $__ — tripod / brace
Transport $__ __ min —
Food $__ — NON-OPTIONAL if others help
Post (music, drives) $__ __ hrs free/CC music; a drive you own
Contingency (10–20%) $__ buffer for the thing that breaks
Your own time — __ hrs the most-forgotten line
Favors are loans, not gifts: feed people, credit them, send the subject the film, repay in kind. Reputation is the real budget.
Scheduling — the five rules
| Rule | Why |
|---|---|
| Shoot in efficient order, not story order | Avoids wasteful "company moves"; continuity (Ch.9) reassembles it. |
| Group by setup and location | Minimize re-lighting and moving. |
| Build the day around fixed points | Golden light (Ch.13), quiet hour (Ch.15), talent availability — can't be fixed later. |
| Buffer every block | Everything runs long; estimate honest, then add a third. |
| Front-load the must-haves | Get the film in the can while time and energy are fresh. |
The recce — five domains (scout at the shoot's time of day)
| Domain | The question | The trap if skipped |
|---|---|---|
| Picture | Do the backgrounds and angles serve the story? | Ugly or wrong backgrounds. |
| Sound | Echo? Hum? Traffic? (Record 10 sec, play on headphones.) | Hollow, unfixable audio — the #1 skipped check. |
| Light | Where's the light at shoot time, and can you shape it? | Flat noon or full dark instead of golden. |
| Power/logistics | Outlets, parking, load-in, restrooms, shelter? | No power; nowhere to work. |
| Permission/people | Who controls it? Permits? Who else is there? | Trespassing, noise, strangers needing releases. |
Common mistakes → fixes
| Mistake | Fix |
|---|---|
| A "treatment" that describes the topic, not the experience | Commit to a first image, a last image, a tone, and a viewer action. |
| Scripting a real person's words | Outline the beats and questions; let them speak. |
| A shot list of only hero shots | Build it around the edit: list the wide, medium, detail, reverse, cutaway. |
| No priority column | Mark 1/2/3 so a short day still yields a cuttable film. |
| Scheduling in story order, no buffer, ignoring the light | Efficient order, pad every block, build around fixed points. |
| Forgetting food / contingency / your own time in the budget | They're real costs; name all three currencies. |
| Skipping the recce (especially the sound check) | Scout in person, at shoot time; listen on headphones. |
| Planning documents you then ignore on the day | Shoot from them — tape the list up, cross shots off. |
The story/craft principles in play
- Story is the boss (Ch.1): the treatment commits to what the video is for before you're seduced by shots.
- You shoot for the edit (Ch.1, 3): the shot list is where that becomes a line you cross off.
- Sound is half the picture (Ch.14): the two-column AUDIO column and the recce's sound check refuse to let you forget it.
- Continuity enables the schedule (Ch.9): matching action is what makes out-of-order shooting safe.
This chapter's project step
Production Checkpoint (Project 2 kickoff): Pre-produce your 3-minute documentary short — a one-paragraph treatment, a prioritized shot list (12+ rows, half coverage), and a simple schedule (efficient order, around your fixed points, with buffer). Keep all three; you'll shoot from them in Chapters 19–20.
The one thing to remember
If you take a single sentence into every shoot you ever plan: the calm shoot is the planned shoot. Every problem you solve on paper is a problem that never gets to ambush you on the day — or, worse, in the edit. Fix it in pre.