There are many unknowns when making a movie. One of the things you can be sure of is that planning will help you avoid many time- and money consuming pitfalls. That’s why you should read these pre-production steps.
The best way to ensure a successful production is to spend some time on the pre-production process. A lot of brainstorming, planning and scheduling will help you on the way to a well-produced movie. Here’s some pre-production steps to remember when starting a movie project.
Project planning
The first thing to do to ensure the success of your production is to thoroughly plan the project from the beginning. This means gathering everything you have in a project plan. This type of plan usually consists of the script, inspiration, moodboards, storyboards, practical details like location and time of the shooting, gear list and shot lists.
Brainstorming and finding a name
Any movie will begin as an idea. An idea that will turn into a brainstorm that will turn into a project. The brainstorming part of the process is extremely important. This is the part where you get to come up with a bunch of ideas and throw them around. This is a way to develop the creative parts of the movie like plot, characters, locations, etc.
This is usually also the place where you come up with a name for the movie project. The name of the movie can have a big impact on how the viewers will approach the movie and how they will experience it. If you need some inspiration in your brainstorming, you can go here to find name ideas for your next movie project.
Mood board and storyboard
Then it’s time to create a moodboard to help you visualize the different aspects of your movie. It is a good way for you and your team to get a sense of the vibe and atmosphere in the movie as well as an idea of the actual surroundings of the different scenes.
In addition to a moodboard, you need a storyboard. This is the way to plan an entire movie with many different aspects. It entails everything from the composition to the action and look of the movie. You can get inspired by other movies and their look.
Shot list
When you’ve made your storyboard in all its detail, you are ready to start the so-called shot list. This is a way to enhance the chances of shooting going as planned. It is not an easy task to coordinate a shoot so a shot list will be of great use. Basically, a shot list is a list of each scene (or shot). This can look in a million ways but should be as detailed as possible.
Call sheet
You’re almost ready for production, you just need to make a call sheet. This is another way to try to plan and coordinate the shoot. This is a way to gather all information about the shoot for everyone involved. Schedule, location, arrival time etc. With these steps you will be well prepared when starting production.
