Welcome to Pondering Creative

Keeping track of a dozen or so shots for a 30-second TV spot is pretty easy to do in your head, even if you shoot out of sequence. Long form video is a different matter; when you need to get 50 t0 100 shots in the can, you have to be able to:

1. Organize your shots by location and setup logistics (so your crew only has to go to each location once and do each setup once).

2. Keep track of what goes onto the raw footage tapes (or drives).

3. Quickly locate your best takes during the editing process.

First and foremost, make sure the script is finalized, approved and stamped with the client’s golden seal before you begin preproduction. This is the main reference point for the other two documents you’ll create: the shot sheet and the shooting roster.

Creating the shot sheet
Put your script into a table format in Word, Excel or whatever program you can easily use to manipulate cell order. Resave it under the file name “Shot Sheet.” Create a new table column where you can number the shots. Like this:

Shot Sheet

In this document, the shot numbers run chronologically with the script; the first shot the audience will see in the finished video is number one, the second shot they will see is number two, etc.

The shooting roster
Resave the shot sheet under the file name “Shooting Roster.” This document will allow you to shoot the video by location rather than script chronology. Create a fourth column in your table and type in the location for each shot.

Locations might include:

- Mechanical assembly area

- Office

- CNC area

- etc.

Like this:

Shooting Roster

Now reorder the table by location rather than shot number. Like this:

Shooting Roster

That’s your basic shooting roster; an out-of-sequence shot sheet. Granted, it doesn’t look much different with the four shot samples shown above, but when you add in several more locations and another 40 shots, it’s a major step toward economizing your production schedule. You can further refine shot order by setup type and other logistical considerations.

Script tracking during production
Now that you have a way to get all your shots in the can in a logical (and cost-effective) order, you need a system that will allow you to locate them during edit and put them back into chronological order.

Easy. Every time you shoot a take, mark the beginning time code (including tape number or hard drive file location) on your shot sheet (not your shooting roster) in the appropriate cell. Highlight the time code of the best take (usually the last one). When you have a shot in the can, cross it off the shooting roster. This makes it easy to flip back through shooting roster pages and make sure you haven’t missed anything before you leave a location.

During edit, use your shot sheet to locate the time code of the best take of each shot. If a take doesn’t look as good as you thought it did during production, you can easily peruse other takes—the time codes are right there on the shot sheet.

Voila! Boom, baby! Now you can shoot efficiently, make sure you shoot everything you need and find it easily during edit. Look out, Hollywood.

Today’s FREE BONUS CONTENT!
To dare is to lose one’s footing momentarily. To not dare is to lose oneself.
–Soren Kierkegaard