How to Create the Perfect Shot List for Your Film

As the Director, your vision for a project is essential, but it’s imperative there’s a roadmap laying out the journey ahead. Not only for you the Director, but for the fellow creatives working on the project to ensure everyone is on the same page as they head into battle. Additionally, when you are a work-for-hire Director, it’s common for the powers that be to ask for a shot list so they have a clear understanding of your vision, mission and how you plan to execute the task at hand which will give them peace of mind that their filmmaker has the tools needed to come in on time and on budget. A shot list is a document - THAT document -  that maps out exactly what will occur and what filmmaking tools will be used in each scene of the film. Your shot list also helps organize your thoughts to begin with a solid plan and can be a crucial aid in scheduling and budgeting your project.

Putting a shot list together that everyone can follow does not have to be difficult, but it must be clear and concise, yet thorough and shows the team you understand the material and more importantly, your craft. Shot lists, although not distributed throughout the entire crew, will be something your cinematographer, assistant directors, gaffers, and various parts of your production design team and bond company will review. So, it’s imperative it looks as good as possible and represents not only your strategy but essentially how you plan to capture everything, shot-by-shot. It is an early ‘rough sketch’ of what your project will look like outside of the broad views given in storyboards.

Guiding you through this webinar is multi-Emmy Award-Winning Producer and Director Shane Stanley. Shane has worked on countless projects and received his first Emmy nomination at just 16 years old. His directorial debut screened at Cannes and Shane’s work can be seen on multiple streaming sites. In addition to his Emmy Awards, Shane has received 11 Telly Awards, 2 CINE Golden Eagles Awards, 5 Aurora Awards, 4 WorldFest Remi Awards, and 28 International Film Festival Awards

In this webinar you will learn how to piece the essentials together needed to tell your story, how to leave out time and budget-constraining setups you won’t need, and to ensure you're given the additional time to explore and get those specialty shots or gems that can help add a nice touch to your project, but also allow you to establish a style and feel to the piece you can be proud of which will alleviate on-set pressure and allow the creative juices to easily flow. You will walk away knowing how to properly and confidently create a professional shot list for your film. 

Testimonials for Shane’s previous classes and webinars

"Shane was thorough and encouraging. Easy to listen to and follow. I'll be signing up for other classes he teaches in the future." -Karena K.

"Just straight-forward, real, the kind of producer most of us would kill to work alongside." -Clark T.

"Shane exceeded my expectations. He covered a vast amount of real-world material and brought all of it to life with personal and engaging stories… It was inspiring. Bravo!" -Michele R.

 "I can't say enough great things about Shane Stanley and his class. I had no idea how much I didn't know until I took Shane's class.”  -LaRita S.