Pre-production:
Treatment, Pitch, Shot List and Storyboard
LESSON: The Treatment and Pitch
ASSIGNMENT: The Treatment and Pitch
A good place to search for some short film for inspiration is https://www.nfb.ca/films/
tgv4m_film_prod_treatment_and_pitch_assign_2022.pages |
LESSON: Shot List
A shot list will allow you to start organizing your visual story. This process will require you to make make decisions. The organization of this detail is a crucial step in the process leading to production. A shot list is also easily transformable to a storyboard which provides a more visual description of your story. Both of these, the shot list and storyboard, along with scheduling production days can make or break the success of your production and final film.
Shot List Exemplar
Below is an exemplar of a shot list for one scene of a short film. Short film idea "The Stolen Truth" written by Sukhpaul.
Shot List Template
Below is the template we will use for our film productions. However, if you do a simple Google search you will find there are a wide variety of shot lists.
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ASSIGNMENT: Shot List
Requirements:
- Complete a shot list for the first two pages of your short film script
- Incorporate and apply correct shot sizes (using terminology and abbreviations), angles, and movements
- Demonstrate knowledge of proper shot sequencing to avoid "jump cuts" and tell an engaging visual story
- Remember, this is where the script starts to come to life with visual storytelling, so choose your shots, angles and movements carefully
Shot List Rubric
Shot List Rubric
LESSON: Storyboard
How Script, Shot List and Storyboard come to life on screen!
Photo Storyboard Exemplar
We will creating our photo storyboards using a simple word processing document for Apple Pages and Microsoft Word as shown below.
Photo Storyboard Template
The template can be downloaded in both version underneath the image.
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ASSIGNMENT: Photo Storyboard
Requirements:
- Complete a photo storyboard for the first two pages of your short film script
- Include the following as shown in the exemplar above: Scene #; Shot #, Shot Type/Angle/Movement; and Action
- Incorporate and apply correct shot sizes (using terminology and abbreviations), angles, and movements
- Action: include the action and full dialogue from your short film script - you can simply cut and paste
Photo Storyboard Rubric
Exemplar: Photo Storyboard in Celtx
Below are screen shots of a completed photo storyboard for Scene 1 - Shots 1-16 of "Hard Cell."
From the drop down menu choose the camera shot size that best describes that shot.
In the text box above the photo, include the information as listed below:
- Shot Type: include correct camera shot size (if in addition to the drop down menu), angle and movement as required
- Action: include the action and full dialogue from the script - you can simply cut and paste from the script/screenplay within Celtx
Below these screen shots is the exported PDF file from Celtx of Scene 1 Shots 1-16 from "Hard Cell."
Exported PDF file from Celtx of Scene 1 Shots 1-16 from "Hard Cell."