Scheduling, Script Breakdowns, Crossplots and Call Sheets

There are several process involved in Scheduling a film and multiple factors to consider. There are industry standard tools which have changed and developed over time, as technology has progressed, but essentially allow a Producer to note all the requirements for a film and decide the most logistically practical, financially cable and time efficient way to make the film.

When scheduling my student film Wife and Husband [2014] I undertook the following processes:

Script Breakdown
The very first thing to be done was to read the finished script through from beginning to end in one sitting. On the second read-through I made notes, using a template provided by Sheffield Hallam University, on a script break-down sheet.

Sample script breakdown sheet

One sheet is used per scene and notes on all requirements explicitly stated in the script are noted.

Script annotation

The industry standard procedure is to break each script page into 8ths. An A4 page is approximately 8 inches long, so it's easy to use a ruler to mark the script. As each page of script typically represent 1 minute of screen time, this is a simple measure of how much material is covered in a shooting day.

Further annotations made on my script were notes of particular props or continuity questions, costume notes, plot specific observations and budget implications (where extra crd woe special equipment is needed.

Cross-plot/ Strip-board

A cross- plot is another document into which all the information from the script break-down sheets is assembled. It used to be a series of individual strips, colour coded for INT/EXT and DAY/NIGHT which were arranged in a special folder and could be re-arranged as the schedule took shape.

I used another Sheffield Hallam template:

Sample Cross-plot template

This is a useful document for managing the schedule based on cast and resource/ prop needs as well as location or time of day considerations.

For example, multiple scenes in a single location can be filmed back- to back to minimise set- up times or the need to move equipment.

Shot List

The shot list for each scene is typically assembled by the Director and Director of Photography (DoP) but is a tool also used for scheduling, along with the script annotations. If a shot scene will still require multiple shot set- ups the time needs to be allowed for this. 

The Final Schedule
The final schedule for Wife and Husband was structured as follows:

Pre-production Materials (2014)

This is a document I e-mailed to cast and crew to inform them of the scenes, shooting hours and locations of filming in a clear and concise way.
The final schedule was based on additional factors besides the script break-down and cross-plot:

• Cast availability
• Crew availability
• Location availability
• Lighting requirements (exterior scenes)/ camera department considerations
• Time required for shot set-ups and set- dressing

Call Sheets

Call sheets are documents sent out the day before a shoot day- detailing location address and driving/parking instructions, requirements for each department, call times for cast and crew an weather considerations. Below is a sample call sheet from Wife and Husband which was 3 pages long.

Movie Magic software
Hard copy versions of all of these documents have now been superseded by software specifically designed to help film producers schedule films. One such piece of software is called Movie Magic and is lauded as being an industry standard tool into which a script can be imported and automatically assessed for page 8ths, DAY/NIGHT, INT/EXT, cast requirements etc.

The software will then also help a Producer assemble a cross-plot and full schedule, as well as create call sheets.

A link to the Movie Magic website, detailing the software's capabilities is here: http://www.ep.com/scheduling/

Bibliography

HOUGHTON, B. (1991) What a Producer Does: The Art of Moviemaking (Not the Business) [Book], USA, Library of Congress Publication

ESSAM, L. (2014) Pre-Production Materials ACES faculty, Sheffield Hallam University, unpublished 

Wife and Husband (2014) [Film] Directed by Chrissie Wood, UK, Sheffield Hallam University

STANSFIELD, C  (2014) Producing and Production Management Workshop 2, Workshop Wednesday 29th October 2014, Sheffield Hallam University