Practical guides for filmmakers
The Film Logic Blog
Filmmaking, explained properly. What a breakdown is, what a first AD actually does, how a shooting schedule gets built, what goes on a call sheet, and how a film gets finished and seen. Written by a director and producer.
Working through it in order · 114 posts planned across 10 chapters · free production templates along the way
Practical guides for filmmakers
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Before You Write
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How a Film Actually Gets Made, Start to Finish
The whole pipeline in one post: the eight stages every film moves through, and why they are one connected chain rather than eight separate jobs.
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What Makes an Idea Worth Filming
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How to Write a Logline That Actually Works
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Short Film, Feature, or Series: Choosing the Right Format for Your Idea
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What Is a Treatment, and Do You Need One?
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Writing a Synopsis, a Pitch, and a One-Sheet
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Where Film Ideas Actually Come From (adaptation, rights, public domain, true stories)
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Do You Need to Register or Copyright Your Script?
The Script
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Screenplay Format Explained
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How to Write a Slugline (Scene Heading)
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Action Lines: Writing What the Camera Sees
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Writing Dialogue That Sounds Like People
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Parentheticals, Extensions, and When to Use Them (V.O. vs O.S.)
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Transitions: CUT TO, DISSOLVE TO, and Why You Probably Do Not Need Them
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What Is a Beat Sheet?
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Three-Act Structure, and the Alternatives Nobody Teaches You
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How Long Should a Screenplay Be? (page counts, and the one-page-one-minute myth)
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What Is a Table Read, and How Do You Run One?
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Script Revisions and Colored Pages Explained
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Script Coverage: What Readers Are Actually Looking For
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AV Scripts: The Two-Column Format for Commercials and Corporate Work
Breaking Down the Script
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What Is a Script Breakdown, and How Do You Do One?
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The Elements: What You Tag and Why (cast, props, wardrobe, vehicles, SFX, and the rest)
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How to Read and Fill a Breakdown Sheet
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Counting Pages in Eighths
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Day/Night, INT/EXT: Why These Four Letters Drive Your Whole Schedule
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What Is a One-Liner Schedule?
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Shooting Order vs Script Order: Why Films Are Shot Out of Sequence
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How to Estimate How Long a Scene Will Take to Shoot
Building Your Team
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Every Film Crew Role, Explained
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What Does a Producer Do?
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What Does a Director Do? (and what they do not)
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What Does a First AD Do?
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What Does a Second AD Do?
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What Does a Director of Photography Do?
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What Does a Camera Operator Do? (and the 1st AC, 2nd AC, and DIT)
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What Does a Gaffer Do?
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What Does a Key Grip Do? (and what a Best Boy actually is)
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What Does a Production Designer Do? (art director, set dec, props)
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What Does a Costume Designer Do?
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What Does a Hair and Makeup Artist Do on Set?
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What Does a Production Sound Mixer Do? (and the boom operator)
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What Does a Script Supervisor Do?
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What Does a Location Manager Do?
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What Does a Casting Director Do?
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What Does a Production Coordinator Do?
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What Does a UPM (Unit Production Manager) Do?
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What Does a Line Producer Do?
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Above the Line vs Below the Line
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How Small Can a Crew Be? (the 3-person, 8-person, and 20-person versions of the same shoot)
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How to Find and Hire Crew When You Have No Network
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Deal Memos, Rates, and Paying People Properly
Pre-Production Planning
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What Happens in Pre-Production?
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What Is a Stripboard, and How Do You Read One?
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How to Build a Shooting Schedule
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Day Breaks, Banners, and Ordering Your Shoot Days
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What Is a Day Out of Days (DOOD) Report?
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How to Schedule Around Actor Availability
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What Is a Tech Scout, and What Happens on One?
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Location Scouting: How to Find, Assess, and Lock a Location
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Film Permits: What You Need and When You Can Skip It
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Production Insurance Explained
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What Is a Shot List, and How Detailed Should It Be?
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Storyboards vs Shot Lists vs Floor Plans
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How to Plan a Night Shoot
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Working With Child Actors, Animals, and Weather
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Building a Contingency: What to Do When a Location Falls Through
The Call Sheet
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The Complete Guide to Call Sheets
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Every Field on a Call Sheet, Explained
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Crew Call vs Talent Call vs Shooting Call
How to Calculate Call Times Backward From Your Day
The Seven Most Common Call Sheet Mistakes
Who Gets the Call Sheet, and When Do You Send It?
What Goes on the Back of a Call Sheet
Weather, Sunrise/Sunset, and Hospital Info: The Safety Block
What Is a Production Report (and How Is It Different)?
Production Day
What Actually Happens on a Film Set, Hour by Hour
What Is a Slate, and How Do You Slate a Shot?
Set Etiquette: The Unwritten Rules Nobody Tells You
Who Calls "Action"? Set Terminology Explained
What Is Continuity, and How Do You Keep It?
What the Script Supervisor Writes Down All Day
Camera Reports, Sound Reports, and Lined Scripts
Blocking a Scene: How Rehearsal Actually Works on the Day
Coverage: How Many Setups Does a Scene Need?
How to Run a Safety Meeting
Turnaround, Meal Penalties, and the 12-Hour Day
What to Do When You Are Losing the Light
What Is a Wrap Report?
Post-Production
The Post-Production Pipeline, Explained
Ingest, Proxies, and Organizing Footage Before You Cut
What Is an Assembly, a Rough Cut, and a Fine Cut?
What Is Picture Lock, and Why Does It Matter?
Sound Design, ADR, and the Final Mix
What Is Color Grading? (and the difference from color correction)
Titles, Credits, and the Legal Order of Names
Delivery Formats and Deliverables Explained
How to Run a Test Screening and Actually Use the Notes
Business and Distribution
How Independent Films Actually Make Money
How to Build a Film Budget
Above-the-Line, Below-the-Line, and Contingency in a Budget
Where Indie Film Funding Comes From (grants, equity, crowdfunding, deferrals)
What Is a Film Festival Strategy?
Festival Submission: Costs, Timelines, and What Programmers Look For
Distribution Deals Explained (all rights, sales agents, self-distribution)
What Is a Chain of Title?
Music Licensing and Clearances Without a Lawyer
How to Market Your Own Film With No Budget