Peter Kiwitt explains the four ways to plan your shots on paper, storyboards, diagrams, shot lists and lined scripts, and when to use each one.
There are four ways to plan your shots on paper: Storyboards, Diagrams, Shot Lists, and Lined Scripts. Pre-Visualization (recording your shots in motion) can also be used.
Storyboards are representations of what will appear on screen.
Storyboards can be drawn by hand, photographed, or created with software by the director for his/her own use (in which case their artistic merit is unimportant as long as they are legible to the director). A storyboard artist can also create them. This is more commonly done for special effects and action sequences where the vision of the director must be shared with others during preproduction. Storyboards are the best method for graphically showing composition and sharing “the movie in your head.”.
 Motion can be shown in storyboard panels by drawing: Arrows to indicate camera or subject movement and/or… Smaller frames within the panel to signify a move in; A larger panel with multiple frames to signify a dolly, crane, pan, or tilt,; or Multiple panels, numbered in sequence.
Diagrams are drawings of the set, actors, and camera from a bird’s eye view. They allow several camera positions to be shown at once. Diagramming is the best method for graphically showing camera positions and, thereby, for organizing what order to shoot in.
It can also be easier to show actor and camera movement. Lines can be used to show movement from one position to another, and numbers can indicate order.
Shot Lists are written descriptions of what the camera will see and/or do. They can be very simple or detailed. Be warned that complicated notes might be difficult for you to work with on the set where the pressure can be intense. While diagramming can be best in helping to determine shot order, a shot list is best for referring to that order while on the set. When done simply, shot lists are often the best choice.
Lined Scripts are not commonly used by directors. The technique of drawing one line through the script page for each shot is primarily used by script supervisors to create a reference for the editor in post-production. In can also be problematic for a director if a new draft of the script is issued (which is a common occurrence) after notes are made. That said, it is the best method for graphically showing when each shot begins and ends, and what options might be available for cutting at any given moment.
Pre-Visualization (pre-viz) is creating images that can play over time to simulate the finished project. One simple way to do this is to shoot the scene with a camcorder without additional equipment, crew, or even your actors. You can also record hand-drawn storyboards or animate computer-drawn storyboards with or without separately recording dialogue. On larger productions, usually for more complicated scenes, pre-visualization can be extensive, most commonly using 3D animation to mimic the look of the final live-action and visual effects composite. Abbreviations for Shot Notation:
Not everyone uses the same terms, or defines terms in the same way. But the following will put you in the ballpark. (1.) Extreme Wide Shot (EWS)
(2.) Wide Shot (WS)
(3.) Medium Wide Shot (MWS or Cowboy)
(4.) Medium Shot (MS)
(5.) Medium Close-Up (MCU or 3T)
(6.) Close-Up (CU or 2T)
(7.) Extreme Close-up (ECU or 1T)
(8.) Over-the-Shoulder (OTS)
(9.) Two-Shot (2S)
(10.) Three-Shot (3S)
(11.) Point-of-View (POV)
Peter Kiwitt is an Assistant Professor in the School of Film & Animation at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), and a member of the Directors Guild of America with years of professional film and television industry experience as a director, writer, producer, editor, and executive. http://peterkiwitt.wordpress.com/bio/
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