A shot list is the bridge between the script and the shoot day. Without one, you're deciding coverage on set while the light changes and your cast waits. With one, every setup has a purpose and you know the scene is complete before you move on.
Start from scenes, not shots
Break the screenplay into scenes first. Every slug line (INT. KITCHEN — DAY) is a scene boundary, and each scene gets its own mini shot plan. Resist the urge to plan shots for the whole film in one pass — scene by scene keeps the coverage honest.
For each scene, write one sentence describing what must be clear to the audience by the end of it. That sentence decides your coverage. If the point of the scene is "Jane realizes Mike lied," you need her face at the moment of realization more than you need a beautiful wide.
The default coverage pattern
For a standard dialogue scene, the classic pattern still works because it cuts together reliably:
- A master (wide) that holds the whole scene, geography, and blocking
- Over-the-shoulder or medium on character A
- Over-the-shoulder or medium on character B
- Close-ups on each character for the emotional beats
- Inserts for anything the audience must read: a phone screen, a letter, hands
Shoot the master first. It sets blocking, eyelines, and continuity for every tighter setup that follows. Then work inward: mediums, then close-ups, so performances peak when the camera is closest.
Shot sizes and when to use them
- Wide (WS): geography, entrances, isolation. Use sparingly — wides eat time to light.
- Medium (MS): the workhorse. Body language plus facial expression.
- Medium close-up (MCU): standard dialogue coverage. Most of your day.
- Close-up (CU): decisions, realizations, lies. Save it for beats that matter.
- Insert: any object with story information. Always grab these — they save scenes in the edit.
One camera changes the math
On a single-camera shoot (which is most indie and student productions), each additional character in a conversation multiplies setups. A two-person scene needs roughly 5 setups; a four-person dinner scene can need 10 or more. When you build the list, plan one clean single per speaking character plus the master — you can drop shots on the day, but you can't invent coverage you never captured.
With two cameras you can hold a two-shot while grabbing a single, which is why camera setup should be decided before the shot list is final, not after.
Tag every shot with who's in it
The single most useful column on a shot list isn't shot size — it's cast. Tagging every shot with the characters in frame lets you reorganize the day around actor availability: shoot everything with your lead who has to leave at 3pm first, then pick up the reverses. It also generates your day-out-of-days for free: sort by character and you know exactly which days each actor is needed.
Number for the edit, not for pride
Use scene-based numbering (12A, 12B, 12C) rather than a global counter. When the schedule shuffles — and it will — scene-based numbers stay meaningful, and your editor can find the coverage for scene 12 without a decoder ring.
The 5-minute audit
Before you lock the list, walk each scene and ask: if I only got these shots, could the scene cut together? Is there a close-up for the story beat? An insert for every object mentioned in the action lines? A way in and a way out of the scene? Five minutes per scene here saves reshoots later.