The What, Why, & How of Pre-Production

Let’s Talk Pre-Production

I love talking about this because I truly believe that the key to any successful film project is proper planning. After running my film production company for over 6 years, you can bet I’ve learned this lesson the hard way. Even when the final films turn out great, we also aim for an exceptional shoot experience, which only happens with intentional planning. So let’s get into what is pre-production, why is it important, and how we do it.

What is Pre-Production? 

Pre-Production is everything that happens before the shoot. It involves creating the film concept, writing the story or script, planning the shot list, scheduling, gathering props, booking locations, talent and vendors, selecting music and planning graphics or text. Anything that can happen before the shoot day, should happen before the shoot day. Depending on the scope of the project, this phase can last anywhere from 2 weeks to 6 weeks. For a Branded Film, we like at least 4 weeks of Pre-Production before a shoot, because there is a lot of collaboration and communication that needs to happen between us, the client and any other vendors. And that just simply takes time. 

Why is it important?

Commissioning a film of your work is an investment of your time, money, and resources. With proper planning, we hope to align all expectations, so that your investment is well worth it. The goal of pre-production, in my opinion, is to ensure that both we and the client understand exactly what the outcome of this film should look and feel like. With proper planning, we hope to eliminate any possibility of unmet expectations. Since we are capturing real life and real people, we can never predict everything that will end up in a film, but oftentimes it turns out better than we could have imagined because we have set ourselves up for success.

In addition to creating a film that meets your expectations, we want to provide an exceptional experience for you. Shoots can feel stressful and intimidating. BUT I'm here to tell you that they don't have to be! A well-thought plan allows you to feel relaxed, prepared, and confident on shoot day, leading to a better final film. 

How do we guide you through the Pre-Production process?

Though every film project is different and requires a different scale of preparation, every film project needs some pre-production. I’ll walk you through the most involved processes, such as for a Branded Film or Short Documentary. After gathering some initial information during the booking process, we will send the client a custom questionnaire. The goal is to gather as much information as possible in their own words. I always instruct clients to fill out the questionnaire how they would speak rather than write, because I want to hear their voice. From there, the heavy lifting is out of your hands, and I take over to produce a Creative Brief. This is when I do the majority of writing. I write the storyline, a sample script, interview questions and a shot list. I select music choices, film themes and establish the film tone. I also create schedules for all of the shoots. Oftentimes the client will coordinate with HAMU, studios, talent or anyone else, but if needed, we can also coordinate those vendors as well. The Creative Brief is like the Bible of our shoot. Once approved, we use this document to guide everything we do.

“The Creative Brief is like the Bible of our shoot. Once approved, we use this document to guide everything we do.”

Even though we handle the majority of the work, pre-production is a collaborative process. We use our expertise and experience to guide you, but you know your business best and we trust that. Your feedback and participation is essential to creating the best possible film to reflect your brand.

Ready to start planning your film project? Submit a contact form and let’s connect!