Introduction

What makes a film shoot go well? Organization—with clear goals, a well-planned schedule and money properly allocated to appropriate expenses and clear lines of communication all contribute. Great production management and preparation may not prevent the unexpected twists and turns that ensue during or after principal photography—film production can be as unpredictable. Our best defense is to be prepared. Here’s where we do that.

This book will give you superpowers. You will learn to worry in advance, see around corners into the future, and develop a sense of urgency—the need for more time, extra money, or more resources.

Whether you’re a producer, director, or new filmmaker, looking to expand your skills, you can learn to schedule and budget your film with this simple guide—from creating budgets and schedules to allocating resources in an efficient way.

This isn’t rocket science and you can do it! It’s a series of steps, performed one at a time. As you do each step a few times, it will become familiar, then you can shape the process to your liking and tastes. Your schedules and budgets may differ from someone else’s—influenced by the kind of film you’re working on, or the software you do or don’t use. That’s one of the great things about working in film and video—each one is hand-crafted, and will have your thumbprints all over it in a fundamental way; the end result that people watch on screen rests upon the schedule and budget.

The following icons will catch your eye. Here’s what they mean:

• CYA: How do you know? Ask! A question now will save time and money later.
• Tools You Will Need: Materials to complete the work in the section just ahead.
• Rule of Thumb: Generally accepted principles (but not laws).
• AKA: Also Known As—many titles, tasks and equipment have a couple of different names.
• Related resources to this topic are free to you on our website. These might include contracts, budget and scheduling forms, video tutorials, software comparisons, and worksheets to complete the exercise as you follow along.

As with so many others, my journey into filmmaking was circuitous. I carry the skills learned in other arenas (music, business, and teaching) into my work in production, whether working on features, VR films, smartphone apps, political campaigns, TV shows, commercials, corporate videos, music videos, or webisodes. Please do that as well! Your life experience, common sense, intuition, and network all contribute to this process. Always be inspired to ask questions—the earlier the better.

This book is modular: jump around, work through it in order, or digest one chapter at a time and practice the steps as you go along. My only recommendation is to get in there and do it—the process will give you insight and control over your project, setting your current and future films and videos (and you too) up for success.

Please feel free to contact me on the Schedule and Budget Your Film: A Panic-Free Guide website or by email: [email protected]—I’d love to hear about your projects!