| (Fast) Foreword | xix |
| Introduction | xxi |
| Roll Credits | xxi |
Chapter 1 | The Keychain | 1 |
Key 1 | Five-minute Rule | 1 |
Key 2 | Scripted in Advance | 2 |
Key 3 | Slash and Burn | 2 |
Key 4 | Go Digital | 4 |
Key 5 | The Three-Day Shoot | 4 |
Key 6 | Cut Off for Cutting | 5 |
| Reshoot | 6 |
Chapter 2 | Honey, I Shrunk the Concept | 7 |
| Picking a Subject for Your Film: Shelving Godfather IV | 7 |
| Brainshowers | 8 |
| Subject Yourself | 9 |
| The Real World | 11 |
| Be Adaptable | 12 |
| Culling the Herd | 13 |
| Get Into Treatment | 14 |
| Put It to Bed | 15 |
| Reshoot | 16 |
Chapter 3 | Screenplay-The Every Other Daily Grind | 17 |
| Why You Script | 17 |
| But Before You Start... | 18 |
| Screenplay Format | 19 |
| A Note on Screenwriting Software | 19 |
| Stage Directions | 20 |
| Slug Lines | 20 |
| Dialogue | 21 |
| The Story, A Couple Ideas | 23 |
| Start Late | 23 |
| Staying Ahead of the Crowd: Reversals | 24 |
| The Writing Process: Three Weeks Later | 25 |
| Your Writing Calendar | 26 |
| Schedule a Reading | 27 |
| Screenwriting Unplugged | 27 |
| Don't Interrogate the Draft | 28 |
| Readings: Getting Something for Nothing Listen Carefully | 29 |
| Quiz Show | 30 |
| Do Over | 31 |
| Revision: Hello Old Friend | 31 |
| Overtime | 32 |
| Reshoot | 33 |
Chapter 4 | The Producers | 35 |
| You're Not a Cheeseball | 35 |
| Your Peeps | 36 |
| The Superfriends | 36 |
| Raise Your Hand | 37 |
| Superfriends: Personality Profiles and Job Descriptions | 38 |
| Really Good But Not Quite Super Friends | 40 |
| How to Ask a Really Big Favor | 41 |
| Screen Test | 42 |
| The Audition | 43 |
| The Audition Room | 44 |
| Casting | 46 |
| Locations: Scout Then Schedule | 47 |
| When Pulling Off Your Shorts, Remember Your PANTs | 47 |
| Shooting on Private Property-The Fine Art of the Mooch | 48 |
| Props/Costumes-Finding Continuity | 49 |
| Giving Everyone Their Props | 49 |
| Rags | 50 |
| Ask First, Spend Later | 51 |
| The Rehearsal | 51 |
| Reshoot | 53 |
Chapter 5 | Time and Money-The Schedule and the (Non-Equipment) Budget | 55 |
| Timetable | 56 |
| Six Easy Pieces | 57 |
| Call Sheets | 58 |
| Moolah | 60 |
| Food/Drink | 60 |
| Other Expenses | 62 |
| The Bill: What's the Damage? | 62 |
| Asking for Money | 63 |
| Reshoot | 64 |
Chapter 6 | Director's Preparation | 65 |
| Font to Film-A Shotboard Approach | 65 |
| Watch and Learn | 66 |
| Three Exercises | 67 |
| Creating the Shotboard | 69 |
| Reshoot | 72 |
Chapter 7 | Ringmaster - The Eye on the Monitor | 73 |
| It's All About You | 73 |
| The Director on the Set | 73 |
| The AP and AD | 74 |
| The Huddle | 76 |
| Action! | 76 |
| Shooting Shouting | 77 |
| How You Know You've Got It | 77 |
| Getting the Performance - Coaching Actors | 78 |
| Go Small Yet Again | 79 |
| Don't Do It Like I Do | 79 |
| Squash the Improv Bug | 80 |
| Moving Violations | 80 |
| Check the Gate | 80 |
| Collateral Damage | 81 |
| Personal Damage | 82 |
| Worst-Case Scenarios | 82 |
| That's a Wrap | 84 |
| Reshoot | 84 |
Chapter 8 | Equipment | 85 |
| The Camera | 86 |
| What Kind of Camera to Get | 87 |
| How to Buy a Camera | 89 |
| How to Borrow a Camera | 90 |
| How to Rent a Camera | 91 |
| The Tripod: Rock, Rock, Steady, Steady | 91 |
| Microphone | 92 |
| Mic Hunting | 92 |
| Hey Mike, Can I Borrow a Mic? | 93 |
| XLR Cables | 94 |
| XLR Adapter | 94 |
| Boom Pole | 94 |
| Wind Eliminator | 95 |
| Headphones | 95 |
| Clear UV Filter | 95 |
| Digital Videotape | 95 |
| Batteries | 96 |
| Reflectors | 96 |
| Lights | 96 |
| Black Foil | 98 |
| Electrical Cord | 98 |
| Surge Protector | 98 |
| Gloves | 98 |
| White Balance Card | 98 |
| Monitor | 99 |
| Gaffer Tape | 99 |
| Diffusion | 99 |
| Stabilizer | 99 |
| Dolly | 100 |
| Sandbags | 100 |
| Stands | 100 |
| Extra Lenses | 100 |
| Digital Still Cameras | 101 |
| Jib Arm | 101 |
| The Lists | 101 |
| Low Budget List | |
| Big Budget List | |
| Reshoot | 102 |
Chapter 9 | Getting Pretty Pictures | 103 |
| U-G-L-Y, Do You Have an Alibi? | 103 |
Part 1 | Lighting | 104 |
| Before You Plug in the Lights, or What To Do If You Don't Plug in the Lights | 104 |
| Monitors | 105 |
| The Dark Side | 106 |
| The Lighter Side of Things | 107 |
| Healthy Avoidance | 107 |
| From Automatic to Five Speed | 109 |
| First Gear: Zebra Bars | 109 |
| Second Gear: Shutter Speed | 109 |
| Third Gear: Aperture, F-Stop, Iris | 110 |
| Fourth Gear: White Balance | 111 |
| Fifth Gear: Progressive Scan | 113 |
| Plugging in the Lights | 113 |
| Start with Your Action | 114 |
| Throw Your Light Around | 114 |
| Diffusion | 115 |
| Use Light to Create Depth: Three-Point Lighting | 116 |
| Setting the Mood | 117 |
| Get Creative | 117 |
Part 2 | Framing | 118 |
| Framing Uglies | 118 |
| No Shaky Shaky | 118 |
| No Zoom Zoom | 119 |
| Just Say No to Autofocus | 119 |
| A Conversation about Conversations | 120 |
| Framing: The Art | 122 |
| Camera Angles | 122 |
| Moving Shots | 122 |
| Tripod Head Movement | 123 |
| The Dolly | 123 |
| Handheld | 124 |
| The Jib Arm | 125 |
| Some Final Hints | 125 |
| Reshoot | 126 |
Chapter 10 | Getting Good Sound | 127 |
| Wanted: Sound Engineer | 127 |
| Shotguns and Grips | 128 |
| Location Wrap, Almost | 130 |
| Do the Right Thing | 131 |
| Reshoot | 131 |
Chapter 11 | Editing | 133 |
| Ready | 133 |
| Aim | 133 |
| Edit | 133 |
| The Editing Studio | 134 |
| The Computer | 136 |
| Mac vs. PC | 136 |
| The Software | 136 |
| Downloading Your Footage | 137 |
| The Concept of Editing - Nonlinear and Non-Destructive Editing | 138 |
| Nonlinear | 138 |
| Non-Destructive | 139 |
| The Downside: Editing Zombies | 140 |
| The Craft | 140 |
| Cuts | 141 |
| Dissolves | 142 |
| Fades | 142 |
| Be Precise | 142 |
| Telling the Story | 143 |
| Be Cruel, Be Kind | 144 |
| Sound | 145 |
| Audio Fades | 147 |
| Audio as Transition | 147 |
| Soundtracks | 147 |
| Final Soundtrack | 149 |
| Putting It in the Can | 149 |
| Reshoot | 150 |
Chapter 12 | Getting Noticed | 151 |
| Wow! You've Finished | 151 |
| One Festival, For Now | 151 |
| Then Go Local | 152 |
| Location | 152 |
| Big, Dark, and Loud: AV | 153 |
| The Hook Up | 153 |
| Promotion | 154 |
| Posters and Postcards | 154 |
| Tickets | 156 |
| Website | 157 |
| Press | 157 |
| The Big Night | 161 |
| What to Say | 161 |
| Festivals | 162 |
| Beyond Festivals | 164 |
| The Web | 164 |
| Television | 164 |
| The Digital Bake Sale: A Way to Fund Your Next Film | 166 |
| Production and Reproduction | 167 |
| Reshoot | 168 |
| Conclusion - Final Credits | 169 |
| About the Authors | 171 |
| Index | 172 |