Notes on planning shoot days from the working crew that builds Cinella. No content-marketing filler - just things we've learned on real jobs.
The video brief template we use from the crew side of the table - the ten questions to ask before quoting a commercial job, how to turn vague answers into a specification, and the three answers that decide the length of the day.
The location recce checklist a small commercial crew actually works through - access, power, light, sound, shots and permissions - and the two findings that change your schedule rather than just your kit.
A shot list template a small commercial crew can actually use on the day - the seven columns worth having, a worked example for a brand shoot, and why priority order beats shooting order.
A category-by-category kit list template for a one-to-three person video crew - camera, lenses, lighting, audio, grip, power and media - plus the loading-out habit that actually prevents missing kit.
The checklist for what a client actually needs before shoot day - schedule, location, contacts, briefs and sign-off - and why chasing it over email is the part worth fixing.
A working crew's walkthrough of planning a one-day brand shoot: locking the brief, the recce, building the schedule, kit, client comms, and running the day itself.
A run of day is the timed schedule for a shoot - crew call to wrap. What it includes, how it differs from a call sheet, and a full worked example for a one-day brand shoot.
A no-nonsense call sheet template you can copy today: every section a small commercial crew actually needs, what goes in each one, and why we ended up automating it.
Google Docs, StudioBinder, SetHero or Cinella? A working crew's honest comparison of call sheet software - what each option really costs, who it fits, and what small crews actually need.
We're a working video crew, not a software company. This is the story of the Google Doc that broke us, the film-set software that didn't fit, and the tool we built instead.