What’s on a call sheet
- 1Header — title, shooting day (for example Day 12 of 40), date and weekday
- 2General call, first shot and estimated wrap time
- 3Weather and chance of rain, sunrise and sunset
- 4Location — address, parking, restrooms, nearest hospital
- 5Shooting schedule — scene number, INT/EXT, D/N, set, description, pages, cast
- 6Cast calls — makeup and wardrobe start, ready on set
- 7Department notes and special requirements
- 8Emergency contacts and the advance schedule for the next day
Layouts differ a little from team to team, but the order is similar. Build it so it reads top to bottom: when and where, then what in which order, then who arrives when, then what to prepare.
The header — when and where
- General call — The time the whole crew gathers. Cast and some departments get their own individual call times.
- First shot — The time the camera is scheduled to roll first. The time from call to first shot is setup time.
- Sunrise and sunset — These decide how long you can shoot exterior day scenes. Check an official sunrise and sunset source for the location.
- Weather — Note the forecast and chance of rain, plus what happens if it rains (weather cover scenes).
- Location — The exact address and a map link, parking, restrooms and the nearest hospital.
The shooting schedule — what, in which order
| Column | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Scene | The scene number in the shooting script | Sc. 24 |
| INT / EXT | Interior / exterior | INT |
| D / N | Day / night — some teams split further into morning or dusk | N |
| Set | The location in the script and the actual shooting location | Min’s living room (stage 2) |
| Description | A one-line summary of the scene | Mom finds out Min quit his job |
| Pages | Script pages in eighths | 1 3/8 |
| Cast | The numbers of the actors in the scene | 1, 4 |
| Notes | Special effects, vehicles, number of background actors and so on | Rain effect, 3 background |
Cast numbers are fixed per role. The lead is usually number 1 and the rest follow in order of size, and the call sheet uses the numbers instead of names to save space.
Page eighths — how scene length is counted
Scene length is counted in eighths of a page, dividing each script page top to bottom into eight. Half a page is 4/8, a page and a half is 1 4/8, and even a very short scene counts as at least 1/8. Add up the pages scheduled for a day and you can judge whether the day is realistic.
Cast and department sections — who arrives when
- Cast calls — For each actor: arrival time, makeup and wardrobe start, and ready-on-set time.
- Background — Headcount, wardrobe requirements and call time, listed separately.
- Department notes — Props, wardrobe changes, special effects and vehicles needed for the day’s scenes, by department.
- Emergency contacts — Contacts for the production and AD teams, and the nearest hospital.
- Advance schedule — A short preview of the next shooting day’s scenes and locations so people have time to prepare.
How to read it — what to check first
- Your call time and location — Look at the time next to your name (or cast number), not the general call.
- Your scenes — Find your number in the cast column, and your department’s items in the notes.
- Order and moves — Check where the location changes and how long the move takes. Wardrobe changes often happen here too.
- Sunset and weather — Check that exterior day scenes finish before sunset, and what you’ll shoot if it rains.
- Version — When a revised call sheet comes out, check the date and version and discard the old one.
Strip color conventions
On stripboards and call sheets, there’s a convention of using strip colors to show interior or exterior and day or night. At a glance you can see how many night scenes are in a day, or whether exteriors are bunched together. Some teams use different colors, so always include a legend.
How to make a call sheet
- 01Confirm the day’s scenesPull the scenes and page counts assigned to that shooting day from the shooting schedule (stripboard).
- 02Set the shooting orderGroup scenes at the same location, put exterior day scenes early so they finish before sunset, and look for an order that minimizes cast waiting time and lighting changes.
- 03Allocate timeBudget setup, rehearsal and shooting time for each scene, add moves and meals, and work out the estimated wrap.
- 04Work cast calls backwardSubtract makeup and wardrobe time plus a buffer from each actor’s first scene to set their individual call time.
- 05Fill in department notesPull the props, wardrobe, effects and vehicles for the day’s scenes from the breakdown and list them by department.
- 06Add location detailsAdd weather, sunrise and sunset, location and parking, the nearest hospital, emergency contacts and weather cover scenes.
- 07Review and sendThe AD and production teams review it together and send it out. If anything changes, mark the version and time and send it again.
Common mistakes
- Ignoring sunset — Exterior day scenes slip later until you’re shooting after dark.
- Forgetting makeup time — The actor’s call is set to their first scene time, so shooting starts late.
- Zero travel time — The location changes but there’s no time for the move and reset.
- No version marking — Revised and old versions get mixed up and people arrive at different times.
- Cast numbers out of sync with names — The cast list changed but the call sheet didn’t.
- No weather cover — If it rains, you lose the whole day.
Comments
Comments are visible to everyone, including visitors who are not signed in. Please do not post personal information such as contact details.