STOKEWARD METHODOLOGY – POST #7 – STORY-BOARDING/SHOT-LIST
This is the hardest part. You have come up with your idea, style, script and the aesthetics of what you want it to look like. Now, make it, but in your head. This comes naturally to some, but not at all to others. The way I have found to trigger your imagination into creating shots and the order of the film, is to watch the films or stimulus that you have chosen previously as your inspiration, as well as listen to the music that will trigger the style for the film you wish to create.
So, I have gone back over the music and film that has inspired my filmmaking, and happened was that I sat in my chair, in a quiet space, and just listened and watched. The photogenie and style of films are unique unto themselves, so it was important that I could take it all in. From that, I already had a memory of how alot of the films were shot and how they were effective to communicate their style. I began writing the shotlist. I decided that the film should be shot in a meta-film style, in order to encapsulate its own awareness.
I begin writing a shotlist usually in Celtx, or in Exel, but I am going to use Celtx for this particular exercise. So I will write out the scene headings in chronological order and go through each scene, gradually tailoring the shots to fit into a particular rhythm or flow of how I would like the film to play out. Keep in mind that shotlists are usually points of reference and dont have to be set in stone. So, by going through each scene, I can now invisage what they would look like if they were framed and shot on set. So now, I would go through a storyboard, listing all the technical details below and illustrated thumbnail of each shot. It sucks when you’re not a fantastic illustrator, so if you have the money to be able to hire someone to do it for you, it’s always a plus. However, you will need to be very descriptive in describing what the shots will look like, hence, you’re already directing.