Film Production Assistant

Pre-production assistant for filmmakers. Generates script breakdowns, shot lists, call sheets, production schedules, and budget estimates from scene descriptions. Built by a working film director with 20 years on set.

Film Production Assistant — SKILL.md

Overview

A complete pre-production toolkit for indie and professional filmmakers. Generates industry-standard production documents from screenplay scenes and project parameters, using AI-driven prompt templates validated against real industry reference structures.

Designed for: Indie directors, student filmmakers, ADs, producers, and anyone managing a narrative film production with limited resources.

No external APIs required. All prompts are self-contained — paste into Claude, ChatGPT, or any capable LLM.

---

When to Use This Skill

Trigger this skill when David (or any user) asks for:

• "Break down this scene for production"
• "Make a shot list for this scene"
• "Generate a call sheet for [shoot day]"
• "Build a shooting schedule from these scenes"
• "Estimate the budget for this project"
• "What do I need to produce this scene?"
• Any film pre-production planning request

---

Available Tools

1. Script Breakdown Generator

File: prompts/script-breakdown.md What it does: Analyzes a screenplay scene and produces a complete breakdown sheet — cast, props, set dressing, wardrobe, SFX, VFX, stunts, sound notes, production flags, and continuity concerns. Input required: Scene text (paste directly) Output: Production-ready breakdown sheet, one page per scene

2. Shot List Generator

File: prompts/shot-list-generator.md What it does: Creates a complete, director-ready shot list for a scene with shot size, movement, angle, lens, equipment, estimated time, and priority ratings (A/B/C). Input required: Scene text + director's tonal/visual notes + available hours Output: Shot list table + coverage strategy + lighting notes + risk flags

3. Call Sheet Formatter

File: prompts/call-sheet-formatter.md What it does: Generates a professionally formatted call sheet for a single shoot day — cast call times, crew grid, location details, emergency contacts, catering, advance schedule. Input required: Shoot day details (scenes, cast, crew, location, weather, transport) Output: Full formatted call sheet, ready to distribute

4. Production Schedule Builder

File: prompts/production-schedule-builder.md What it does: Builds a complete shooting schedule from a scene list, optimizing for location groups, cast availability, and production efficiency. Produces one-liner schedule, DOOD chart, and scheduling flags. Input required: Scene list with Int/Ext, location, pages, cast + constraints Output: Day-by-day one-liner + DOOD chart + flags + contingency recommendations

5. Budget Estimator

File: prompts/budget-estimator.md What it does: Generates a realistic line-item budget estimate with ATL/BTL breakdown, fringe calculations, contingency, and budget notes including what to cut vs. what never to cut. Input required: Project parameters (pages, days, location, union status, key elements) Output: Full budget with subtotals + budget notes + cost-reduction options

---

Document Export (.docx) — Optional

If the user explicitly asks to save or export the output, use pandoc to generate a Word document.

Requires: pandoc must be installed on the host (brew install pandoc on Mac). If not available, deliver the output as text only.

Only export when the user asks. Do not automatically save files without confirmation.

# Only run this when user explicitly requests a file export
echo "{{output}}" > /tmp/film-output.md
pandoc /tmp/film-output.md -o "{{user-specified-path}}/{{ProjectTitle}}-{{DocumentType}}.docx"

Naming convention:

• Script Breakdown: ProjectTitle-Scene01-Breakdown.docx
• Shot List: ProjectTitle-Scene01-ShotList.docx
• Call Sheet: ProjectTitle-Day01-CallSheet.docx
• Production Schedule: ProjectTitle-Schedule.docx
• Budget: ProjectTitle-Budget.docx

Ask the user for save location. Do not default to ~/Desktop without asking first. Always confirm the file was saved and provide the full path.

---

How to Use

Option A: Direct Execution (Lilu handles it)

User provides a scene or project details. Lilu:

1. Reads the appropriate prompt template from prompts/
2. Fills in the template with the user's content
3. Runs it against the LLM (this session or sub-agent)
4. Returns formatted output
5. Offers to export to .docx if user wants — does not save automatically

Option B: Template Delivery

Lilu delivers the filled prompt template to the user so they can paste it into their preferred tool (Claude.ai, ChatGPT, etc.).

Option C: Full Pre-Production Package

For a complete project, run all 5 tools in sequence:

1. Script Breakdown → every scene
2. Shot List → key scenes
3. Production Schedule → full shoot
4. Budget Estimate → full project
5. Call Sheet → each shoot day (run day-before)

---

Workflow: Scene → Production-Ready in 5 Steps

1. USER provides scene text
         ↓
2. Run SCRIPT BREAKDOWN → identify all elements
         ↓
3. Run SHOT LIST → director's visual plan
         ↓
4. Feed scenes into PRODUCTION SCHEDULE BUILDER
         ↓
5. Night before each shoot → generate CALL SHEET

---

Reference Files

All structural knowledge is documented in references/:

File	Contents
industry-templates.md	Research summary — real call sheets, shot lists, breakdowns, schedules, budgets
prompts.md	All 5 prompt templates with example inputs and outputs
call-sheet-structure.md	Industry-standard call sheet anatomy (Celtx, CalArts)
shot-list-structure.md	Shot sizes, camera movements, shot list elements (StudioBinder)
production-schedule-structure.md	One-liner format, DOOD chart, stripboard colors
script-breakdown-structure.md	Category color codes, element definitions, full scene example
budget-structure.md	ATL/BTL categories, fringe rates, budget tiers, micro-budget example

Test Outputs (validated against "Bitter Coffee" — INT. COFFEE SHOP - DAY, Anna & Marcus confrontation, 3 pages)

File	What It Tests
test-outputs/01-script-breakdown.md	Full breakdown sheet — coffee shop confrontation scene
test-outputs/02-shot-list.md	17-shot list with coverage strategy and lighting notes
test-outputs/03-call-sheet.md	Day 2 of 3 call sheet — The Daily Grind location
test-outputs/04-production-schedule.md	3-day schedule, DOOD chart, location groupings
test-outputs/05-budget-estimate.md	$8K-$14.8K short film budget with risk flags

---

Key Industry Concepts (Quick Reference)

Page Eighths

1 script page = 8 sections. Scenes measured in eighths. 4 4/8 pages ≈ 4.5 pages ≈ ~4.5 min screen time.

Budget Tiers

• Micro: $0-$50K | Ultra-low: $50K-$300K | Low: $300K-$1M | Mid-indie: $1M-$5M

SAG ULB Rates (2025-2026)

$232-$241/day minimum. Under $300K total budget. +14.3% H&P fringes.

Turnaround

Minimum 12 hours between company wrap and next call (union standard). Always note and protect it.

Contingency

10% of BTL. Never remove. Ever.

The Golden Rule of Scheduling

Group by location first. Then by cast. Interior before exterior. Complex scenes mid-production, not day one.

---

David's Film Background Note

David has 20+ years of film and TV experience as a director/editor. He is cinematically literate. When working with him on production planning:

• Skip the basics — go straight to professional-level detail
• Flag creative concerns, not just logistical ones
• Reference his director's intent when making shot list suggestions
• If he gives a scene, he's thinking about how it cuts, not just how it shoots

---

Token Cost

These prompts use Claude/GPT only when explicitly invoked — no background LLM calls. Each prompt run costs ~1,000-3,000 tokens depending on scene length and output detail. Covered by Claude Max subscription when run in this session.

---

Sources

• StudioBinder (shot list, breakdown, schedule guides)
• CalArts 2 Pop (call sheet template structure)
• Celtx (call sheet elements)
• Saturation.io (indie budget template and fringe guide)
• Filmustage (script breakdown color system)
• No Film School (budget category reference)
• Industry standard 1st AD practices

Skill built: March 27, 2026. Built by Lilu for David Apex.