Film
Treatment/Script/Shot List/Schedule
A treatment is the story in prose form:
A young woman is overwhelmed with her life and sad to be alone and far away from her family. She decides to get go for a walk. She discovers many new places that make her glad she lives there. She goes home happy.
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A script is the whole story written out in screenplay format, step by step, each separate paragraph, however short, indicates a shot or new sequence:
INT (Interior) Mari’s Apartment Day
Mari comes home to her apartment tired after a long day. The apartment looks like it hasn’t been cleaned in a long time.
She looks at the messy apartment, depressed at what she sees.
She starts cleaning up but is overwhelmed and unmotivated.
She stops to look at the photographs of her family that are framed on her dresser.
She puts on her coat and goes out the door.
Ext. (Exterior) Greenwich Village Autumn Day
Mari walks down the street in Greenwich Village, passing local characters, nannies with kids in strollers, and dog walkers…
Etc.
A shot list is a shot by shot list, in the order of how they would appear in the film. Note that the important information in the script, is translated into the shots, (e.i. “messy apartment” is shown in shots 1-5.) Shots should indicate camera directions such as Close Up, Medium Shot, Pan, High Angle, etc:
- Cu Mari’s face entering her apartment.
- WS Mari’s POV of messy apartment
- CU of clothes on floor
- CU take-out food containers
- CU overflowing laundry hamper
- MS Mari takes off her coat and starts to clean up
- MS PAN Mari at her dusty dresser, w/pictures of family
- CU family pictures
- CU Mari’s face, overwhelmed
- MS Mari stops trying to clean
- MS Mari heading to the door
- WS Mari leaving apartment
- Door slams
Etc.
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A schedule is a list of the numbered shots in a more efficient order for shooting, i.e, filming everything in one location and camera position before moving on to the next. Although filming in story order may be preferred to support the performance of the actors.
-1. Cu Mari’s face entering her apartment.
-11. MS Mari heading to the door
-12. WS Mari leaving apartment
-13. Door slams
-2. WS Mari’s POV of messy apartment
-6. MS Mari takes off her coat and starts to clean up
-9. CU Mari’s face, overwhelmed
-3. CU of clothes on floor
-4. CU take-out food containers
-5. CU overflowing laundry hamper
-7. MS PAN Mari at her dusty dresser, w/pictures of family
-8. CU family pictures
-10. MS Mari stops trying to clean
Etc.
Note that each piece of story information in the treatment expands to more description in the script and then expands again to more exact detail in the shot list.