# Shotlist

> Builds a shoot plan from one or more scripts – a shotlist grouped by shoot economy, a props list, sequencing, and a time estimate. Use when a shoot day needs planning, a shotlist needs to be created, or several videos are being shot in one session.

- Skill: `bendemartin97/shotlist` (Agent Skill)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add bendemartin97/shotlist`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/bendemartin97/shotlist/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Coding & Dev Tools
- Author: bendemartin97 (https://skillmd.com/u/bendemartin97)
- Updated: 2026-09-17
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/bendemartin97/shotlist

---


# Building the Shotlist

The most expensive mistake on a shoot day is resetting. So this plan sorts **not by video**, but by what can stay the same between two shots.

## Approach

1. Collect all VISUAL fields from the provided scripts. If the scripts live in the connected task tool (e.g. Asana), pull them from there.
2. Tag each shot with four attributes: **Location · Outfit · Setup · Light**. Setup means camera position, height, lens, tripod or handheld.
3. Group by these attributes – biggest reset cost first: location beats outfit beats setup beats light.
4. Within a group, sort by sequence so continuity holds (food gets eaten, drinks run empty, hair falls out of place).
5. Check the order against daylight if shooting outdoors or by a window.

## Output Format

```
# SHOTLIST · <Date>
VIDEOS: <n> · SHOTS: <n> · ESTIMATED: <h:mm>

## BLOCK 1 · <Location> · <Outfit> · <Setup>
Build: <what needs to be arranged> · <Minutes>

[ ] 1.1  <Video code> B2   <Shot>            <Minutes>
[ ] 1.2  <Video code> B4   <Shot>            <Minutes>
...
Reset to block 2: <what changes> · <Minutes>
```

Then two lists:

**Props and material** – everything that needs to be brought or prepared, grouped by block, flagging what needs to be **sourced beforehand**.

**Do before the shoot** – everything that must not happen on the shoot day itself: charging batteries, clearing memory cards, brewing coffee, ironing clothes, getting permits.

**Make text cards** – **only if `FORMATS.md` describes them as a physical prop on set.** If the cards only appear later as an overlay in the cut, they don't belong in the shotlist; don't list them at all in that case. If it's a real prop, list all texts verbatim and print-ready, grouped by video:

```
[ ] V1 Sign:  COLD BREW ≠ COLD COFFEE
[ ] V2 Sign:  What your grinder ruins first
```

Check the text length against the card surface as you go – anything that doesn't fit in two lines is too long for a sign and needs shortening before it's printed.

## Time Estimate

- Shot without spoken lines: 3 minutes
- Shot with spoken lines: 6 minutes (two to three takes are the norm, not the exception)
- Build per block: 10 minutes, 20 if the light changes
- Reset between blocks: 5 minutes, estimate realistically for a location change
- Add a **20 percent buffer** to the total

State the sum without and with buffer separately. If the plan exceeds four hours of pure shooting time, say so clearly and suggest which videos should move to a second session – split along block boundaries, so no setup has to be built twice.

## Continuity Check

Explicitly flag conflicts instead of silently planning around them:

- Two videos in the same week with an identical outfit in the same setting – stands out in the timeline
- A shot that assumes a state which an earlier shot destroys
- Daylight shots that slip later in the schedule