The Production Schedule

Part of any film school education involves how to set up a production schedule. The production schedule is an overall breakdown of how a film's production budget is used through the making of a film.

This involves various elements such as special effects, costumes, props, make up and music. It may be hard to establish how much you plan to spend on each element at first, but think of it in terms of how you plan the budget for your household. You spend a certain amount of money on bills and entertainment, with other funds going to clothes and food shopping. In many ways setting up a production schedule is very similar, yet the amount of funding you have will greatly vary depending on the kind of production you're involved in.

When I was a student in film school, I gave myself a budget of $4000 for a very short film that wasn't as involved as say a major motion picture. I put some money aside for actors, basically paying for their transportation costs, yet other funding went to supplying food, film, lighting as well as props.

Keep in mind that this was a fifteen minute short film, yet you have to keep in mind that in something along these lines you'll probably have to rent your equipment unless you already own it and the film is rather costly as well.

Shooting in video will also save you a substantial sum as you only need the camera, yet you should budget these items accordingly, depending in the type of camera you want to use. A good hi-def digital video camera will cost you several thousand dollars, yet renting one is usually much less expensive. I made the mistake of using 16mm film for this particular project, so purchasing the stock and developing costs put me over budget in the end.

If you have a financial cushion and can afford to splurge a little, then you may want to overestimate your costs, but not go overboard. Going $10,000 over budget on a small film can be a real headache; yet, it's nothing compared to going millions over on a feature.

If you're running the whole show, ask someone to help you with the production schedule. If you're wearing several hats, this can be a blessing because then the schedule is in someone else's hands and they can assist you in keeping your budget under control.

My film school experiences helped me after I graduated and worked on films with larger budgets. I had a greater sense of how a production schedule worked and since then have managed to work in a very economical way that didn't break the bank. As film stock is incredibly expensive, video may be a good way to start especially if you don't have a lot of money to play with on your budget.

Most film schools generally offer examples of how to manage your production schedule and your budget. By keeping track of every detail, you'll eventually get a sense of how the schedule works and how to actually save money in the process when making a film.