Capstone: a prep package for a three-page scene

This capstone brings the whole course together. You will assemble a complete DP prep package for a single three-page scene, of the kind you would hand to a director, first AD, gaffer, key grip and producer before a shooting day. The lesson works through a model package for a fictional scene, step by step, with the decisions and arithmetic shown. Then it sets out the requirements for your own package and the criteria used to assess it. The package has seven parts: breakdown, look notes, shot list, overhead, lighting plan, schedule and budget, plus a short section on tests, safety and VFX.

The model scene

The fictional film is a small-town drama about two siblings, Maya and Daniel, who reunite after their father's death. Scene 41 is three pages long: INT. FAMILY DINER – NIGHT. Maya waits in a booth by the window. Daniel arrives late. Their small talk turns into an argument about who abandoned the family. A neon sign outside flickers. Daniel reveals he has been paying their father's debts for years. Maya, stunned, reaches across the table; Daniel pulls away and leaves. Maya stays alone in the booth as the neon sign finally goes out.

The scene is an A scene: the emotional climax of the second act. The director wants it to feel trapped and quiet at first, then raw, then empty.

Part 1: Breakdown

Part 2: Look notes

The film's rules (from the look book) are: 2.39:1, spherical lenses on a large-format sensor, rehoused vintage primes from 24 mm to 85 mm, mostly static frames with slow pushes at revelations, naturalistic motivated light, warm practicals against cool ambience, red reserved as a motif. For scene 41:

• Beat 1: static frames, slightly wide, Maya small in the booth, the window and empty street behind her.
• Beat 2: tighter singles, matched overs; neon flicker pulses red on the window side of their faces.
• Beat 3: a slow push on Daniel as he reveals the truth, then a slow push on Maya as she absorbs it.
• Beat 4: Maya's hand crossing the table in an insert; Daniel exits through the frame.
• Beat 5: a wide, static frame of Maya alone; the neon goes out and the warm interior practicals remain.

Part 3: Shot list

Part 4: Overhead

Part 5: Lighting plan

The light comes from three motivated sources: warm pendant lamps over the booths, the red neon sign outside the window, and cool street light beyond. The plan:

• Replace the pendant bulbs with dimmable, colour-adjustable LED bulbs at about 2,700 K; add small soft sources hidden above the booth to put the pendants' light on faces from the far side.
• Build the neon sign as a practical on a dimmer channel, with a matching red LED fixture outside the window to cast the flicker onto the window side of the actors. The console operator programs the flicker and the final cut-out.
• Place a cool 4,300 K unit on a stand in the street to create ambience and separate the window frame; wet down the street to add reflections.
• Black out the diner's fluorescent ceiling fixtures and control reflections in the window with angles and black flags.
• Target levels: key about 120 lux on faces at T2.8 and EI 800 (Lesson 6), with the dark side two to three stops under, and the neon kick about one stop over the key on the window side.

Part 6: Schedule

The scene is scheduled as a full night on a 12-hour day with the diner pre-rigged the day before (Lesson 7). The first AD and DP agree the following plan.

Part 7: Budget

The day's camera, lighting and grip costs for this scene are estimated as day-plays and crew on top of the base package.

The figures are illustrative Canadian dollar amounts. Add GST or HST and the payroll costs (CPP, EI, vacation pay and union fringe) that apply.

Tests, safety and VFX notes

• Tests: in prep, test the neon flicker frequency against the camera's shutter to avoid unwanted banding, and test the red neon on both actors' skin through the show LUT.
• Safety: night work on a public street requires traffic control, a permit and hi-visibility clothing for street crew; the wet-down needs ground fault protection on all electrical equipment near water (Course CINE-340); manage fatigue on a 12-hour night with a safe turnaround before the next call.
• VFX: shoot a clean plate for shot 7 in case the window reflection of the crew must be removed; record lens data for all shots; capture a short HDRI of the street if the sign will be enhanced digitally.
• Continuity: the script supervisor tracks the neon state (on, flickering, out) across shots; the gaffer logs dimmer cues.

Your capstone package

Choose a three-page scene, either from a published screenplay you have permission to use for study or one you write yourself. Prepare a package containing:

• A one-paragraph scene summary and story purpose.
• A breakdown table with beats, point of view, motif, challenges and priority.
• Look notes: the film's visual rules and how this scene applies them.
• A shot list in shooting order with lenses, support, notes and priorities.
• An overhead with camera positions, actor positions and the 180-degree line.
• A lighting plan with motivated sources, a plot or description of fixtures, colour temperatures and target levels with at least one exposure calculation.
• A schedule for the day with set-up times, meal timing and a check of minutes per set-up.
• A day-play budget with totals.
• Notes on tests, safety, VFX and continuity.
• At least four worked calculations, chosen from field of view, depth of field, exposure level, inverse square, time per set-up and budget.

Presenting the package

Present the package as you would to a director and first AD: lead with the story idea for the scene, walk through the shot list and overhead, explain the lighting in one or two sentences before the details, and close with the schedule, budget and risks. Be ready to answer the producer's question, "What can you give up if we lose two hours?" Your priorities column is the answer.