When you think of filmmaking, you probably imagine a bustling set, with a director shouting orders, a camera rolling, and actors performing. However, a lot of work goes into making a film before the cameras start recording. This is the world of preproduction—where the giant sandworms of Denis Villeneuve’s sci-fi epic “Dune: Part Two” went from concept to meticulously crafted visual spectacle long before Timothée Chalamet donned his Fremen robes. Let’s explore this unsung stage of filmmaking and its place in planning.
Preproduction is the second of five stages of filmmaking. It occurs after development, when the script has been written and the financing has largely been procured. This stage involves all of the work that needs to happen to be ready for principal photography, otherwise known as production. After principal photography comes postproduction, and then distribution.
Preproduction has many moving parts. It involves logistics such as rounding out both cast and crew, budgeting, scheduling, and securing locations—but it also includes creatively demanding steps like storyboarding, finalizing the script, and running rehearsals.
As we’ve established, the tasks are numerous at this stage. But fear not: All of this work is spread out over a relatively large team.
Who’s involved in preproduction?
Film planning requires a village. Some of the roles involved in the process are as follows:
- Producers: Producers have their hands all over preproduction. They help assemble the crew, oversee budgetary considerations, and more.
- Line producers: Line producers get into the budget nitty-gritty, trying to anticipate as accurately as possible how much money will be needed for the film to get made. They also create the production schedule.
- Director: The director works with various department heads to finalize the vision of the project, from production design to costuming to cinematography. They also typically have the final say for casting.
- Writers: Most of the writers’ work should be nearly complete at this stage, but there is often finalizing that will occur.
- Casting: The casting director assembles potential actors for every role in the movie, arranges auditions, and generally coordinates the casting process.
- Cinematographer: The cinematographer, or director of photography, works with the film director to decide on equipment and create a shot list or storyboard.
- First assistant director: The first AD will create a script breakdown so that everyone understands what is required of each scene.
- Location scout: The location scout will help find and manage locations.
These are only a few of the positions you may see active during preproduction. As department heads are brought on, they’ll also be doing their own work before shooting begins.
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Preproduction steps
Often, much of what happens during this stage is happening concurrently. Logistics may be getting hammered out by the production department while the art department sources inspiration for a lookbook, for example.
Here is a preproduction checklist, beginning with logistics.
- Break down the script: To understand what will be required for production, the crew needs a thorough understanding of the script. This is where the first AD comes in, breaking down the script and marking all of its different elements.
- Hire department heads: You need a crew, and this is when you get them. The producers and director will hire department heads, who will then make hires for their individual teams.
- Budget: Money is one of the primary concerns of preproduction. The film may be fully financed, but the line producers will need to plan out how that money will be spent.
- Schedule: Determining when to shoot means taking into account a myriad of factors, such as a scene’s time of day, actor availability, equipment rentals, location availability, and much more.
- Find locations: Films don’t happen in a void, so the director and producers will need to work with a location scout to visit and lock down locations. This involves weighing logistics against creative wants and needs.
- Plan equipment rentals: Films require a lot of equipment, and that equipment typically costs a lot of money. A production will want to know how much rentals will be, and where they can be sourced from, before shooting begins.
- Get insurance: Films require insurance for equipment, labor, locations, and more. Making sure this is all squared away before filming is paramount.
While logistics are being ironed out, there will also be extensive creative preparation occurring.
- Create a shot list and storyboard: The director and DP will sit down together and plan out how they want to shoot the script. They may bring on a storyboard artist to help them realize their vision.
- Do individual department prep: Each department head will be hard at work making sure their department is ready to go for filming. For a costume designer, this means creating all the outfits. For the production designer, this means working closely with the director and cinematographer to decide on a look for the film and each of its locations.
- Hold department meetings: Typically, there will be several production meetings where heads of department update their status with the production team. This ensures transparency and allows departments to know what other teams are up to.
- Cast actors: Some actors may already be attached to the project. Often, the leads sign on so that securing funds during development becomes easier. But typically a film doesn’t just have a couple lead actors. The director and casting director will need to fill in the rest of the cast.
- Rehearse: Once actors are cast, a director will typically want to run rehearsals with them, nailing down their characters and developing a deep understanding of each scene. This will help make the production process much smoother.
All of these steps are vitally important to getting a film off the ground, no matter how big or small the project is.
How to Cast a Film (and Why Casting Matters) The answer to this question can vary dramatically depending on the nature of the film. A short film may only take a few weeks to plan out, whereas a blockbuster feature can take several months.
As a general rule of thumb, preproduction for a feature can take anywhere from three to seven months. It typically depends on how logistically ambitious a project is. If there are tons of locations and massive set pieces, then preproduction will take much longer. If the story is contained to one set and only a few actors are involved, then the planning process could be on the briefer side of things.
It’s also important to differentiate between preproduction and development. Development can go on for years and years, when a script is edited and refined, moves from producer to producer, and so on. Preproduction, meanwhile, typically only occurs after a film has been greenlit, meaning the filming is all but a sure thing.
No matter what kind of movie you’re making, preproduction is a necessity. You won’t regret the work you put into planning your project. It will pay you back in dividends—like the rave reviews and box office domination of “Dune: Part Two”—when your production is running as smooth as a sandworm.