organizing breakdowns as per shooting schedule
denise w
The Problem:
The current Breakdown Summary PDF report is always sorted strictly by script scene number (chronologically). However, on set, our production operates entirely based on the Shooting Schedule (e.g., shooting scene 42, then scene 8, then scene 3).
When our department heads need their specific breakdown list (props, costumes, etc.) for the day, they receive the chronologically sorted PDF and have to manually look up scenes in the correct shooting order, which is time-consuming and prone to errors.
The Feature Request:
We would greatly benefit from an option to export the high-quality Breakdown Summary PDF with the scenes sorted according to an external shooting order.
A possible solution could be:
- A new setting during the PDF export process.
- The ability to import a simple CSV or TXT file that contains nothing but the scenes listed in the desired shooting order (e.g., a column with 42, 8, 3, 15...).
- Scriptation would then use this external list to rearrange the scene-by-scene pages/sections of the Breakdown Summary PDF before finalizing the document.
This feature would bridge the gap between script analysis and logistical execution on set, making Scriptation even more indispensable for production offices and crew.
Thank you for considering this request. I believe it is a crucial tool for professional film workflows.
J
Jim Denault, ASC
Another angle to approach this from might be to sort the scenes by the "Scene Setting" field of the slug line. Since we try not to move in and out of locations, the scenes shot in a specific location tend to be grouped together in the schedule. This might get close to what you are looking for without having to input anything. If you choose CSV when making the breakdown summary, you can do a sort on Column C, although the formatting is not as nice looking as the PDF option.