Guides

Plan what you feel.

Short, practical guides on planning a film against its track — or against the feeling, when the track isn't here yet. Each one works on paper; each one also shows how it's done in PreFrame.

30 October 2026 · 8 min read How to make a shot list, with a worked example A shot list is one row per shot: what you'll film, how big, how long. Here is how to write one that still works on the day of the shoot, with a real example from a two-minute video and a free template to fill in online. Read the guide →
30 October 2026 · 7 min read Stop making your shot list in Excel (or Notion, or Milanote) A spreadsheet is the fastest way to type a shot list, and the worst place to keep one. Five things a video needs that a grid can't give it, what you keep when you move, and why typing the whole plan is now faster in a dedicated app than in the sheet. Read the guide →
17 September 2026 · 7 min read How to bring a song's sections into Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve or Final Cut as markers You already know where the intro ends and the chorus hits. Here is how to get those points onto your editing timeline as markers — by hand, or as a file your editor imports. Read the guide →
30 October 2026 · 8 min read How to edit to the beat: plan it before you shoot Cutting on the beat is decided before the camera comes out. How to read where a song changes, decide how many shots each part needs and how long each one holds, so the edit falls into place instead of being hunted for. Read the guide →
17 September 2026 · 8 min read How to plan a travel film to music before you shoot Pick the song before you pack, cut it into sections, and work out how many shots each one needs. A simple way to come home with the film instead of four days of footage. Read the guide →
17 September 2026 · 7 min read How to cut a song into narrative sections Before you can plan shots against a song, you need to know where it changes. Three listens, a handful of timestamps and a name for each part — no music theory required. Read the guide →
17 September 2026 · 7 min read The emotional curve: how to plan the pacing of a video or a short film before the music exists No track yet? You can still plan. Draw how intense the video should feel from first second to last, cut your sections on that line, and let the music land on top when it arrives. Read the guide →
30 October 2026 · 8 min read How to give your video feeling: plan the emotional arc before you shoot Feeling isn't added in the edit with slow motion and a sad song. It comes from the shape of the video: how intensity rises and falls over its minutes. How to decide what each part should make people feel, and turn that into shots, before you pick up the camera. Read the guide →
30 October 2026 · 8 min read How to choose the music for your video before you shoot, and what to do if you can't yet Most advice on music for video is a list of websites. This is the criterion: how to pick a track by what it has to make people feel, by its shape and its pace, when to pick it, and how to plan the shoot when the song won't be chosen until the day before. Read the guide →
17 September 2026 · 6 min read Shot list app vs timeline: why a shot list fails when you edit to music A shot list tells you what to film. It doesn't tell you where each shot goes in the song, how long it stays, or whether the whole track is covered. Three extra columns fix it, in any spreadsheet or shot list app — with a free online template. Read the guide →
17 September 2026 · 8 min read How to plan a music video around the song, step by step A music video is planned from a track, not from a script. Nine steps from the final master to the first day of shooting — sections, shot budgets, the music video shot list, performance coverage and playback on set. Read the guide →
17 September 2026 · 6 min read Build a shot library: stop planning the same shots from scratch Every filmmaker has twenty shots they keep coming back to. Write them down once — with the gear and the notes that make them work — and start every new project from there instead of from a blank page. Read the guide →
17 September 2026 · 6 min read How to make a moodboard for a video that you'll actually use on the shoot A moodboard for film isn't a wall of pretty frames. It's references sorted by the part of the piece they belong to — so that on location you open one section and see exactly what it should look like. Read the guide →
17 September 2026 · 6 min read Golden hour doesn't wait: how to plan every shot around the light Golden hour lasts less than you think and happens once a day. How to find the light windows for your location and date, attach one to each shot, and find out at home — not on location — that three of them collide. Read the guide →
17 September 2026 · 6 min read What camera gear to pack: build the list from your shots Every packing list online tells you what someone else carries. The only list that fits your trip or your shoot comes from your own shots: what each one needs, counted, and cut. Read the guide →