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Set research checklist for prep
This checklist is for the stretch between first read and the start of serious drafting. It keeps research tied to schedule, camera, and safety so the art department can quote real numbers. Pair it with the overview on what production design is, then jump back to the portfolio home when you want screen credits.
- Mark script beats by location. List every slug line, note doubles, and flag scenes that can share a redress. Highlight stunts, squibs, water, and any need for reinforced floors or rigging points.
- Collect reference with labels. For each environment, save images with a short note on material, era, and lighting bias. Avoid anonymous pretty pictures. Name what you want the audience to read in two seconds on screen.
- Confirm lens and blocking assumptions. Walk a cheap photo viewfinder or a phone crop that matches the sensor size you expect. If the director favors wide glass, check distortion on narrow sets early.
- Survey locations with a shared form. Record ceiling height, power, load-in door width, basecamp distance, and noise limits. Take stills from the angles you think are master shots.
- Talk to construction about lead times. Ask what is faster to build versus rent, and where fire retardant fabrics or engineered drawings will gate you. Feed that back to the production office before locking stages.
- Hand off to set decoration with a written palette. Give paint codes, metal finishes, and a short list of hero props the writer cares about. Note what can be rental kit versus custom.
- Freeze a one-page risks list. Weather cover, duplicate sets for splinter units, and any VFX holdouts should be visible in one place. Update it after tech scouts.
For released titles and press clips, browse Press or open a specific film entry such as Room. Professional inquiries stay on Contact.
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