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FilmSkool — a free film school

Make Your First Short Film

The whole pipeline, once, at beginner depth. Nothing here assumes you own anything more than a phone and a laptop.

Beginner · 8 modules · 24 lessons · 5h 22m

1. Find the story

How To Write A (Good) Short Film — Arc Studio Screenwriting · 14m · Beginner
5 Tips For Writing A Short Film - Kim Adelman — Film Courage · 17m · Beginner
How to Make Your First Short Film: A Crash Course — Standard Story Company · 9m · Beginner
5 ways you'll ruin your first short film — Standard Story Company · 8m · Beginner

2. Write the script

How to write amazing endings for your film. — Standard Story Company · 11m · Intermediate
3 Traps of Short Film Writing (& how to fix them) — Standard Story Company · 11m · Intermediate
How to Write a Short Film — Tyler Mowery · 13m · Intermediate
How to Write a Short Film – Principles of Drama — D4Darious · 15m · Intermediate

3. Plan the shoot

Intro to Storyboarding — RocketJump Film School · 8m · Beginner
What is a Call Sheet — What Goes On It and Why — StudioBinder Academy · 7m · Beginner
How to draw A-grade storyboards (even if you can't draw!) | Media studies tutorial — The Media Insider · 14m · Beginner

4. Point the camera

Ultimate Guide to Camera Movement — Every Camera Movement Technique Explained [The Shot List Ep6] — StudioBinder · 29m · Beginner
Depth of Field Explained: Ultimate Guide to Camera Focus [Shot List Ep. 4] — StudioBinder · 15m · Beginner
Ultimate Guide to Film Composition & Framing — Key Elements Explained [Shot List Ep. 11] — StudioBinder · 18m · Beginner

5. Light it with nothing

No-Budget Film Noir Lighting Tutorial by Tom Antos — Tom Antos · 12m · Beginner
Different Ways to Light Through a Window | Cinematography Basics — Aputure · 8m · Beginner
Cinematic Lighting Techniques: Using Window Light | Kyle Loftus Studios — Kyle Loftus Studios · 9m · Beginner

6. Get the sound right

How to Be a Boom Operator | A Filmmaker's Beginners Guide, Tips and Drills — Deity Microphones · 20m · Beginner
Video Production Tutorial - Boom mic techniques for better audio — LinkedIn Learning · 13m · Beginner

7. Cut it together

Editing with Proxies — Film Riot · 9m · Beginner
Learn From the Pros | Editing Basics in Premiere Pro w/Justin Odisho I Creative Cloud — Adobe Video · 20m · Beginner
How to do the Match Cut Transition (Video Editing Tutorial) — Justin Odisho · 9m · Beginner

8. Get it seen

How to get accepted at film festivals (full guide) — Standard Story Company · 21m · Intermediate
A Guide to Film Festivals — Where to Apply, Getting In, and Networking Explained — StudioBinder · 12m · Beginner

Other courses

This is the plain index, shown because JavaScript is off. Every lesson here is a free video published by the channel credited on it and plays through that channel's own embed — FilmSkool hosts nothing.