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Over 150 free drama games for kids and teaching drama tips and resources. Discover the best theatre activities to energize your drama club!

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Many of us looked forward to the days when a substitute teacher filled in.

Substitute teachers usually meant class was put on hold in favor of watching videos! From Bill Nye the Science Guy to The Magic School Bus and The Voyage of the Mimi, we always looked forward to binge-watching videos on substitute teacher days.

Video lessons aren't just for substitute teachers anymore. Video is becoming an integral part of classroom learning for students around the world.

One study found that 46% of teachers have made at least one video lesson. In Australia, the curriculum now includes greater emphasis on creating multimedia projects. Given that more than 500 million hours of video are watched on YouTube each day, it's no wonder video is becoming central to learning and creative development.

You may have seen our guide for teachers on How to Make Educational Videos. Why stop there? Let your students do the creating! Video consumption is on the rise, and students can benefit from mastering basic video creation skills.

YouTube has over a billion users, almost one-third of total internet users. For high schoolers, video development and creation will be an essential skill for college and the workforce. For younger students, making videos can help with creative development and offers a platform for self-expression.

Here are some ideas for video projects for students of all ages.

Video project ideas for elementary students

Elementary school students generally have short attention spans. Video projects are a great way to engage younger students for longer stints. If a video is produced by their peers, interest will skyrocket.

Video projects also offer a new way for students to explore their creative side. Here are some of our favorite creative video project ideas.
1. Create a book trailer
Ask students to design a movie-style trailer that excites their classmates about a novel or a non-fiction book. Instead of a traditional book report, students will have the opportunity to think creatively, share a story with their classmates, and expand their reading skills.
2. Give a tour
Students can create a video showing off a significant location or their favorite classroom. If you have a field trip planned, ask students to share their experience by recording a video of the day and add some voice over narration.

Alternately, if your budget is too tight for a field trip, a student-led tour of the school is a great way to share the campus with potential new students and visitors.
3. Celebrate the holidays
No matter the time of year, there's always something to celebrate. Have your students film a letter to Santa, make video Valentines for parents or grandparents, or just create digital thank-you notes for classroom visitors!
4. Re-create a moment in history
Learning about historical people and events? Have your students research and recreate major moments in history, like the story of Rosa Parks or the Oregon Trail. Videos will help other students visualize and remember these important moments. It also gives students the opportunity to experiment with digital storytelling. Because these events actually happened, students will be challenged to bring each scene to life accurately.
5. Try stop-motion
Video learning isn't limited to literary or historical topics. Encourage students to use stop-motion or create their own slides to explain science experiments or arts and crafts projects. Biteable also has a Claymation template which can be customized for various how-to or explainer videos perfect for younger kids.

Video project ideas for High School

Video projects for high schoolers can be a little more advanced, as students should be practicing editing and narrative skills in addition to learning about new topics.
1. Create a news channel
Ask your students to film a news broadcast - covering both local and international events - to give them a chance to learn about the rest of the world.

Ask your students to take on certain roles in the newsroom: anchor, sports reporter, weather reporter, or entertainment correspondent. Doing a news segment gives everyone a chance to get involved. Rather than asking for a traditional essay, have the students do some research about a local or international cause they would like to highlight.
2. Start a portfolio
Many high school students will be thinking about college applications. Give them the chance to jumpstart their applications with a portfolio video project and showcase what makes them unique. Art students can show off their best work and design skills while the rest could answer a traditional application question.
3. Questions for your future self
This project is great for incoming freshmen. At the beginning of the year, ask them to create videos with questions for their future self, or with their goals for their life and career. At graduation, you can send the videos back to them. It's a fun, positive way to celebrate their success throughout high school!

No matter what form your classroom video projects take, Biteable has tons of easy to use templates your students can customize - all for free! Take a peek at our library for more inspiration.

Mmmmmmm toasty!

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Creative Video Project Ideas For Students | Biteable

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Many of us looked forward to the days when a substitute teacher filled in. Substitute teachers usually meant class was put on hold in favor of watching videos! From Bill Nye the Science Guy to The Magic School Bus and The Voyage of the Mimi, we always looked forward to binge-watching videos on substitute teacher days.

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10 Video project ideas for (almost any class):

1. Create a personal narrative

Everyone has a story, and when we share our own experiences, they can be a motivating factor for others -- and help us reflect on our lives and choices. Narratives can be about students themselves, a fictional character or historical person. A few easy ways to record these include:

Check out 24 ways to create great classroom video with Screencastify for more ideas!

2. Record interviews (in person or virtually)

The people around us and around the world are living history. Their experiences, information, and advice is a treasure trove waiting to be mined. Use a video response tool like Flipgrid ( flipgrid.com) to record interviews. They could be in-person interviews where both parties sit next to each other in the camera's frame. Or, they could be virtual interviews, where someone far away records responses to questions in a Flipgrid video (just share the link with them to record a video). They can be serious, silly ... even fictional. The sky's the limit!

Check out Catch the Flipgrid Fever! 30+ ways to use Flipgrid with your class for more resources.

3. Create a whiteboard animation

Set up something with a camera so it won't move (on a tripod or otherwise). Aim it at a whiteboard or chalkboard. Record and start drawing. Use video editing tools to speed it up to four times its normal speed and add a voiceover (and music?). Here's a great blog post with the basics on how to create these videos. Below is a whiteboard animation I created to illustrate a conference session I presented (my cropping was not the best!).

4. Present slides with a screencast recording

People communicate big, important ideas like this all the time using webinars. The slides let you present an idea step by step using uncluttered slides with a simple sentence (or single word!) or an image. Instead of presenting multiple bullet points on a single slide, break each point out into its own slide. Screencast recording tools like Screencastify, Screencast-o-Matic and others can handle these videos easily!

5. Record a stop-motion animation in Google Slides

If you're recording your screen, the first thing that comes to mind for many people is to record presentation slides. (See the idea above.) Let's go beyond that and think of other useful websites and apps that you could record instead. For instance, create a stop-motion animation using Google Slides (click here for a step-by-step tutorial). It's easy: create a slide, duplicate it, move something, duplicate the new slide, move something, etc. Repeat over and over. When you're done, record it using a tool like like Screencastify or Screencast-o-Matic. Record your voice with a microphone so you can narrate what's happening!

Check out Learning in motion: EASY stop-motion animation with Google Slides to learn how!

6. Make a video tour of a significant location

If students visit a place -- on a field trip, on vacation or any time -- they can share their learning experience with others by recording video of it and narrating as they go. (If they're at a museum or other such place, asking permission first is probably a good idea!) If they can't visit it, creating a video slideshow with Animoto or in a screencast would work, too.

A virtual walking tour is an option, too. Use Google Maps Street View to view one of these fantastic locations virtually (or anywhere else). Record it (including the microphone for your voice) while you play tour guide and read some facts about the location from a script or extemporaneously!

Check out Google Maps walking tours with Street View and Screencastify for more information.

7. Take your video projects anywhere with green screen

Green screen apps let students superimpose themselves over an image or video background. This makes it look like they're almost anywhere in the world (or beyond!) in these videos. Inexpensive apps like Green Screen by Do Ink can make it happen. (Here's a video that shows how it works.) You don't need a fancy green screen to stand in front of, either. A green painted wall, a green fabric background or even a green disposable tablecloth can work!

8. Create GIF examples of classroom content

GIFs are the moving image files. They're kind of like silent video that's treated like a picture file. By using a free GIF maker, students can create videos of anything class related and place it on a class website or share simply. Teachers can also make short animations to use for demonstrations. Here's a post by Kim Snodgrass on the Dave Burgess blog about creating GIFs and how they can be used in class.

9. Record video self assessment

Students don't have to get all their assessment and feedback from the teacher. When they do it themselves, it empowers them to be lifelong learners. Recording a video and posting it to Seesaw gives students a place for that self assessment.

Check out 20 Seesaw ideas with Chromebooks for K-12 classes for more information.

10. Make video with an app

Lots of apps (on the web or for mobile devices) are built to create fun videos that can demonstrate learning! Here are some examples:

Create book reports, step-by-step videos and more using Adobe Spark Video. Check out this guest post by Claudio Zavala showing how it works and what you can do with it.

Telestory is a mobile app that helps you create flashy videos with fun overlays. Create and record a TV show, make music videos, use night vision effects and more in your videos. Then save the video to your camera roll.

Chatterpix is a mobile app that brings an inanimate object or photo to life! Show the app where the mouth is in the photo and record some audio. It'll make the mouth move along with your voice!

Triller is a mobile app that lets you record fun music videos. Find a song that fits with what you're learning and record several video takes that show what you've learned. Triller splices a music video together that looks pretty slick! (Note: There's no language filter for songs, so you might want to make these videos with students instead of turning them loose on the app.)

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20 video project ideas to engage students - Ditch That Textbook

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Everyone has a story, and when we share our own experiences, they can be a motivating factor for others -- and help us reflect on our lives and choices. Narratives can be about students themselves, a fictional character or historical person.

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5-Minute Film Festival: Resources for Filmmaking in the Classroom

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Explore classroom filmmaking with this playlist of resources for teachers and students.

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Even if you have a definitive budget, scheduling your shoot schedule can be tricky. You need to break down all the elements of your film to determine how to distribute the money you have. These breakdowns also help you figure out how many days it will take to shoot your film. You have to make your budget fit your schedule, so be prepared to do some juggling. If you're on a tight budget, you won't have the luxury of shooting your film over a period of several months. Your budget may only allow you to schedule a 12-day shoot (every additional day is going to cost you money). Juggling includes consolidating scenes. If you can shoot the scene in the cave in two days instead of three, and the breaking-up scene in the car, instead of in the shopping mall, you'll be able to shorten your schedule - thus, saving time and money.

The director and assistant director usually make the schedule together. The process includes figuring out what scenes can be shot together in the same day, scheduling actors to work consecutive days, and how to tighten the schedule so the film can be shot in fewer days. If you don't have an assistant director to help schedule and be on the set to help things stay organized, then you have to do the schedule all by yourself. Scheduling your film includes

Lining the script by going through and marking items such as actors, props, wardrobe, and special effects.

Putting those items on individual breakdown sheets, each representing one scene from the film.

Transferring the elements on the breakdown sheets to production board strips.

Rearranging the order of production strips to find the best shooting schedule.

A calendar is your best friend when scheduling your film. You choose the date on which to start principal photography and the date on which the shoot will wrap. By looking at a calendar, you see what days the weekends fall on and whether any statutory holidays occur that the cast and crew will have off (like Christmas and Memorial Day).

Lining your script

You break down, or line, your script by pulling out elements that affect your budget and schedule. With different-colored highlighters in hand, start combing through your script (or have the assistant director do it, if you have one), highlighting important items with a different color for each category. You end up with a very colorful script after the process is complete. This process is intended to flag the script so accurate breakdowns can be made. The categories to highlight include the following:

Actors

Extras (background people)

Props

Wardrobe or special costumes

Sets and locations

Special effects

Vehicles

Animals

Special equipment

Special makeup

Optical effects

Breaking into breakdown sheets

After you highlight the various categories of items, transfer the highlighted elements to individual breakdown sheets - one for each scene in your film. A breakdown sheet contains separate drawn category boxes to add the elements you've highlighted in the script. You enter each element in the appropriate category box, such as a hammer in the props area, either by hand or by using one of the available software programs.

Each breakdown sheet should be numbered so that you can go back and reference it if you need to. Every character in the script is also given a reference number, usually starting with the number 1 for your lead actor. You transfer these numbers to the breakdown sheets and eventually to the individual strips on the production board. Numbering saves space so that you don't have to keep writing the characters' names (plus there wouldn't be enough space on a strip).

A breakdown sheet also has a header that includes the following details:

Page count (length of scene divided into eighths - 1-1/2 pages would be 1-4/8)

Synopsis of scene (one sentence)

Script day (for example, third day in the story when Mary arrives at the plantation)

Figure 1 shows a sample breakdown sheet from the film The Dragon's Candle. Scene 106 has Ghandlin the wizard driving a borrowed police car and zapping traffic out of his way with his magic wand. The breakdown sheet provides separate boxes listing the elements that are needed for this scene.

Your prop list

Every prop that will appear in your film must be pulled from the script and added to the props category in your breakdown sheets. A prop is defined as anything your characters interact with, such as guns, cell phones, brooms, and so on. On a low-budget film, try to borrow your props - especially if they're contemporary items. For hard-to-find props, you can usually rent them from a prop house or rental house listed in the Yellow Pages or the 411 directory in New York and Los Angeles.In North Hollywood, California, 20th Century Props has over 100,000 square feet of storage that houses thousands of props.

Often, props are confused with set dressing, but the difference is that actors don't interact with set dressing. Set dressing includes a picture frame on a mantle or flowers in a vase on a table. The baseball bat in Mel Gibson's film Signs would have been categorized as set dressing, but because the actors actually interact with the bat (which is displayed on a wall), it is categorized as a prop. You address set dressing in your breakdown sheets only if it's crucial to the story.

Your wardrobe list

You add certain wardrobe elements to your breakdown sheets, such as costumes, uniforms, or clothes that have to be sewn from scratch. A character's jeans and T-shirt don't need to be entered in the wardrobe box, but a gangster's zoot suit does. Because scenes aren't usually filmed in chronological order, each outfit is given a script day number to ensure that the actor wears the correct wardrobe in each shot. Script days (the timeline of your story) will be part of the breakdown sheets, and if the story takes place over five days, you'll sit down with the wardrobe person and decide what clothing your actors will wear each day if it's not addressed in the script.

Shooting on location

You can list your location setting in the heading of each breakdown sheet. Locations dictate a lot regarding scheduling and budget. If you're using software like Movie Magic Scheduling, you can cross-reference details about the locations (Are they private or public property? Do you need to secure permits or pay location fees, and how much do they cost?). Keep your locations to a minimum; otherwise, you may end up going over budget.

You can stretch your entire budget if you decide to shoot outside the United States. Shooting in Canada, depending on the exchange rate at the time, can stretch your budget up to 45 percent or more! Don't plan to head north of the border without doing some research first, though. Many states in the United States offer incentives to encourage filmmakers to shoot in their cities.

Scheduling special effects

Scheduling special effects on your breakdown sheets helps you determine what kind of effects you can afford. Keep effects to a minimum if you're working with a lower budget. You may find that designing special effects on a computer fits within your budget better, depending on how elaborate the special effect.

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Even if you have a definitive budget, scheduling your shoot schedule can be tricky. You need to break down all the elements of your film to determine how to distribute the money you have. These breakdowns also help you figure out how many days it will take to shoot your film.

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Best video editing software for Windows users

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Best video editing software for Windows users

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With smartphone cameras becoming better every day, the gear you use to make videos is becoming less important. Video editing apps used to cost an arm and a leg, but not anymore. Today, there are many free apps out there that you can use to create professional quality videos. Here are the best free video editing apps for Windows.

Davinci Resolve: For the Power User

Davinci Resolve is a professional grade video editor by Black Magic Design. It's the free version of Davinci Resolve Studio, which is an industry standard VFX, color grading, and audio editing suite. It's the go-to product if you're interested in powerful, professional-level video editing, with features like timeline-based editing, keyframes, advanced media management, plugin support and more.

Because of its professional focus, DaVinci Resolve is not the easiest software to use for beginners. If you decide to use DaVinci, you should be prepared for a steep learning curve. There's a lot there.

It might not be the best choice if you just need to clean up and share a few home videos, but it's a great tool if you want to take your videos just a step further. The free version has most of the same features as the paid version, with the exception of a few premium filters and a maximum export resolution of 3840×2160.

Hitfilm Express: Great for Editing and Exploring VFX

Hitfilm Express is an entirely free video editing and composition tool designed for professional video. Although primarily used for VFX and video compositions, it does include plenty of basic editing features. It's a great choice if you want to start exploring the world of visual effects.

The interface of Hitfilm Express is simpler than Davinci, but there's still a bit of a learning curve if you've never edited videos before.

Hitfilm Express is available for Windows and Mac computers, and supports 64-bit versions of Windows 8 and above. Hitfilm is also more demanding than some of the other editors we're covering here, so you'll need a decently-powered computer to ensure a smooth performance ( check out the specs here).

The free editor includes a lot of functionality, and you can expand it by purchasing additional, more advanced tools.

Shotcut: A Powerful, Open-Source Choice

Shotcut is a free, open source, cross-platform video editor available for Windows, Mac, and Linux based computers. For free software, it has plenty of professional editing features-like 4K video support, network stream playback, color grading, and more.

Shotcut supports almost all the popular video formats, so no matter which video source you use, you'll be able to edit and export it to the format of your choice.

Shotcut supports Windows 7 and above and is available for both 32 and 64-bit systems.

Lightworks: Powerful and Customizable

Lightworks is another free video editor for Windows. It's laid out a bit differently than other video editors, but it customizable enough that you can pretty much make it look and work however you want. It's also powerful-enough that it's been used by professional editors on a number of Hollywood movies (Wolf of Wall Street, The King's Speech, Bruce Almighty, to name a few). Despite being made for professional use, Lightworks is also suitable for basic video editing.

It's available in a free version or a Pro, subscription-based version. The free version does suffer some limitations. While the basic editing tools are present, and all import formats are supported, the free version can only export web compatible video (MPEG4/H.264) capped at 720p, with an option to upload directly to YouTube. You also won't have access to advanced features like timeline rendering and FX plugins.

If you can live with those limitations, though, it's a pretty good choice as a basic video editor.

VideoPad Video Editor: Great for Basic Home Use And More
Image Credit: recklessstudios/Shutterstock
VideoPad Video Editor is a free video editor that is designed especially for home users. It has a simple interface and plenty of effects available. For power users, VideoPad also has audio mixing, chroma key support, color correction, video speed controls, and many more features to play with. It also supports importing and exporting most common video formats.

VideoPad is available for Windows 7 and above (64 bit only), Mac OS 10.5 and above, and Android. You can find more information on their website or download the setup for Windows (hosted by Cnet).

Those are all the best free video editing apps available for Windows. The app that will work best for you will depend on your experience and your video editing skills. If in doubt, you can download them all and try them one by one to find out which one you like the best. After all, they are free.

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The Best Free Video Editing Apps for Windows

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With smartphone cameras becoming better every day, the gear you use to make videos is becoming less important. Video editing apps used to cost an arm and a leg, but not anymore. Today, there are many free apps out there that you can use to create professional quality videos.

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VideoPad - Video Editing Introduction Video Tutorial

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VideoPad video tutorial to help you learn the basics of the VideoPad Video Editor video editing software interface.

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HOW TO EDIT VIDEOS -- Complete Beginner's Guide 2018!

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When I first started screenwriting in college, there was really only one main book on the topic, the Syd Field's seminal Screenplay: The Foundations of Screenwriting. According to Field, as well as most of my teachers at the time, there was really only thing you ever needed to know about screenplay structure. You introduce your character in the first act, something goes wrong or they find themselves in trouble and then in the third act it is resolved.

So for many years I would approach screenwriting in this way. Along the way I read all of the other books everyone reads like McKee's Story, Vogler's The Writer's Journey, Seger's Making A Good Script Great. And even though I learned a great deal from each of them I would inevitably start a story and somewhere along the lines start to get lost. My story would be moving along, characters were developing, arcs were starting and completing, mystery and suspense were pulling the reader though from page to page, but at some point the story would always come to a grinding hault, usually around page 40.

I mentioned this to another writer friend one day and his eyes lit up. "Have you ever read this book that walks through page by page and tells you where you need to be in your story. I mean, it tells you the exact page numbers. I use it all the time for my story strucure." What? I sarcastically responded probably in my head. Really, a paint by numbers approach to screenwriting?

I skeptically snatched the book from his hand and decided to at give it a read. Over the years I have become somewhat of a skeptic to these screenwriting gurus who tell you all the "rules" to screenwriting. I'm just happier listening to the advice of people like John August and Craig Mazin who will tell you that, although structure is important, what's more important is storytelling and exciting the reader. If you break some stupid rules, screw it.
THE BLAKE SNYDER BEAT SHEET
Anyway, so I actually really enjoyed Save The Cat. It gave me a perspective on the topic of the screenwriting that had been missing for many years. Instead of breaking up structure into simply 3 or 4 acts, Snyder took a different approach to plot. In his Beat Sheet, he outlines moment by moment what should be happening in your screenplay's structure.

Opening Image - A visual that represents the struggle & tone of the story. A snapshot of the main character's problem, before the adventure begins.

Set-up - Expand on the "before" snapshot. Present the main character's world as it is, and what is missing in their life.

Theme Stated (happens during the Set-up) - What your story is about; the message, the truth. Usually, it is spoken to the main character or in their presence, but they don't understand the truth...not until they have some personal experience and context to support it.

Catalyst - The moment where life as it is changes. It is the telegram, the act of catching your loved-one cheating, allowing a monster onboard the ship, meeting the true love of your life, etc. The "before" world is no more, change is underway.

Debate - But change is scary and for a moment, or a brief number of moments, the main character doubts the journey they must take. Can I face this challenge? Do I have what it takes? Should I go at all? It is the last chance for the hero to chicken out.

Break Into Two (Choosing Act Two) - The main character makes a choice and the journey begins. We leave the "Thesis" world and enter the upside-down, opposite world of Act Two.

B Story - This is when there's a discussion about the Theme - the nugget of truth. Usually, this discussion is between the main character and the love interest. So, the B Story is usually called the "love story".

The Promise of the Premise - This is the fun part of the story. This is when Craig Thompson's relationship with Raina blooms, when Indiana Jones tries to beat the Nazis to the Lost Ark, when the detective finds the most clues and dodges the most bullets. This is when the main character explores the new world and the audience is entertained by the premise they have been promised.

Midpoint - Dependent upon the story, this moment is when everything is "great" or everything is "awful". The main character either gets everything they think they want ("great") or doesn't get what they think they want at all ("awful"). But not everything we think we want is what we actually need in the end.

Bad Guys Close In - Doubt, jealousy, fear, foes both physical and emotional regroup to defeat the main character's goal, and the main character's "great"/"awful" situation disintegrates.

All is Lost - The opposite moment from the Midpoint: "awful"/"great". The moment that the main character realizes they've lost everything they gained, or everything they now have has no meaning. The initial goal now looks even more impossible than before. And here, something or someone dies. It can be physical or emotional, but the death of something old makes way for something new to be born.

Dark Night of the Soul - The main character hits bottom, and wallows in hopelessness. The Why hast thou forsaken me, Lord? moment. Mourning the loss of what has "died" - the dream, the goal, the mentor character, the love of your life, etc. But, you must fall completely before you can pick yourself back up and try again.

Break Into Three (Choosing Act Three) - Thanks to a fresh idea, new inspiration, or last-minute Thematic advice from the B Story (usually the love interest), the main character chooses to try again.
THE END
Finale - This time around, the main character incorporates the Theme - the nugget of truth that now makes sense to them - into their fight for the goal because they have experience from the A Story and context from the B Story. Act Three is about Synthesis!

Final Image - opposite of Opening Image, proving, visually, that a change has occurred within the character.

It's very easy to see the huge problem with this very specific kind of structure breakdown. Sure, if you use these beats you will most likely be able to create a screenplay. It may actually be entertaining. But one thing is sure without a doubt, it probably won't be very original. Even if we're not consciously aware of it, ee as an audience have become so accustomed to the Save The Cat model in model in modern filmmaking we can usually tell the ending about 10 minutes in.

So what is the primary benefit of Save the Cat, and can good screenwriters benefit from it. Without a doubt the answer is yes. I know this because I have spoken with a number of very accomplished screenwriters who use the Save The Cat method whenever they write. Especially if you're trying to write a screenplay that is "safe" and sticks to the common tropes of commercial films.

How has Snyder's book helped me? It has redefined the way that I approach structure. In the early part of my writing life I would just have a few vague ideas in my head about the story and then launch into a first draft without fear. Whenever I would get lost, I would look at where I was and what page I was on, and maybe go back over to Save The Cat and see if where he recommended I should be in the story was relevant. Sometimes it helped, other times it didn't.

Another one of the big crimes that I see these days with screenwriters is the feeling that they need to take their screenplay and then go back and make it hit all of the Save The Cat beats. Again, STC is very helpful for being able to have a kind of general guideline, but you should never sacrifice your original vision or second guess your instinct. If you are engaged in your story and things are working, stay with it.

Finally, just for fun, let's take a look at some popular movies and the way they follow a Save The Cat structure.

Back To The Future

Aliens

E.T.

Top Gun

The Shawshank Redemption

Vertigo

For a great breakdown including page numbers.

For more breakdowns of popular movies, visit Blake Snyd er's Site

Here's another great breakdown of Toy Story 3 at The Writer's Store.

If you like this you may also like our analysis of The Hero's Journey.

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Understand Save The Cat and Blake Snyder's Beat Sheet

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When I first started screenwriting in college, there was really only one main book on the topic, the Syd Field's seminal Screenplay: The Foundations of Screenwriting.

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It's easy to mix up the different types of camera shots and types of angles. To make a shot list, a filmmaker or video creative must know the classic types of shots based on attributes like shot size, shot framing, camera movement, camera mechanisms, and depth of field.

We'll break down all the camera shots and angles you need to know for your next film. We also include camera shot examples from famous movies to help solidify the discussed concepts.

The Ultimate Guide to Shot Sizes

Types of Camera Shots - The Shot Size

Camera Shot Size Summary

How you choose to frame your subject will have a specific impact. How close or far your subject is to your camera - your shot size - will underscore how the audience should feel about it (or them).

Your subject will appear smallest in a long shot (or wide shot). They will be larger in a medium shot and largest in a close-up shot.

Here is a shot list with every shot size organized from wide to near:

You can create a PDF of this shot list to print or store digitally.

Think about familiarity when you consider your subject's size in your camera shots. It's like meeting someone for the first time. You might shake hands or talk about the weather, but odds are you'll stay at a relative distance. That's because you haven't built any familiarity yet.

Shot size is the building block for choosing camera shots, but you'll also need to consider how framing, focus and movement can add deeper meaning to your shots. Read on to explore creative shot combinations.

Specific camera movements matter too. Are you going to rack focus while completing a dolly move? Or maybe it's just a traditional two shot on sticks? You want to capture all these details when shot listing.

Learn ﻿Mo﻿re﻿﻿ ➜

Tags: 12 Angry Men, A Serious Man, Alice in Wonderland, Armageddon, Being John Malkovich, Black Panther, Black Swan, Blade Runner, Camera Angles, Camera Movement, Camera Shots, Darren Aronofsky, Django Unchained, Eternal Sunshine, Forrest Gump, Full Metal Jacket, Goodfellas, Guardians of the Galaxy, Halloween, Harry Potter, Home Alone, Iron Man, La La Land, Little Miss Sunshine, Mad Max: Fury Road, Minority Report, Munich, No Country for Old Men, Oldboy, Paths of Glory, Punch Drunk Love, Reservoir Dogs, Skyfall, Star Wars, Step Brothers, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, The Dark Knight, The Grand Budapest Hotel, The King's Speech, The Martian, The Matrix, The Night Of, The Princess Bride, The Shining, The Usual Suspects, Video Essays, Westworld, Wonder Woman, X-Men

StudioBinder is a film production software built out of Santa Monica, CA. Our mission is to make the production experience more streamlined, efficient, and pleasant.

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A complete guide to types shots and angles in film. Covers types of camera shots by shot size, camera angle, framing, focal length and camera movement.

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Introduction to shot types and camera movement

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Want to learn how to make a film? Here’s our simple filmmaking process for new filmmakers! Click to read more.

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We have a new home! Check out npr.org/studentpodcastchallenge2023 for this year's 5-12 and college contests!
Welcome to NPR's Student Podcast Challenge! If you're looking for our college contest

We're inviting students around the country to create a podcast, then - with the help of a teacher - compete for a chance to win our grand prize and have your work appear on NPR.

Be a part of the NPR Student Podcast Challenge.

Here's how it works: Put together a podcast with your class or extracurricular group. Then your teacher can submit it to us.

This contest is for teachers with students between 5th and 12th grade. Each podcast should be between three and 8 minutes long.

The winning podcast submissions will be featured in segments on Morning Edition or All Things Considered.

We don't expect you to be experts. In fact, we're guessing that most of you are putting a podcast together for the very first time. Don't panic!

Visit our submission guide to find suggested prompts, guidelines for submissions, and a list of questions you might have.

But before you do anything, it's important to read the official rules here.

Sure, this is a competition, but it's also about learning new skills in a fun way. We want to make that learning easier - so we've put together materials to help both teachers and students along the way.

Our panel of expert judges will be listening for creative work that stands out. You can find a full set of judging criteria here.

Questions? Read through our frequently asked questions here. If you're still looking for an answer, send us an email at studentpodcastchallenge@npr.org.

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We have a new home! Head over to npr.org/studentpodcastchallenge2023 for the contest.