Shot Lists
Free Shot List Software
Free shot list software, tied to your scenes.
A shot list is a simple document, so free tools handle it well and a spreadsheet is a perfectly good answer. The difference shows up on the day, in whether ticking a shot off updates anything else.
Last reviewed .
Is free shot list software good enough?
Almost always. A shot list is a numbered list of setups with size, angle, movement, lens and a description — free tools handle that completely. What separates a tool from a spreadsheet is on-set behaviour: whether the list is tied to scenes, whether marking a shot complete tracks the day’s progress, and whether the camera department sees the same list you do.
The options, honestly
ScenePaper
Ours- What’s free
- Shot lists with real camera metadata — shot size, angle, movement, lens and frame rate — attached to scenes, with storyboard frames per shot, on-set progress tracking, department views and bulk actions. No limit on how many.
- The catch
- Web-based, so a set with no signal wants an exported PDF as backup. Storyboard frames are uploaded rather than drawn in the app.
- Best for
- Directors and DPs who want the shot list tied to the scenes and tracked as the day runs.
StudioBinder
- What’s free
- A genuinely good shot list builder with storyboard attachment on a free tier, and a widely used layout.
- The catch
- The free tier caps how many shots and storyboards you can create, across one project.
- Best for
- Planning a commercial or a short scene that fits inside the caps.
A spreadsheet
- What’s free
- Free, instant, and used on a great many professional productions without apology.
- The catch
- No link to scenes, no progress tracking, and images live somewhere else. Reordering shots renumbers everything by hand.
- Best for
- Small shoots, and DPs who already have a template they like and trust.
Free downloadable templates
- What’s free
- Completely free, no account needed — document and spreadsheet shot list templates are widely available, including from us.
- The catch
- Same limits as any spreadsheet, but at least the columns are already right.
- Best for
- A first shot list, where the hard part is knowing which columns to have.
What you actually get free
The shot list is one link in the chain, and the rest is free too:
- Fountain screenplay editor with revision colours and collaboration
- Scene-by-scene script breakdown that feeds the schedule
- Colour-coded stripboard scheduling with what-if scenarios
- Day Out of Days, generated from the schedule
- Shot lists with camera metadata and storyboard frames
- Call sheets with revisions, read receipts and turnaround checks
- Budgets with cost reports and change orders
- Verified crew marketplace — hire at zero commission
All of it free — see what that means.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is the best free shot list software?
- ScenePaper if you want uncapped shot lists tied to scenes with on-set progress tracking. StudioBinder’s free tier is excellent within its caps. And a spreadsheet is a genuinely respectable answer for a small shoot — this is one area where free tools are close to sufficient across the board.
- Is shot list software free on ScenePaper?
- Yes, and uncapped. You can build unlimited shot lists with camera metadata, attach storyboard frames, track progress on the day and give each department its own view, without paying.
- What should be on a shot list?
- Shot number, the scene it belongs to, shot size, camera angle, camera movement, lens, frame rate where it matters, a one-line description of the action, and whether it is complete. Many productions also record estimated setup time so the AD can plan the day realistically.
- Is a spreadsheet good enough for a shot list?
- For a small shoot, yes. It stops being enough when you need the list linked to scenes so it reorders with the schedule, when the camera department needs its own view, or when you want to see at a glance how much of the day is actually in the can.
- Can I attach storyboards to a free shot list?
- On ScenePaper, yes — storyboard frames attach to individual shots at no cost, and you can open the board full screen to step through it. Several other free tiers allow storyboards but cap how many you can create.
- Will ScenePaper start charging for shot lists?
- Everything is free right now. If paid plans arrive they will be aimed at funded productions with large teams, you will hear about it first, and nothing you have already planned will be taken away.