A call sheet is the one document every cast and crew member reads the night before a shoot day: where to be, when, and what's being shot. This is a blank, industry-standard call sheet template as an Excel file — plus a fully filled-in example from a sample production, Nightfall, so you can see how each section is actually used.
What's in the template
- Production Info — title, date, day # of total, crew and shooting calls, location and parking, nearest hospital, weather, sunrise/sunset, and the key contacts.
- Cast — one row per actor with pickup, makeup/wardrobe, and set-call times.
- Crew — one row per crew member by department, with call time and notes.
- Scenes — the day's scenes in shooting order: INT/EXT, day/night, set, description, cast numbers, and pages.
Each section is its own tab, and every tab comes twice: a filled Example and a Blank working copy.
Production info
The top of the sheet. Fill it in once per shoot day. The two lines people actually look for on set are the nearest hospital and the 1st AD's phone number — never leave those blank.
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Production | Nightfall |
| Shoot Date | Tue, May 12, 2026 |
| Day | Day 1 of 18 |
| General Crew Call | 06:30 |
| Shooting Call | 08:00 |
| Location | Marlowe’s Diner — 412 Harbor St |
| Parking | Lot behind the diner; do not park on Harbor St |
| Nearest Hospital | St. Vincent Medical — 1.8 mi, 6 min |
| Weather | 64°F, overcast, rain after 19:00 |
| Sunrise / Sunset | 05:52 / 20:14 |
| Director | J. Ellison |
| Producer | R. Kaplan |
| 1st AD | S. Moreau — +1 555 0103 |
- Field:
- One field per row. Keep the hospital and 1st AD phone — those are the two things people actually look for on set.
Cast calls
Work backwards from the first shot. If camera rolls at 08:00 and an actor needs an hour in makeup, their makeup call is 07:00 and pickup earlier still. Cast numbers match the script breakdown, so “1” means Maya on every document.
| # | Character | Actor | Pickup | Makeup / Wardrobe | Set Call | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Maya | Dana Whitfield | 06:45 | 07:00 | 08:00 | Wardrobe change after Sc. 12 |
| 2 | Reyes | Marcus Oyelaran | 07:15 | 07:30 | 08:30 | |
| 3 | Okafor | Priya Nair | 07:15 | 07:30 | 08:30 | |
| 4 | Cook | Tom Barrow | Self-drive | 09:30 | 10:00 | Sc. 12 only |
- #:
- Cast numbers match the script breakdown, so the same number means the same actor on every document.
- Set Call:
- When they need to be on set, camera-ready — not when they arrive.
Crew calls
Most departments share the general crew call. List the exceptions explicitly — the gaffer pre-lighting at 06:00, the sound mixer arriving after a company move — so nobody has to guess.
| Department | Position | Name | Call Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Production | Director | J. Ellison | 06:30 | |
| Production | Producer | R. Kaplan | 06:30 | |
| Production | 1st AD | S. Moreau | 06:30 | |
| Production | Script Supervisor | C. Lindqvist | 06:30 | |
| Camera | Director of Photography | A. Kimura | 06:30 | |
| Camera | 1st AC | E. Novak | 06:30 | |
| Electric | Gaffer | D. Osei | 06:00 | Pre-light kitchen |
| Sound | Sound Mixer | L. Ferreira | 06:30 |
Scenes for the day
In shooting order, not script order. Pages are in eighths (1.25 = one and two-eighths). If the pages add up to more than about six, the day is probably optimistic.
| Scene # | INT/EXT | Day/Night | Set | Description | Cast # | Pages |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | INT | DAY | Diner — Booth 4 | Reyes and Okafor compare case notes over cold coffee. | 2, 3, 1 | 2 |
| 12 | INT | DAY | Diner — Kitchen | Maya confronts the line cook about the missing order. | 1, 4 | 1.25 |
| 12A | INT | NIGHT | Diner — Kitchen | Closing up alone, Maya finds the note taped under the pass. | 1 | 0.75 |
- Cast #:
- Cast numbers, not names — they are shorter and never ambiguous.
- Pages:
- In eighths of a page (1.25 = one and two-eighths). Totals tell you if the day is realistic.
How to use it
- Fill in Production Info once per shoot day — title, day number, general crew call, location, weather, and the nearest hospital.
- Add one row per cast member with their pickup, makeup/wardrobe, and set-call times. Work backwards from the first shot.
- Add one row per crew member. Most departments share the general call; note exceptions (e.g. an early grip pre-light).
- List the day’s scenes in shooting order, with page counts, so everyone knows what’s being shot and when.
- Send it the night before. If anything changes after it goes out, send a revised version and mark it clearly.
Common mistakes
- Sending it too late. A call sheet that lands at 23:30 gets read at 06:00 — in the car. Aim for 18:00.
- Set call that's really an arrival time. Set call means camera-ready on set. Arrival, makeup, and wardrobe are earlier.
- Names instead of cast numbers. Numbers are shorter, sort correctly, and never get confused when two characters share a name.
- Changing it without a revision mark. If anything changes after it goes out, reissue it, bump the version, and say what changed at the top.
New to call sheets? Read What Is a Call Sheet? A Complete Guide first — it walks through a real example section by section.