Free Call Sheet Template (Fillable PDF and Google Sheet) With an Example
A call sheet template tells your whole crew where to be, when to be there and what you’re shooting, on one page. This one is free. Type into the fillable PDF, print it, or copy the Google Sheet and send it the night before. It covers the crew call, the day’s schedule, cast pickup and makeup times, weather, the nearest hospital and a full crew list. Below, you’ll see a filled-in example and how to write your own.
TL;DR: Send It the Night Before
Download the free call sheet template below. Put the general crew call in the big box, list the scenes in shooting order, then give every cast member a pickup, makeup and on-set time. Add the location, parking and nearest hospital. Send it to cast and crew the night before the shoot.
Download the Free Call Sheet Template
Pick your format. The PDFs are fillable, with the crew list and advance schedule on page 2. The Google Sheet opens as your own copy.
What Is a Call Sheet?
A call sheet is the daily schedule for a film shoot. It tells every person on the production what time to arrive, where to go and what’s being filmed that day.
- Who writes it: the assistant director, usually the 1st AD, working from the shooting schedule and the shot list
- When it goes out: the night before each shoot day. Wikipedia notes it’s usually issued no later than 12 hours before the next work day
- Who gets it: every cast and crew member working that day
- How it’s sent: most productions still email it as a PDF
A new call sheet goes out for every shoot day. If the schedule changes overnight, a revised sheet goes out and replaces the old one. Each day’s call sheet comes straight from your shooting schedule.
What’s in the Call Sheet Template
The template is two pages, portrait, in US Letter or A4. Every field is fillable, or print it and write by hand.
- Header: project, date and shoot day
- General crew call: the time the day starts, in a big black box nobody can miss
- Shooting call and lunch: when cameras roll, and when the crew eats
- Key contacts: director, producer, 1st AD and production office
- Weather and light: forecast, high and low, sunrise, sunset and rain chance
- Locations: set address, parking and crew base, and the nearest hospital
- Schedule: scene, set and description, day or night, cast numbers, pages and time
- Cast: number, name, character, status, pickup, hair and makeup, and on-set time
- Notes: safety notes and special requirements
- Page 2: crew call list, advance schedule for the next day, and walkie channels
The Google Sheet has the same sections, 40 crew rows and dropdowns for day or night and cast status.
Call Sheet Example: How to Fill It In
Here’s a call sheet for the night shoot of “The Note”, the same scene from our shot list template and storyboard template. The names and numbers are made up.
- Set the general crew call. Work back from when you need to roll. Here, cameras roll at 7:00 PM, so the crew is called at 5:30 PM to light and rig.
- Put lunch six hours after crew call. That’s the rule of thumb in Backstage’s guide to call sheets. Crew call is 5:30 PM, so lunch is at 11:30 PM. On a night shoot, “lunch” happens in the middle of the night.
- List scenes in shooting order. Scene 12 comes first, then the insert of the note with a small crew, then wrap.
- Give each actor three times. Sam Ortiz, who plays Maya, is picked up at 4:30 PM, sits in hair and makeup at 5:00 PM and is on set at 6:45 PM.
- Fill in the weather and light. Sunset is 6:41 PM, which is why the shoot starts after dark.
- Never leave the hospital box empty. Name the closest emergency room, the address and the drive time.
- Write the safety notes. Night exterior, uneven gravel, an old well by the barn. Everyone reads this box.
Want to know if your call sheet worked?
Count the texts you get the morning of the shoot.
Every “where do I park?” or “what time is makeup?” is a line missing from the sheet.
Add it to next time’s call sheet, and the questions stop.
Cast Status Codes
The Status column tells each actor, and payroll, what kind of day it is for them. Those day counts also feed the cast lines in your film budget template.
| Code | Means |
|---|---|
| SW | Start work: the actor’s first day on the shoot |
| W | Work: a working day |
| WF | Work finish: the actor’s last day |
| SWF | Start and finish on the same day |
| H | Hold: not working today, but still on the booking |
| T | Travel day |
| R | Rehearsal |
In the example, Maya is SWF because the whole short film shoots in one night. Cast are also numbered, with the lead as number 1. That’s where the phrase “number one on the call sheet” comes from.
Page 2: Crew Call and Advance Schedule
The second page lists every crew member with their department, phone number and personal call time.
Not everyone starts at the same time. In the example, the gaffer and key grip are called at 4:30 PM to rig lights before the crew call, and the PA is in at 4:00 PM to set up catering. The advance schedule at the bottom tells everyone what’s coming on the next shoot day, so they can prep.
Call Sheet Tips
- Send it as a PDF. It looks the same on every phone, and nobody can edit it by accident.
- Put the date and version on it. If you send a revised sheet, write “Revised” and the time in the header.
- Check the address on a map. Farm roads and new builds trip up phone GPS. Add a landmark.
- Keep it to two pages. If it runs longer, the schedule belongs in a separate document.
- Print copies for set. Tape one by the catering table and one on the camera cart.
Put the hospital on it, every single time.
It’s the box everyone skips on a small shoot, because nothing will go wrong.
On the day something does, nobody should be searching their phone for the nearest ER.
For where the call sheet fits in the bigger picture, see the stages of film production. If you’re planning a shoot for the first time, our filmmaking guide walks through the whole process. Before the shoot, get a signed talent release form from everyone on camera and a location release form for every property you film on.
Build the cast section from your cast list template, and send the prop list template to props before each shoot day. On set, the camera and sound report templates and the script supervisor template log every take.
Before anyone gets a call sheet, they should have a signed deal memo with their rate and hours.
The call sheet plans the day. At wrap, log what really happened with our free daily production report template.
FAQs About Call Sheets
What Does “Number One on the Call Sheet” Mean?
It means the lead actor. Cast are numbered on the call sheet, and the top-billed star is listed first as number 1. The phrase is also the title of a 2025 Apple TV+ documentary about Black leading actors in Hollywood.
Is “Call Sheet” One Word or Two?
Two words. You’ll see “callsheet” in app names, but “call sheet” is the standard spelling in the film industry.
Can I Use This Call Sheet Template for a Photoshoot or a Video Shoot?
Yes. Use the schedule for looks or setups instead of scenes, list models or talent in the cast table, and keep the location, weather and hospital boxes. It works for music videos, commercials and YouTube shoots the same way.
The Final Cut on the Call Sheet Template
A call sheet template puts the whole shoot day on one page, so nobody has to guess where to be or when.
Download the PDF or copy the Google Sheet. Fill in the crew call first, then the schedule and cast times, then the hospital.
Send it the night before, and count the questions you don’t get the next morning.
Jay Neill
Jay Neill is the founder and managing editor of iFILMthings and believes everyone should have access to the film resources they need to plan their filmmaking project, which is why he’s dedicated iFILMthings to helping all filmmakers.