Free Script Breakdown Sheet Template (With Color Codes and an Example)
Before you can schedule or budget a film, you need to know what’s in it. A script breakdown lists every actor, prop, costume, vehicle and effect, scene by scene. This free script breakdown template gives you a one-page breakdown sheet as a fillable PDF, a spreadsheet version for the whole script, and a color key for marking up your pages. There’s also a filled-in example from a short film, so you can see what a finished breakdown looks like.
TL;DR: One Sheet per Scene, One Color per Element
Read the script and mark each element in its standard color. Cast is red, props are purple, special effects are blue. Then fill in one breakdown sheet for every scene. The sheets feed straight into your shooting schedule and budget.
Download the Free Script Breakdown Template
The PDF is one fillable breakdown sheet plus the color key. Print a sheet for every scene. The spreadsheet tracks the whole script on one tab, and the Dead Air example shows two scenes filled in.
What Is a Script Breakdown?
A script breakdown is a scene-by-scene list of everything you need to shoot a film. It’s the first step of pre-production, and everything else depends on it.
- Who does it: usually the 1st assistant director or the producer. On a small shoot, it’s often the director
- When: as soon as the script is locked for production
- What it feeds: the shooting schedule, the film budget, and every department’s prep list
- The two parts: a marked-up script, and one breakdown sheet per scene
According to Wikipedia, the lists from a breakdown are the base for building the production board, the schedule and the budget.
Script Breakdown Color Codes
The standard breakdown uses a color or a mark for each type of element. When you read through the script, highlight each element as you go.
| Element | Color or mark |
|---|---|
| Cast | Red |
| Stunts | Orange |
| Extras (silent) | Yellow |
| Extras (atmosphere) | Green |
| Special effects | Blue |
| Props | Purple |
| Vehicles and animals | Pink |
| Sound effects and music | Brown |
| Wardrobe | Circle |
| Makeup and hair | Asterisk |
| Special equipment | Box |
| Production notes | Underline |
The colors come from the standard list on Wikipedia. Some productions add their own, like set dressing or greenery. That’s fine, as long as everyone on your team uses the same key.
What’s in the Script Breakdown Template
- Breakdown sheet (page 1): production title, scene number, script page, page count in eighths, INT or EXT, day or night, set and a short description
- 12 element boxes: each one colored to match the standard breakdown key
- Color key (page 2): every color and mark, what it covers, and how to count pages in eighths
- Spreadsheet version: one row per scene for the whole script, with color-coded columns, a scene count and a running page total
- Formats: fillable PDF in US Letter and A4, plus a Google Sheet and an Excel file
Script Breakdown Example: Dead Air
Here’s the template filled in for two scenes from Dead Air, the made-up short film about a late-night radio host from our screenplay template. The same short appears in our shooting schedule and film budget examples, so you can follow one breakdown all the way to a budget.
- Scene 4 is a dialogue scene with hidden costs. A caller requests a song. The breakdown flags that the song needs a music license, which shows up as its own line in the Dead Air budget.
- Voices count as cast. The Caller never appears on screen, but he’s cast member 3. His lines are recorded before the shoot and played back on set so Nora can react.
- Scene 9 is where the gear goes. Nora drives while the caller talks through her car radio. The breakdown lists a low loader and driver under special equipment, so no one drives the picture car while acting.
- Continuity lives in wardrobe and makeup. Nora’s jacket and hair are wet in scene 9 because she ran through the rain in scene 8. Both sheets say “match scene 8.”
- Page counts add up. The 11 scenes in Dead Air come to 13 3/8 pages, the same total that shows up in the shooting schedule.
Here’s a tip for your first breakdown.
Read the whole script once without marking anything.
Then go back and mark it. You’ll catch more on the second pass because you already know where the story goes.
How to Break Down a Script
- Number your scenes. Every scene heading gets a number. Lock them before you start, so the numbers match on every document.
- Measure each scene in eighths. Split each page into eight parts, about an inch each. A half-page scene is 4/8.
- Mark up the script. Read scene by scene and highlight each element in its color. Circle wardrobe, box special equipment, and so on.
- Fill in one breakdown sheet per scene. Copy every marked element into its box. Add notes on anything that costs time or money.
- Look for hidden elements. A character who’s “soaked” needs a rain effect or a spare costume. A song on the radio needs a license.
- Share it. Send each department its list. Then move the sheets into your shooting schedule and budget.
For a scene-by-scene shot plan once the breakdown is done, use our shot list template.
Breaking Down a Famous Scene: Singin’ in the Rain
Try the color key on a scene you already know. Here’s how the title number from Singin’ in the Rain (1952) might break down.
- Cast (red): Don Lockwood, played by Gene Kelly
- Extras, silent (yellow): the police officer who catches him dancing
- Special effects (blue): rain over the whole street set
- Props (purple): the umbrella and the lamppost he swings from
- Wardrobe (circle): his suit and hat, soaked through. A wet costume usually means spares
- Sound effects and music (brown): the title song
One line of action, “he dances in the rain,” turns into a list for five departments. That’s why you break down every scene before you schedule a single day.
Want a quick way to spot a hard scene?
Count the colors on its breakdown sheet.
A scene with six or seven different colors needs more prep, and probably more time on the day.
Once the breakdown is done, the props you marked in purple go onto the prop list template, and every speaking role goes onto the cast list template.
FAQs About Script Breakdown Templates
Do I Need Script Breakdown Software?
Not for a short film. A PDF sheet or a spreadsheet works fine for a few dozen scenes. Software starts to pay off on features, where scripts change and the breakdown has to update across hundreds of pages.
What’s the Difference Between a Script Breakdown and a Shot List?
The breakdown lists what you need in each scene: people, props, costumes and gear. The shot list lists how you’ll film it: each camera angle, size and move.
Should Extras With One Line Go in Cast?
Yes. Anyone who speaks goes in cast, even with one line. Extras stay in the yellow or green boxes only when they don’t speak.
The Final Cut on the Script Breakdown Template
A script breakdown template turns a screenplay into a list of what you actually need to shoot it.
Mark up your script with the color key, fill in one sheet per scene and check every element twice.
What’s the most expensive thing hiding in your script?
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.