Which six frames carry your whole trailer — and can AI hold one face across all of them?

Shotlist + Keyframes

Context

Your production company won a pitch for a short-form trailer (30–60 seconds). The director has rough footage or a storyboard. You have one lesson to nail the visual argument: which moments are the heartbeat of this story? The post-production team is waiting for your shot list—without it, the cut is just a sequence of scenes, not a narrative.

Mission

Produce a shot list (spreadsheet or document) with 3–5 hero moments, each with a one-sentence rationale, shot spec, and AI-generated keyframe. The list must be deliverable to a color/sound team—it's not a sketch, it's a directive.

Finish Line

A 3–5 row Shotlist + Keyframes sheet — every row a locked AI keyframe with its shot grammar, composition rule, and Midjourney seed/references — exported for the trailer build.

Deliverables

Shotlist + Keyframes
lesson

A 4-6 row shotlist and the matching AI keyframes that, laid side by side, tell your trailer's whole story in stills.

Team Roles

Director

Makes the narrative call on which moments anchor the story.
- Identify 3–5 moments from the source footage or storyboard and write a one-sentence rationale for each: what emotion or plot turn does the audience *need* to feel or understand here?
- Write rationales that reference a specific character decision, revelation, or emotional peak—not vague praise ('intense moment') but tied to stakes (e.g., 'This is when she realizes she's been played').
- If the DP or Storyboard Artist proposes an alternative hero shot, defend your original choice with evidence from the source, or concede and note the change.
DP/Cinematographer

Translates narrative moments into visual language—lens choice, framing, movement.
- For each director-selected hero moment, write a shot specification with three required elements: (1) shot type (wide/two-shot/close-up/over-shoulder/etc.), (2) one framing detail (what's in frame, what's cropped out, depth of field), and (3) camera angle or movement (high angle, low angle, pan, push-in, static).
- Generate a keyframe using an AI tool by prompting with the hero moment description plus the shot spec. Then write a one-sentence critique: does the AI output match the intent, or does it miss the narrative weight? Accept, reject, or note what would need to change.
- Assemble the final shot list with these columns: [#], [moment title], [hero flag (yes/no)], [shot type], [framing element], [camera angle/movement], [one-line rationale], [AI keyframe link or file].
Storyboard Artist

Owns the visual continuity—how the hero shots connect and flow across the piece.
- Name a single visual approach that connects all hero moments: choose a dominant element (e.g., high-contrast B&W for tension, warm tones for release, or dynamic diagonal framing) and write one sentence on why it serves the story.
- For each transition between hero shots in the sequence, specify the technique (cut, fade, match-cut, pan, dissolve) and write a one-sentence reason (e.g., 'Fade from her face to the door opening—time shifts, but her resolve stays').
- Review the final sequence for pacing: do hero moments escalate toward a peak, or breathe in rhythm with the story? Write one sentence diagnosing the pacing (e.g., 'Heroes cluster in the third quarter, releasing tension before the ending').

Exemplars

Golden Trailer Awards
Golden Trailer Awards

The industry awards body for movie trailers — the exemplar bar for what a finished, professional-grade trailer looks and sounds like.
Runway AI Film Festival
Runway

The premier festival showcase of finished AI films — the "this is what pro AI filmmaking looks like" gallery. Complements the Golden Trailer Awards craft bar.