# Call Sheets: A Reading Path for ADs and Coordinators

Source: https://storiara.com/learn/call-sheets
Last updated: 2026-09-14
Author: Spencer Kaufman, Storiara

> Learn to read a call sheet before you try to write one. Then trace each block back to its source (the shooting schedule, the day out of days, the crew list), learn to set call times backward from the first shot, and build a full sheet from a template. After that, study advance call sheets, how to send revisions, and the paperwork that records what really happened: the production report, Exhibit G, and time cards.

A call sheet is the last thing the office sends before a shoot day and the first thing everyone reads that morning. The 2nd AD drafts it from the shooting schedule, the day out of days, and the crew list. The 1st AD and UPM approve it, and the production office sends it out. Nearly everything on it is copied from somewhere else. Read a few before you write one, and trace each block back to its source as you go.

## Read before you write

[How to read a film call sheet](https://storiara.com/blog/how-to-read-a-film-call-sheet) is written for cast and crew, and it's the right first read even if producing call sheets will be your job. It explains why crew call and shooting call are different numbers, where the nearest hospital line sits, and what the cast status codes mean. Follow it with the [annotated call sheet example](https://storiara.com/blog/call-sheet-example-annotated), Day 7 of a fictional 15-day indie at a motel, shown block by block with a note on why each entry says what it says. Keep [call sheet abbreviations](https://storiara.com/blog/call-sheet-abbreviations) open while you read. SW, W/N, NDB, and P/U show up everywhere.

## Where each block comes from

Most of a call sheet is copied. The scenes and their order come from the [shooting schedule](https://storiara.com/templates/shooting-schedule). Cast status codes come from the [day out of days](https://storiara.com/templates/day-out-of-days). Names and phone numbers come from the [crew contact list](https://storiara.com/templates/crew-contact-list). When one of those is out of date, the call sheet inherits the mistake, which is why the [shooting schedules path](https://storiara.com/learn/shooting-schedules) is worth doing first.

The part you can't copy is the times. [How to set call times](https://storiara.com/blog/how-to-set-call-times) works a dawn exterior on a breakwater backward from the first shot: crew calls, then the actor's makeup call and pickup, then a check of her rest period, then meals and a projected wrap. Use the [turnaround calculator](https://storiara.com/tools/turnaround-calculator) for the rest check and the [sunrise and sunset planner](https://storiara.com/tools/sunrise-sunset-planner) for the light the whole day is built around.

## Making one

Now build a sheet. [How to make a film call sheet, section by section](https://storiara.com/blog/call-sheet-template-for-film) goes through the header, safety and locations, scenes in shooting order, cast calls worked backward from set, background and crew, department notes, and the advance schedule, and it ends with the checks to run before you send. Use the [call sheet template](https://storiara.com/templates/call-sheet) alongside it. If your production lives in spreadsheets, [how to make a call sheet in Google Sheets](https://storiara.com/blog/how-to-make-a-call-sheet-in-google-sheets) drives a print tab from a single shoot-day cell using FILTER and XLOOKUP.

Two more reads come after the basic sheet. [Advance call sheets](https://storiara.com/blog/advance-call-sheets) cover the preview of upcoming days, including which days (nights, stunts, big background days, minors, new locations) get a standalone advance sent a few days early. [Digital call sheets vs PDF](https://storiara.com/blog/digital-call-sheets-vs-pdf) is about delivery: a link always shows the latest revision but needs signal, while a PDF opens in a dead zone and stays a fixed record of what was sent. The post's recommendation is to send by email, keep a PDF of each final version, and still print copies for base camp.

## After the day

The call sheet records the plan, and the reports after wrap record what happened. The [daily production report guide](https://storiara.com/blog/daily-production-report-guide) shows how the 2nd AD builds the DPR from the call sheet, script supervisor notes, camera and sound reports, and Exhibit G, and why the UPM's signature on it matters. The [Exhibit G walkthrough](https://storiara.com/blog/exhibit-g-walkthrough) fills in SAG-AFTRA's time report for three performers on one day. [Crew time cards](https://storiara.com/blog/film-crew-time-cards) close the loop for payroll. The set's side of the same day is in [on-set operations](https://storiara.com/learn/on-set-operations), and the rules behind meal and rest times are in [unions and compliance](https://storiara.com/learn/unions-and-compliance).

## Who writes it and who sends it

On most shows the [2nd AD](https://storiara.com/roles/second-assistant-director) drafts the call sheet, works out cast pickup and makeup calls, and later writes the production report. On larger productions the [2nd 2nd AD](https://storiara.com/roles/second-second-assistant-director) works on set with the 1st AD, handling background and marking up the set copy of the call sheet when plans change. The [production coordinator](https://storiara.com/roles/production-coordinator) makes sure the approved sheet reaches everyone. On a student short, the producer usually does all of it, often late the night before.

## Frequently asked questions

### Who makes the call sheet on a film set?

The 2nd AD drafts it from the schedule and day out of days. The 1st AD and UPM approve it, and the production office sends it out, usually after wrap on the day before.

### What should I learn before making a call sheet?

How to read one, the cast status codes from the day out of days, and how the shooting schedule orders scenes. Most of a call sheet is copied from those documents, so the call times are the part you have to work out.

### What happens to the call sheet after the shoot day?

It becomes the plan the daily production report is measured against. The 2nd AD records actual times, scenes, pages, and cast times on the production report and Exhibit G, and payroll checks crew time cards against them.