What is a DOOD?

A comprehensive pre-production period will include planning through a number of forms and formats. These often can help you keep the things you must remember organized, that way you have reference forms you can go to throughout the production and post-production phases. The script interpretation, often called the shooting script, is a way that the screenplay or teleplay you are using for your digital video film or television project is broken down into a shooting schedule. Each segment is assigned days on which it is shot, so that the schedule can be itemized and that every bit of the script has a particular spot in the schedule that it is supposed to be addressed. This is all laid out on the board, which is a detailed chart of what happens when. One of the final aspects of this scheduling format is the creation of what is commonly called the DOOD.

DOOD stands for “day out of days,” which refers to the days that cast and crew members will have different classifications of work. The entire shooting schedule is laid out according to the shooting script and the board, and then the days are listed openly. A chart is created with each shooting say on the X-axis, and each cast and crew member on the Y. For each day you then assign what that cast or crew member may be required to do. This can be a variety of different things depending on the expectations of your digital video project. There are often labels such as Start Work(Which can indicate the first day of their work or a day that they begin a stated task.), simple Work days (Which states that they will be working in regular capacity all day.), or On Call days (Which means that they may not have to come in, but they should be ready to.). The goal of this is to show a tentative schedule of all the time that they will be required on set for the entire production.

On larger productions it is best to create a separate DOOD for each department. This can be things such as special effects, special lighting and equipment operators, stunts, animals and children, or whatever else your project requires. On all of these it is best to be as detailed as possible, but make sure everyone is aware that this schedule is subject to change.

The DOOD is just another part of communication between you and the cast and crew. Once they understand what is required of them it will be easier to get things done once you enter the chaotic shooting schedule.