Daily footage handover in an interactive film workflow: Check route coverage
At wrap, reconcile planned nodes, recorded shots and takes, and ingested assets. A daily route-coverage receipt separates unshot, unlocated, unchecked, and narratively unusable material, assigning open gaps to tomorrow’s owner.
Introduction
Daily footage handover is complete when every route node in that day’s plan has a traceable conclusion: which filmed asset corresponds to it, what was checked, what remains missing, and who handles it tomorrow. Reconcile production records and ingestion lists in both directions. “We filmed it” cannot substitute for “usable evidence exists.” In this part of the interactive film workflow, the central deliverable is a daily route-coverage receipt.
1. Define the review scope before the wrap handover
The small interactive suspense film Last Recording is a fictional teaching example, not a real user case, tested result, or product feature. Its investigator can “play the recording” or “seal the recording,” after which both routes converge on the attendant entering.
The day’s plan covers three nodes: playing, sealing, and convergence. Playing must let the investigator hear the time announcement. Sealing must keep the recorder switched off and place it in an evidence bag. The shared shot does not show the recorder, but needs separate connections to reactions for having heard and not having heard it.
Before handover, the script supervisor supplies the day’s plan version, actual shots and takes, on-set changes, and unshot items. The media manager supplies card-receipt records, import locations, and completed checks. The receiving editor uses these to assess route evidence. A small team may combine jobs, but cannot omit either record type.
Scope follows the day’s plan and additions. Nodes not yet scheduled are not missed shots for that day. Temporarily removed nodes still need a cancellation reason and confirmer. Otherwise deleting a problem from the plan produces a false “all complete.”
2. Reconcile records and assets in two directions
First find footage from the plan. Check each node for a recorded shot and take, then locate its ingested file and related sound. If the supervisor says “sealing, take three complete” but no corresponding file appears, mark “awaiting location” and ask the media manager to trace card handover and import records. Do not immediately call it unshot.
Then trace footage back to the plan. An extra close-up of sealing the bag needs a node and applicable entry state. Without a production record, mark “assignment unconfirmed” for the supervisor and director to resolve. Similar action is insufficient to put it on the sealing route.
Separate three levels: receipt of the file, progress of technical checks, and whether narrative requirements can be seen and heard. An openable file may lack complete sound; a clear shot may depict the wrong branch. Mark unchecked material “awaiting review,” rather than assume usability.
If on-set memory conflicts with file content, retain both original records. If “machine off” is recorded but the playback light is on, attach the disputed location for the director to judge. Do not first rewrite the supervisor’s record to make them agree.
3. Copy this daily route-coverage receipt
Enter date, plan version, ingestion batch, submitter, and receiver at the top. Each row represents one node state due that day; split rows when a node has different entries. Copy these fields into a table.
| Field | Required entry |
|---|---|
| Planned node and state | Node, route, entry condition, and expected change |
| Actual shot and take | Recorded shot number and take; explicitly state if unshot |
| Ingestion evidence | File location, related sound, and check-record location |
| Usability state | Awaiting location, awaiting review, usable, restricted use, or unusable |
| Gap evidence | Specific interval, observable issue, and affected route |
| Next-day decision | Search, recheck, trial edit, pickup, or plan change |
| Owner and deadline | Who handles it, when it returns, and who confirms closure |
Restricted use requires scope, such as “only for an entry that has heard the recording.” Unusable requires the unmet requirement. “Director unhappy” alone cannot tell the receiver whether this is performance preference or a route-fact error.
Rows without gaps still need a basis, such as “bag-sealing action checked in full; switch stays off; sound matches.” This does not mean logging every frame. Another receiver must be able to locate and recheck the judgment.
Retain receipt revisions. Carry open rows into the next day without overwriting old states with new conclusions. The next-day plan should reference them so an added shot can be traced to the handover gap it addresses.
4. Turn tonight’s findings into tomorrow’s decisions
This simplified receipt could follow the example’s wrap review. Shots, takes, and content are teaching assumptions.
| Planned node | Actual shot/take and finding | State and handover decision |
|---|---|---|
| Play: hear the time | Shot 12, take 2; complete time announcement in picture and related sound | Usable; editor accepts and retains sound location |
| Seal: switch off, then bag | Shot 13, take 3; playback light comes on before bagging | Unusable; director confirms pickup requirements before tomorrow’s shoot |
| Converge: unheard-recording entry | Shot 14, take 1; investigator says “That time announcement was wrong” | Restricted use; hand over only to the heard route; unheard entry still missing |
Specify the sealing gap: at seconds 8–11, the hand touches the switch and the playback light comes on, conflicting with “not played.” Plan a pickup of bagging while switched off. The supervisor brings back the original pose and bag-opening state; after the director confirms the action, the manager adds the new shot/take to the receipt.
The shared shot cannot pass for all uses just because its file arrived. If a dialogue-free reaction shot exists, give it to the editor for a trial connection to the unheard route. Otherwise the director decides whether to add an entry or revise the connection. Until decided, the gap stays open.
If another suitable bagging take is found tomorrow, cancel the pickup only after checking the off state and surrounding connections, then record the replacement and confirmer. Finding a file resolves location; it does not close the narrative gap directly.
5. Use receiving conditions to control returns and closure
A receiver should be able to locate assets, understand applicable routes, and recheck gaps or acceptance evidence using the receipt alone. Missing file locations go to the manager; missing route assignment to supervisor and director; missing next owner to the producer. State the exact field needing correction instead of sending the whole package back and forth.
If time is short tonight, hand over imports and completed checks first, leave all unreviewed nodes pending, and agree tomorrow’s review time. If a set is about to be dismantled, prioritize branch differences dependent on it. Unresolved parts go to director and producer to decide whether to retain the set conditions.
Check each entry that uses shared footage. One route passing does not pass every referencing route. Red and green alone are insufficient: red markers still need a gap, evidence, and owner for tomorrow’s team to act.
This receipt accepts daily footage handover only, not final pacing, the full branching experience, or release checks. Close a row when evidence is complete or a change is confirmed, not because the next shoot started. At handover’s end, state which nodes can enter editing and which must continue being tracked with open issues.
