Shot planning is the process of defining how each moment is framed and captured: the shot size, angle, lens/FOV, movement, composition, and continuity links to adjacent shots. In AI anime/comic production, good planning reduces re-renders, keeps characters on-model, and preserves spatial logic between frames or panels.

Outcomes you want:

• Visual clarity: Who, where, and what action is clear in a single frame.
• Continuity: Screen direction, lighting, and scale are consistent across shots.
• Efficiency: Prompts and control inputs are reusable and traceable.

Shot size:

• WS (wide), FS (full), MLS (medium-long), MS (medium), MCU (medium close-up), CU (close-up), ECU (extreme close-up), OTS (over-the-shoulder), POV.

Angles:

• Eye-level, high angle, low angle, worm’s-eye, bird’s-eye, Dutch tilt.

Movement and staging:

• Static, pan, tilt, push/dolly, track/truck, crane/boom. For stills, simulate with perspective and motion cues.

Lens/FOV (35mm equivalent):

• 18–24mm: dynamic perspective, room-scale wides.
• 35–50mm: natural look, dialog.
• 85–105mm: portrait compression, shallow DoF.

Composition:

• Rule of thirds, center-punch for emphasis, leading lines, headroom/leadroom, horizon control, foreground frames, silhouette readability.

Continuity rules:

• 180° rule, match eyelines, consistent screen direction (left→right vs right→left), scale matching (MS→CU with logical step).

1. Define intent per beat: What must the audience feel/learn? (e.g., "Reveal the antagonist’s dominance." )

2. Thumbnail pass: 6–12 tiny frames exploring size/angle for each beat. Keep to black/white shapes for clarity.

3. Build the shot list (one row per shot):

• ID: S01, S02…
• Intent: purpose of the shot
• Subject + action: who’s doing what
• Size + angle + lens/FOV
• Composition notes: leadroom, horizon, silhouettes
• Lighting/mood: key direction, contrast, color key
• Movement: static/pan/tilt/push
• Continuity: in/out screen direction, eyeline target, reference shot IDs
• Prompt tags: core descriptors you’ll reuse
• Negative tags: elements to avoid (e.g., "cropped hands")
• Control inputs: pose/sketch/canny refs; seed/model/version
• Output: aspect ratio, target resolution

Use consistent, declarative wording so prompts mirror your shot list.

Base pattern:

• Style/genre: "anime, cel-shaded, dramatic lighting"
• Subject: "female swordswoman"
• Action: "draws katana"
• Size/angle: "medium close-up, low angle"
• Lens/DoF: "35mm, shallow depth of field, creamy bokeh"
• Composition cues: "center frame, leadroom to the right, clean silhouette"
• Lighting: "rim light from behind, cool fill, warm key"
• Environment: "night market, paper lanterns"

Example: "anime, cel-shaded, female swordswoman draws katana, MCU low angle, 35mm, shallow depth of field, center frame with right leadroom, strong rim light, cool fill and warm key, night market with lanterns"

Continuity-friendly add-ons:

• Character tokens: "red scarf, short black hair, scar on left cheek"
• Color keys: "teal shadows, amber highlights"
• Framing constraints: "full headroom, do not crop hands"

Negative examples:

• "cropped face, extra fingers, inconsistent hair length, duplicate character, warped horizon"

• Screen direction: Declare it once per scene (e.g., hero moves left→right). Mirror only with an intentional beat change.
• Eyeline match: Maintain target height and side; log it in your shot list.
• Scale: If S03 is MS, the adjacent CU should feel like a logical push-in. Keep lens choice consistent when possible.
• Model/seed consistency: Reuse the same model/LoRA and a controlled seed range for related shots.
• Control inputs: Use pose/line/canny references from your thumbnails to lock staging and framing.
• Lighting continuity: Fix key direction (e.g., key from camera-left), then vary intensity for emphasis, not direction.

• Vague shot size: Add an explicit code (MS/CU/WS) and lens length.
• Cropping faces/hands: Reserve headroom/leadroom in the prompt; set a safe aspect ratio (e.g., 3:2 for waist-up, 16:9 for wides).
• Bent horizons/Dutch overload: Specify "level horizon" unless the beat demands a Dutch tilt.
• On-model drift: Reassert character tokens every 2–3 shots; keep a mini style bible per character.
• Directional flips: Note screen direction in filenames (e.g., S05_RtoL). Avoid last-minute flips without checking eyelines.
• Over-detailed prompts: Push detail into the shot list columns; keep prompts concise and repeatable.

• Shot list spreadsheet: Columns exactly as in the workflow section. Freeze ID/intent columns.
• Thumbnail sheets: 3×3 grid per beat, tiny values-only sketches. Export as a single board for reference.
• Reference packs: Character turnarounds, key props, environment wide shots, color script swatches.
• Version control: Keep variations as v1, v2, v3; only change one variable at a time (lens or angle).

Use this quick checklist per shot:

• Intent readable in 2 seconds
• Correct size/angle/lens per shot list
• Clear silhouette and leadroom
• Consistent screen direction and eyeline with adjacent shots
• Lighting direction matches scene key
• Character tokens on-model (hair, costume, props)
• No technical faults (cropped face/hands, extra digits, warped horizon)