Filming a Short Film Through DePaul: Pre-Production
When I first came to DePaul as a Film & Television major, two of the biggest questions I had was how to access DePaul’s equipment and how to start creating my own projects. Now, three years and multiple short films later, I will show you how to make your projects come to life using my latest project, Look Twice, as an example.
In May of 2025, I had an idea for a short horror film that takes place at a classic ice cream stand, featuring doppelgängers, chase scenes, scares, and more. Inspired by modern horror films such as Us, Smile, and Sinners, the script ended up being 13 pages long with a variety of different characters and locations. After sending the script out for feedback and revising early drafts, I felt confident enough to start reaching out to producers and kick off pre-production! Since I knew I wanted to make this project through the university, I brought on two incredibly talented producers I had met on other short film sets who were also students at DePaul. From there, we quickly brought on the rest of the HODs (heads of departments) crucial to making a short film: a cinematographer, in charge of the visual look of a film, a production designer, in charge of the visual aesthetic of the film, a gaffer, in charge of lighting a film, a casting director, a sound mixer, an editor, and a first assistant director, who plans out the shooting schedule and keeps the project on time.
After the core of our crew was set came the seemingly endless barrage of meetings. The cinematographer and I met to figure out how each individual shot would look, the production designer and I met to finalize the visual style of the film, the casting director and I met to plan out auditions and rehearsals, the costume designer and I met to plan out wardrobe, and the producers and I would meet every couple of weeks to check in and plan everything else. While this might seem like a lot of preparation for a student project, detailed pre-production is crucial to any successful film. It helps ensure that everyone is prepared and ready to work quickly and efficiently the day of the shoot. This was especially necessary for our project, with its ambitious scope and complicated plot.
A key aspect of pre-production for a project this size was fundraising and budgeting. Filmmaking, while easier than ever, is full of hidden costs, from feeding cast and crew each day to buying props and costumes to renting a box truck to transport equipment. One of my producers made multiple budget passes, allowing us to estimate what I would need to contribute and what our fundraising goal should be. Through a GoFundMe campaign and very successful fundraising mixer, we were able to meet and exceed our goal, ensuring that this project would not bankrupt me!
One of my favorite parts of pre-production was casting. Through one of my producers, I was connected with another DePaul student who specializes in casting and runs the club Directors for Actors, Sam Aaberg. Thanks to Sam’s incredible hard work, we were able to hold two days of in-person auditions and see over 30 different actors from around Chicago for 6 different roles. We held auditions in the Schmitt Academic Center and after a few difficult days of deliberation, settled on an incredibly talented cast that truly brought this film to life.
