Correction, 2026-10-01: the closing paragraph told you to build the list on the canvas and generate each row beside it. The canvas has no sticky notes, so the page now says to carry each row in the prompt of its own node. That paragraph also repeated the free-canvas line outside our standard closing line, and the page had no FAQ and no sources; both are added. Two lines stated as fact that a row with fewer than six fields stops being actionable and that a list without a note column produces shots that do not cut together; they are now advice. The cost example now says that it assumes 8-second clips, that Veo clips run 4, 6 or 8 seconds, and that the Veo tool opens on Veo 3.1 Fast rather than Lite.
A shot list is the itemized plan of every individual shot a production needs, with the framing, camera move, subject, and duration specified for each one.
It exists because a shoot day is expensive and memory is unreliable. On a traditional set the shot list tells the crew what still needs capturing before the light goes. In AI production the same document does something more useful: each row is effectively a prompt specification, and the list becomes the queue you generate against.
What a row contains
A workable shot list row has six fields. Leave one out and whoever captures or generates the shot has to guess it.
| Field | Example |
|---|---|
| Shot number | 04 |
| Framing | Medium close-up |
| Subject | Hands opening the jar |
| Camera | Slow push in |
| Duration | 3s |
| Note | Match the warm window light from the moodboard |
The note column is where the moodboard enters the production document. Without it, each shot can be right on its own terms and still not cut with the next one.
Shot list vs storyboard
A storyboard draws the shots; a shot list enumerates them. Storyboards communicate to clients and directors, shot lists communicate to whoever is capturing or generating. Most productions need both, and small productions that need one usually need the list.
How this changes for AI video
Each row maps to one generation, which makes the list a budget document as well as a plan. Veo clips on 8frame run 4, 6 or 8 seconds (always 8 when you start from an image), so a 3-second row is a 4-second generation trimmed in the edit.
Using canon 8frame credit prices for 8-second clips with audio, the Veo tool's default length: a 12-row list generated on Veo 3.1 Lite (54 credits a clip, 720p) costs 648 credits, about $6.48 at pack rate, inside a single $19 Starter month of 1,000 credits. The same 12 rows on full Veo 3.1 Standard (448 credits a clip, 1080p) cost 5,376 credits, which is more than a Creator month of 3,000. The Veo tool opens on Veo 3.1 Fast (168 credits a clip), so switch it to Lite for drafts. The list is where you decide which rows earn the expensive model.
The practical pattern: draft every row on a cheap tier, then re-generate only the rows that survive on the model the shot deserves. Rows that exist for coverage (cutaways, textures, atmosphere) rarely justify a premium generation.
Examples
A 30-second product ad. Nine rows: establishing, three product details, two hands-in-frame inserts, one lifestyle wide, two cutaways. Durations sum to 34 seconds so there is trim room in the edit.
A UGC-style ad. Five rows, all handheld framing, all 9:16, with the note column carrying the tone rather than the camera move, since the whole point is that it should not look directed.
Related concepts
How to storyboard a 30-second ad walks the full process from brief to generated frames. What is a creative brief covers the document upstream of both. What is b-roll covers the coverage rows that fill out most lists.
FAQ
What is a shot list? The itemized plan of every shot a production needs, with the framing, camera move, subject and duration for each one.
What is the difference between a shot list and a storyboard? A storyboard draws the shots for clients and directors; a shot list enumerates them for whoever captures or generates them.
What goes in a shot list row? Six fields: shot number, framing, subject, camera move, duration and a note, for example which moodboard reference the light should match.
What does a shot list cost to generate on 8frame? It depends on the model you pick for each row. Twelve 8-second rows with audio cost 648 credits on Veo 3.1 Lite and 5,376 on Veo 3.1 Standard.
Sources
- Veo 3.1 credit prices (8 seconds with audio: Lite 54, Fast 168, Standard 448): 8frame back tool registry, Veo 3.1 cost function, checked 2026-10-01
- Veo tool settings (opens on Veo 3.1 Fast at 8 seconds with audio; 4, 6 or 8 seconds; 8 seconds with a start image) and output resolutions (Lite 720p, Standard 1080p): 8frame front tool registry and back video-generation code, checked 2026-10-01
- Plans and pack rate (Starter $19 for 1,000 credits a month, Creator $49 for 3,000; a credit is about $0.01 at pack rate): 8frame plan catalog, checked 2026-10-01
The shot list is at its most useful when it sits on the same surface as the generations it describes. Give each row its own node on the canvas, with the row in its prompt, and the plan and the footage never drift apart.
Try it without signing up: the 8frame canvas opens on a real board. The canvas is free and unlimited; generation is paid from $19/month.