How to use

Getting started

Shot Planner is a shoot-planning tool for cinematographers, directors and solo creators. Describe your shoot in plain language ("interview with 2 people and 1 camera") and AI proposes the placement of the room, cameras, subjects, props and lights and shows it in 3D. Suggestions can be tweaked freely by drag and drop, and shared via URL or PDF.

Requirements

• Latest Chrome / Safari / Edge / Firefox recommended.
• WebGL must be enabled (used for 3D rendering).
• All features available on the free account.

Creating an account

1. Click "Log in" in the top right and sign in with Google or email + password.
2. For email sign-up, switch to the "Sign up" tab (password ≥ 8 chars). You can reset a forgotten password by email.
3. A Free plan account is created automatically on first sign-in.
4. Upgrade to Pro any time from the Pricing page.

Dashboard and projects

The top screen after sign-in (/) is your dashboard, where you create and manage shoot plans as "projects".

Create a new project

1. Click "New project" on the dashboard.
2. Enter a project name. The editor opens with an empty scene ready.
3. Add more scenes later as needed.

Project list

• Click a card to open the editor.
• The card menu offers Rename / Duplicate / Delete.
• Deleted projects cannot be restored. Shared URLs become invalid at the same time.

Scenes and storyboard

A project can contain multiple scenes. A scene is the equivalent of a "shot" — create one per setup in the shoot.

Add and reorder scenes

• Open the "Scenes" tab in the left panel and click + to add a scene.
• Drag scenes to reorder them.
• Edit scene name and cut number via right-click or the menu.

Storyboard view

Switch to the "Storyboard" tab next to "Scenes" to see thumbnails of each scene's camera view, side by side. Great for reviewing the overall flow and exporting as a storyboard PDF.

Generate placements with AI chat

Open the "Chat" tab in the right panel and describe your shoot in plain language. The LLM proposes placements for cameras, subjects and props, and applies them to the 3D scene instantly.

Example prompts

• Interview shoot with 2 subjects and 1 camera
• Portrait shoot with 1 subject and 2 cameras
• Group conversation with 4 subjects and 2 cameras
• Dialogue scene for drama with 3 actors and 3 cameras

Quick-prompt buttons above the input fill in templates instantly. Including the goal of the shoot, number of subjects/cameras and the space (e.g. café, outdoor) yields higher-quality suggestions.

Iterative refinement

• Each new prompt updates the current scene incrementally.
• You can refine in plain language: "add another camera up front", "move subject A slightly stage-left", etc.
• If a result misses the mark, prompt again with a correction — don't rely on browser back.

Available objects

Through chat you can request sofas, chairs, desks, round tables, plants, standing lamps, shelves, TVs, beds and boxes, plus stages, walls / partitions and lecterns. Try prompts like "place a stage and a lectern for a keynote scene" or "put a background wall behind the subjects".

Lighting prompts

Phrases like "three-point lighting", "key light from the left", "softbox for a soft look", "ring light" or "practical (desk lamp)" trigger automatic placement of key / fill / back lights. When lights are placed, lighting mode turns on automatically so you can see the result. Without explicit lighting cues, no lights are added — your scene stays clean.

Sizing (for some objects)

These objects accept width / height / depth in plain language. Phrases like "large desk", "thin stage" or "long wall" set the right dimensions.

Other objects (sofa, round table, plant, lamp, shelf, TV, bed, lectern) are fixed-size. To customize, place them and use the handles in the editor, or create custom ones in My objects.

Working in the 3D editor

Camera controls (mouse / trackpad)

Toolbar buttons

• Top / Front / Side / Iso: jump to a preset view.
• Camera FOV: toggle the camera frustum pyramid for placed cameras.
• Light cone: shown in lighting mode. Toggles the cone visualization for spot/key lights.
• Labels: toggle name labels on objects.
• Grid / list: switch the multi-camera framing preview between grid and list.

Edit and view modes

• Edit mode: add, move, rotate and delete objects.
• View mode: orbit only. Prevents accidental edits during presentation.

Placing objects

Pick items to add to the scene from the "Objects" list in the left panel. Standard items include cameras, people, furniture and standing lights.

Add, duplicate, delete

• Click an object on the panel, or drag it into the 3D view.
• Select an object and press ⌘+D (or Ctrl+D) to duplicate.
• Delete / Backspace to delete.

Camera-specific settings

• Adjust the selected camera's FOV (focal length), height and target.
• The "Cameras" tab in the right panel shows a framing thumbnail for each camera.
• Add comments per camera (see below).

People, furniture, lighting

• People have a simple facing direction (front / back / side).
• Furniture and props can be resized with handles.
• Standing lights are useful when planning the lighting setup.
• Each light has a "hide fixture" toggle — keep the light, hide the physical fixture (to fully turn off a light, use the eye icon in the list).

My objects

On the My objects page you can create and manage your own custom objects — props specific to a project, unusual gear or branded sets become reusable across all projects.

How to create an object

1. Click "New" on the My objects page.
2. Edit dimensions, color and shape in the object editor.
3. Or describe one in chat: "make a simple wooden table" — AI drafts a starting point.
4. A thumbnail is generated automatically; the object becomes available in the editor's left panel.

Camera comments

Each camera can carry a comment — shot intent, direction, notes — kept with that specific shot. Combined with the storyboard, this makes on-set communication smoother.

• Toggle the comments panel from the Comments button in the "Cameras" tab.
• Comments are included in PDF export.
• Storyboard view can also show comments.
• The LLM adds a comment to each camera when generating a scene, describing the shot intent. Edit any of them by hand.
• In the Settings tab's JSON view, comments live at placement.cameras[*].comment and stay in sync with the panel.

Sharing and publishing

URL sharing

• Generate a share URL from the "Share" tab in the right panel.
• Recipients can view the 3D scene without logging in (the header shows a "Shared project" badge).
• Copy the URL with the copy button. Edit/view mode and the current scene/storyboard view are preserved as ?mode=viewer / ?view=storyboard so recipients see the same state.

Screenshot

The "Screenshot" button in the Share tab exports the current 3D view as an image — handy for messenger or social sharing.

Publishing and forking

• Publish a project to the Gallery and other creators can browse and reference it.
• Published projects can be forked — duplicated into the viewer's account for further editing.
• Unpublishing removes it from the gallery; existing forks remain.

PDF export

The PDF export button in the editor's top-right exports the plan as a PDF — for printing, emailing or handing out on set.

Three layouts

• Storyboard: camera views per scene, storyboard-style.
• Grid: all camera framings side by side.
• Scene list: overview shot plus camera cluster, per scene.

Included info

• Scene name and shot number
• Camera framing preview
• Per-camera comments
• Project name and last update date

Plans and billing

Shot Planner starts on Free and upgrades to Pro when you need more. See current pricing and limits on the Pricing page.

Upgrading

1. Click "Upgrade to Pro" on the Pricing page.
2. Enter card details on the Stripe checkout page.
3. Pro features unlock immediately after payment.

Cancelling

• Cancel from the "Billing" section on the Settings page.
• After cancellation, Pro features remain available until the end of the current billing period.
• No prorated refunds for mid-period cancellation.

Settings

Manage account info, notifications and billing on the Settings page.

• Profile: change display name and avatar.
• Billing: check current plan, upgrade, cancel.
• Delete account: permanently delete your account. Projects and share URLs are deleted and cannot be recovered.

Keyboard shortcuts

Troubleshooting

The 3D view is black or empty

WebGL may be disabled. Update to the latest browser, enable hardware acceleration and reload. Some corporate networks restrict WebGL by policy.

The AI's suggestions miss the mark

• Be specific about counts: "2 people", "1 camera".
• Add one space cue: "café-style", "outdoor", "small meeting room".
• Iterate: "add another camera, right-rear of the subject".

The share URL doesn't open

• The project may have been deleted, or sharing may have been revoked.
• Unpublishing from the gallery also invalidates the URL.

PDF text is cut off

"Fit to page" in the printer dialog scales the output. Choose "Actual size (100%)" and re-export.

Still stuck?

Message us from the Support page. Replies appear on the same page.

Glossary