Make a concept and expand it to a one-page synopsis that details what happens in the movie's beginning, middle and end. Crucial elements needed in your story include the premise of the story (ideally a one-liner summing up what happens in the film); characters and character backgrounds; the conflict or problem of the main characters; the goals and motivation of major, minor and supporting characters; the exposition of plots; and the climax leading up to the film's finale.
Translate your story into a script. In making a script, the general format requires a heading for every sequence. A sequence is a series of related shots that constitute a complete unit of action in a film. You must provide the sequence number, the sequence's location, especially if it is in an interior (Int.) or exterior (Ext.) setting (inside the house or out in the forest), location description and the time frame of the sequence (morning, noon, night, day, evening, midnight or dawn). An example of this is "Seq. 1. Int. Bedroom. Morning." After the sequence heading, write in paragraph form what happens in each sequence. Move on to the next sequence until the movie's ending.
Choose your production team and cast your actors. Major film studios usually require hundreds or even thousands of people in the production. However, for an independent film or an amateur filmmaker starting with a small movie project, the conservative production budget only requires a few key people to get involved. For the production staff and crew, you need the director, producer, assistant director, director of photography (also known as cinematographer), production designer, production manager, production assistant(s), camera crew, lighting crew and grip crew. The most minimal productions, especially low-budget documentary films, may only involve a director who does all of the work. However, this work is often a creative burden and an emotional hardship for the filmmaker.
The production can make a casting call where actors can audition for specific roles in the movie. However, you may still finalize the cast without any audition.
Choose your locations and get the necessary shooting permits at local government offices. This is usually the task of the producer's team, which includes the production manager and production assistant(s). Do ocular inspections of the locations. Oculars are crucial in making the shooting schedules of the production manager and assistant director, the camera and lighting requirements of the cinematographer's team and the art requirements of the production designer's team. Shoot photos and videos of the locations to help you during production meetings. You may also prefer to make storyboards through them.
Conduct production meetings to discuss all the technical, creative and financial requirements and concerns in making the movie. Discuss your vision and creative treatment for the film. Finalize your technical list, which may include camera accessories like filters, lenses and cables; sound equipment accessories like microphones, cords and batteries: lights needed during day and night shots; and grip equipment like tripods, century stands, jibs and cranes. Make a script breakdown and shot list so you can develop the shooting schedule. You may want to rehearse the actors or let them join the oculars so they can see the locations ahead of time. If this is not possible, show them the photos and videos of the locations.
Shoot the movie. For a short film, it is possible to shoot everything in one day. For a feature film, it can take days or months. Some other films, especially documentaries, may even take years to finish shooting.
There are many items that should be addressed by the production team during the shoot. There should be a checklist so that all the equipment and documents are brought to the set. There should be food and drinks available for everyone in the entire course of production. There should be cash available for emergency expenses like extra food, batteries, props and first aid kits. Make sure you playback all the tapes (for tape-based camera recording) or digital files (for file-based camera recording) both from the camera and sound equipment in every take.
Assemble the footage in your editing software. Edit the video clips and make a rough cut of the film, and then make the final cut. Make sure the sound and music are synced with the video. When everything is finalized, export it to a movie file. You may prefer to burn the file to a DVD or Blu-ray disc. Make backup copies of the digital file in an external storage device like an external hard drive or flash drive.