Presentation: Planning a Film Score Cue Sheet

Slide 1 of 7 · Settling starter · Music · Year 11

5 minutes

Planning a film score cue sheet

Before a composer writes a note, the director and composer hold a spotting session: they decide exactly where music starts and stops and which moments it must hit. Today you plan the music for Y Llanw, a 3½-minute short film set on the beach at Rhossili.

While the register is called: write your name, class and date on your worksheet, then read sections 1 and 2 of the stimulus sheet. Circle every ▶, ■ and ◆ in the scene list.

Starter question: Timecode is written minutes : seconds : frames. How many frames are there in 1 second, and how many seconds is 00:24:12?

DCF: Producing → Sourcing, searching and planning digital content No computers or instruments needed · calculators help

Supply teacher script (no subject knowledge needed)

Hand out: one worksheet per pupil and one stimulus sheet (Y Llanw, scene list and music notes) between two. Pupils need a pen and, if possible, a calculator. The film and the people in it are invented; the beach at Rhossili and the tidal causeway to Worm’s Head are real.

Say aloud: “Write your name, class and date at the top of your worksheet. While I take the register, read sections 1 and 2 of the stimulus sheet and circle every play, stop and diamond marker in the scene list. ▶ means music starts, ■ means music stops, and ◆ is a hit point the music must land on exactly. Answer the starter question in rough.”

Starter answer: There are 25 frames in a second, so 00:24:12 is 24 seconds and 12 frames, which is 12 ÷ 25 = 0.48, so 24.48 seconds. The commonest mistake all lesson is treating frames as hundredths of a second: it is 25, not 100.

Slide 2 of 7 · Today’s brief and key words · Music · Year 11

3 minutes

Your brief: time every cue to the frame, then brief the composer

You will complete a cue sheet for 5 cues, choose a tempo that lands on the hit points, decide how to source the 1 song that plays on a radio, and write a brief a composer could work from without seeing the film.

Cue

One stretch of music. Numbered 1M1, 1M2 and so on: reel 1, music cue 1.

Diegetic

Music the characters can hear, such as a radio. Music only the audience hears is non-diegetic, or underscore.

Hit point

A moment the music must land on exactly. It sounds strongest on a downbeat, the first beat of a bar.

Usage code

MT main title, ET end title, BI background instrumental, BV background vocal, VI visual instrumental, VV visual vocal.

DCF: Producing → Sourcing, searching and planning digital content Section 3 of the stimulus sheet lists the usage codes

Slide 3 of 7 · Part A: the cue sheet · Music · Year 11

11 minutes

Part A: complete the cue sheet, then A1

Use the ▶ and ■ markers in the scene list. Work out each duration in minutes : seconds : frames, with 25 frames in a second. Choose a usage code from section 3 and say whether the cue is diegetic.

Cue	In	Out	Duration	Usage	Diegetic?	What the cue has to do
1M1	00:04:00	00:24:12	00:20:12	MT	No	Set the place and the mood, wide, early morning, a bit lonely, under the title.

A1: add up the 5 durations. What is the total music time, and what percentage of the 03:26:00 film has music under it? Convert frames to seconds first: 12 frames = 12 ÷ 25 = 0.48 s.

Part A on your worksheet · 11 minutes Borrow 25 frames, not 100, when you subtract

Supply teacher script (no subject knowledge needed)

Say aloud: “The first row of the cue sheet is on the board. Fill in the other 4 rows, then do A1. Working in frames helps: 1 second is 25 frames. When you subtract 00:48:08 from 01:02:00, borrow 1 second as 25 frames: 61 seconds 25 frames minus 48 seconds 8 frames is 13 seconds 17 frames.”

Quick check: 1M2 in 00:48:08, out 01:02:00, duration 00:13:17, VV, yes: the radio. 1M3 in 01:10:00, out 01:46:00, 00:36:00, BI, no. 1M4 in 01:52:00, out 02:50:00, 00:58:00, BI, no. 1M5 in 02:56:00, out 03:26:00, 00:30:00, ET, no. Accept any sensible story job: 1M2 takes Cerys back to her grandad’s era and cuts dead when the phone buzzes; 1M3 builds panic as the tide cuts her off and peaks on the wave; 1M4 moves from fear to calm and lifts when the lifeboat appears; 1M5 closes the story warmly under the credits.

A1: in frames, 512 + 342 + 900 + 1,450 + 750 = 3,954 frames = 158 s and 4 frames = 02:38:04, which is 158.16 seconds. The film is 206 seconds, so 158.16 ÷ 206 = 0.768, about 77%. A pupil who writes 02:38:04 as 158.04 seconds has used hundredths instead of 25ths.

Slide 4 of 7 · Part B: landing on the hit points · Music · Year 11

12 minutes

Part B: which tempo puts the wave and the end on a downbeat?

Beats from the start of a cue to a hit = tempo (BPM) × seconds ÷ 60. In 4/4 the hit is on a downbeat if that number divides exactly by 4. Cue 1M3 starts at 01:10:00, the wave is at 01:30:00 (20 s in) and the cue must end at 01:46:00 (36 s in).

Tempo	Beats to the wave (20 s)	Downbeat?	Beats to the end (36 s)	Downbeat?
72 BPM	72 × 20 ÷ 60 = 24	Yes (6 bars)	72 × 36 ÷ 60 = 43.2	No, not even on a beat

B2: 1M4 at 90 BPM starts at 01:52:00 and the lifeboat appears at 02:20:00. Does it land on a downbeat in 4/4? What if the cue is in 3/4? Which would you choose, and why might 3/4 suit this moment?

Part B on your worksheet · 12 minutes A hit after 10 complete bars is on bar 11, not bar 10

Supply teacher script (no subject knowledge needed)

Say aloud: “The 72 BPM row is done on the board. Do the other 4 tempos the same way, then say which tempo works for both hits and which bars they land in. Then answer B2 about the lifeboat.”

Quick check (B1): 90 BPM: 30 beats (no, beat 3 of bar 8) and 54 beats (no, beat 3 of bar 14). 96 BPM: 32 (yes, 8 bars) and 57.6 (no). 100 BPM: 33.3 (no) and 60 (yes, 15 bars). 120 BPM: 40 (yes, 10 bars) and 72 (yes, 18 bars). Only 120 BPM works for both: the wave lands on the downbeat of bar 11 and the cue ends at the start of bar 19.

Quick check (B2): 90 × 28 ÷ 60 = 42 beats. In 4/4 that is 10½ bars, so the lifeboat is on beat 3 of bar 11, not a downbeat. In 3/4, 42 ÷ 3 = 14 bars exactly, so it lands on the downbeat of bar 15. A good reason for 3/4: the gentle rocking three-time feels like a boat on the swell, or like a lullaby, right for the moment she stops being afraid.

Slide 5 of 7 · Parts C and D: source the song, brief the composer · Music · Year 11

18 minutes

Part C: sourcing the radio song · Part D: brief the composer

Part C (8 min): read section 4. Score each option 1 (poor) to 3 (good) for a low-budget school film club short going to a Welsh youth film festival. Then C1: which option, why, and which licences from whom. C2: plan the search.

Option	Cost	Time	Sounds authentic	Legal risk (3 = low)	Total
A. License a real 1960s record	1	1	3	1	6

Part D (10 min): D1, write a brief for cue 1M3: the job it does in the story, tempo and time signature from Part B, 2 or 3 instruments and why, how it builds, exactly what happens at the wave, and how it ends at 01:46:00. D2: choose 1 of the silences (00:24:12 to 00:48:08, or 01:46:00 to 01:52:00) and explain what it does that music could not.

Parts C and D on your worksheet · 18 minutes Option A needs 2 licences; a library track needs 1

Supply teacher script (no subject knowledge needed)

Say aloud: “Option A is scored on the board: a real record sounds perfect but costs the most, takes longest and has the highest legal risk. Score B and C yourself, then answer C1 and C2. After about 8 minutes move on to Part D and write the composer’s brief in the frame.”

Quick check (C): the model scores B as 2, 3, 2, 3 = 10 and C as 3, 1, 2, 3 = 9, and chooses Option B. Option A needs a sync licence for the song from the publisher or writers and a master use licence for the recording from whoever owns it, usually the record label. A library owns both, so 1 production music licence covers the song and the recording at a published rate; the track goes on the cue sheet with the library name, track number and origin code L. A well-argued C is acceptable. C2 for Option B needs search words such as “1960s beat pop vocal” and 3 filters such as era 1960s, vocal (it is a VV cue), duration at least 30 seconds, language Welsh.

Walk the room (D): a strong brief for 1M3 says 120 BPM, 4/4, 18 bars; names instruments with a reason (a low cello note and a ticking pulse so we feel time running out, rising strings); puts the wave on bar 11 beat 1 at 01:30:00 with a big drum and cymbal crash; and ends dead on the downbeat of bar 19 at 01:46:00 with no fade. For D2, the 6 seconds after 01:46:00 make us feel how alone and stuck Cerys is and give her the moment to remember her grandad and decide to call 999.

Slide 6 of 7 · Swap and check · Music · Year 11

3 minutes

Swap with a partner: check their 5 durations against yours

Swap worksheets. Check your partner’s 5 durations in Part A against your own. Then tick the success criteria you have met and correct 1 thing.

I can complete a cue sheet with correct cue numbers, in and out times, durations to the frame, and usage codes.
I can tell diegetic from non-diegetic music and describe what each cue does in the story.
I can calculate beats from a tempo and a time, and choose a tempo and metre that put a hit point on a downbeat.
I can compare ways of sourcing music on cost, time, authenticity and legal risk, and name the licences each one needs.
I can plan a targeted search for music using search terms and filters.
I can write a composer’s brief precise enough to work from, and explain what silence contributes.

3 minutes · partner check Finished early? Try the 3 tasks under “If you finish early”

Supply teacher script (no subject knowledge needed)

Say aloud: “Swap sheets with your partner. Compare their 5 durations with yours: 00:20:12, 00:13:17, 00:36:00, 00:58:00 and 00:30:00. If you disagree, redo the subtraction together in frames. Then tick the success criteria you have met and write down 1 thing you corrected, for example a duration where you borrowed 100 frames instead of 25.”

Extension answers: At 120 BPM 1 beat is 0.5 s = 12.5 frames, not a whole number, so an editor cannot cut exactly on every beat; 100 BPM (15 frames a beat), 75 BPM (20 frames) or 150 BPM (10 frames) would work. For 1M1 ending on a downbeat after 20.48 s, the beats must divide by 4: no whole-number tempo between 60 and 130 does it exactly, so accept close answers such as 93.75 BPM (8 bars) or 117.19 BPM (10 bars) with working shown. The PRS line for 1M2 should include title, composer, library name, track number, usage VV, duration 00:13:17 and origin code L, with the invented details labelled.

Slide 7 of 7 · Plenary review · Music · Year 11

2 minutes

Quick-check answers before handing in

Check your main answers before your worksheets are collected.

Question	Correct answer
What is the total music time, and roughly what percentage of the film is that?	02:38:04, about 77% of the 206-second film.
Which tempo puts both the wave and the end of 1M3 on a downbeat?	120 BPM: the wave on bar 11, the end at the start of bar 19.
Which 2 licences does a real 1960s record need, and who gives them?	A sync licence from the publisher or writers, and a master use licence from the owner of the recording, usually the label.

Check your name and class are on your worksheet Leave stimulus sheets neat on the desk