Day-Out-of-Days (DOOD): Overview
A Day-Out-of-Days (DOOD) report is a tabular grid that distills a multi-week production schedule into a single glance by showing what status each cast member (or production element) holds on every shooting day. Using letters such as “W” (work), “S” (start), “F” (finish), “H” (hold), and “T” (travel), the document enables accountants to forecast payroll, unions to verify rest periods, and assistant directors to negotiate cost-saving consolidation.
Day-Out-of-Days (DOOD): Historical Origins
Paper DOODs emerged alongside colour stripboards in the studio system of the 1930s, when large ensemble casts demanded tighter resource management. Modern spreadsheet versions proliferated with Movie Magic Scheduling in the 1990s, though some 1st ADs still pin printed DOODs outside the production office for quick redline updates.
Anatomy of a DOOD Table
| Day | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | | — | — | — | — | — | | Actor A | S | W | W | H | | Actor B | — | T | W | F |
- Legend: S = Start, W = Work, F = Finish, H = Hold, T = Travel, I = Idle. Each row represents an element—usually a performer but sometimes a specialty prop (e.g., a hero vehicle) or location. Columns map directly to calendar days.
Creation & Maintenance
The 1st AD exports scene breakdowns to a scheduling program, which auto-generates initial DOOD codes. Human intervention fine-tunes union-mandated turnarounds, child-labour windows, and weekend dips. When script revisions cascade, the DOOD is often the first casualty; veteran ADs therefore lock the grid behind password-protection to prevent accidental recalculations.
Utility in Budget & Logistics
- Payroll Forecasting — Flags unnecessary “hold” days that inflate cast guarantees.
- Travel Coordination — Highlights clusters of “T” days, aiding travel-department bulk bookings.
- Insurance Compliance — Provides underwriters with proof of scheduled rest periods.
Pitfalls & Controversies
The compressed nature of DOODs can obscure micro-turnarounds (e.g., late Friday wrap into early Monday call), leading to fatigue disputes. Conversely, studios sometimes leverage the data to negotiate reduced idle pay, prompting guild complaints that the report is weaponised against talent.
Day-Out-of-Days (DOOD): Best-Practice Tips
- Freeze Rows for leads so scrolling doesn’t hide key cost drivers.
- Conditional Colouring—red for overtime, amber for night work—quickly flags budget stress.
- Version Control; save PDFs to archive weekly snapshots, satisfying audit trails.
Day-Out-of-Days (DOOD): Trivia
- A popular superstition among 1st ADs holds that printing a DOOD before the location permit is signed “curses” the schedule, causing weather delays.
- Exhibitors at trade shows sometimes refer to elaborate DOOD displays as “murder boards” due to the sea of red idle codes on mismanaged gigs.