Your Short Film: 2 to 3 Minutes, Script to Screen
The capstone project for Make Your Film: From Script to Screen with AI — a free AI & Emerging Tech course. Pass it and you earn a certificate anyone can verify.
- Most courses free to start
- 9 steps
- Pass mark 70%
- Human-reviewed
- Intermediate
The project unlocks once you complete the lessons. The workbook is free to download now so you can see exactly what is expected.
What you will submit
One link, set so anyone with it can view: a Google Drive folder with the finished film as an MP4 (2 to 3 minutes) plus the screenplay, the numbered shot list, the budget sheet, the credits and licence list with the AI disclosure, and the techniques note, or a Google Doc holding all of those that links the film on YouTube set to Unlisted. The grader watches the film and checks every document; a person on our team reviews every film before a certificate is issued.
What to do, step by step
- Part 1. Make your own short film of 2 to 3 minutes (120 to 180 seconds without the end credits), from your own idea. It must not be Second Hand or a remake of any scene from the course. Any genre, any place in the world. Use the limits from Lesson 1: one clear event, one to three characters whose faces we see, one to three places.
- Part 2. Write the screenplay in standard screenplay format (scene headings, action, character names, dialogue), about one page per minute. Write a logline of one sentence at the top of your documents.
- Part 3. Write a numbered shot list for the whole film, in story order. For every shot give the number, the size, the angle, the movement, the light, the length in seconds, the method (Blender previs + AI, AI only, stock, or filmed by you), the tool, and the prompt you used (or 'stock' or 'filmed').
- Part 4. Fill in a budget sheet: the plans and tools you used with their prices and the date you checked them, the credits you planned and the credits you really spent, and which shots were free and which were paid.
- Part 5. Produce, edit, add sound and music, grade, and add titles and end credits. Keep each character looking the same in every shot. Use only music and sounds you made yourself, public domain, CC0 or licensed for your use. Never use a real person's face, name or voice without written permission, and no real brands or logos in the frame.
- Part 6. Write a credits and licence list for every asset (each tool and its plan, the music, every sound source, every stock clip, with links), and put an AI disclosure in your end credits: which tools you used and what people did.
- Part 7. Write a short note of 150 to 300 words naming at least 6 techniques from the track that you used (for example a match cut, a leitmotif, Rembrandt lighting, a dolly zoom, a point-of-view shot, subtext, an L-cut, a look line or a lock line), with the shot numbers where they appear and why you chose each one.
- Studio standard: anyone can now get a pretty clip from one prompt, so a film that is a string of unrelated clips, with faces that change and no story, will not pass. The film must tell a clear story with consistent characters, planned shots, deliberate sound and an honest AI disclosure. Say in one or two plain sentences in your note where you used AI and what you did yourself; honesty is graded, not the amount of AI.
- Hand in ONE link, set to 'Anyone with the link can view': a Google Drive folder holding your film as an MP4 and your documents (script, shot list, budget sheet, credits and licence list, note) as PDFs, Google Docs or Sheets; or a Google Doc holding all the documents that links your film on YouTube set to Unlisted. The grader can open Google Drive, Google Docs and Sheets, and YouTube. It cannot open TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp, CapCut, Canva or AI chat links, so export and upload your files.
Files to work with
Project workbook (fill in, then submit)The whole brief, an evidence checklist, the grading rubric as a self-check and the link-sharing steps in one file. Opens in Word, Google Docs or WPS.Word · 7 KBHow it is graded
| Criterion | Weight |
|---|---|
| Story and screenplay: the film tells a clear, complete story in 2 to 3 minutes, and the screenplay is in standard format with a logline | 20% |
| Visual craft: shots are planned (size, angle, movement, light), characters stay consistent, and the grade makes one film | 25% |
| Edit and sound: pacing, transitions, sound design and music serve the story, and dialogue is clear | 20% |
| Planning documents: the shot list and budget sheet are complete and match the finished film | 15% |
| Honesty and rights: credits, licence list and AI disclosure are complete and truthful, with no unlicensed music, real people or brands | 10% |
| Techniques note: at least 6 track techniques are named correctly, located by shot number, and justified | 10% |
You need 70% overall to pass. A human examiner also reviews this safety-critical project before any certificate is issued. A failed submission comes back with feedback and can be revised and resubmitted once free; further attempts come with the All-Access Pass or as a paid retake.
Before you submit: make your link public
If your work lives in Google Drive or Google Docs, open Share → General access and change “Restricted” to “Anyone with the link” (Viewer). Then paste the link into a private browser window: if it opens without sign-in, you are ready. A private link cannot be graded — it is the single most common reason a good project fails.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to finish Make Your Film: From Script to Screen with AI before submitting the project?
Yes. The submission screen opens once every lesson in Make Your Film: From Script to Screen with AI is marked complete. The lessons are where the methods, the Nigerian context and the worked examples the project depends on are taught.
How is the project graded?
An examiner scores each rubric criterion from 0 to 100 and weights them as shown on this page; you need 70% overall to pass. Because this is a safety-critical trade, a human examiner also reviews every submission before a certificate is issued.
Can I resubmit if I fail?
Yes. A failed project comes back with feedback; revise the weak parts and resubmit. A passed project is final — the certificate is issued and cannot be re-rolled.
What do I actually submit?
A write-up of what you did (under 5,000 characters) plus a public link to your work — a Google Drive folder, Google Doc, spreadsheet, GitHub repository or video. The link must open without sign-in; a private link cannot be graded. The free project workbook on this page walks you through all 9 steps.
Is the certificate real?
Yes. Passing this project issues a certificate with a unique verification code. Anyone — an employer, a client, a school — can open the verification page and see that the certificate is genuine and which project earned it.
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Ready to earn this certificate?
Make Your Film: From Script to Screen with AI is self-paced. Finish the lessons, complete this project, and the certificate is yours to share.
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