1) Color helps - every movie is like a painting - one needs to choose the paint before one goes to paint it.

2) Attention to detail helps - but it is of no use if you have NOT communicated it with BLOCK letters to your team mates.

3) You have to take care of everything. Period. Anything above is a bonus.

4) Get lightman in the discussion meetings too.

5) Your editor must know your shot breakdown so that he can make appropriate suggestions.

6) Quality of your movie - quality of your extras. Production Design Versus Social Design.

7) Production design of your movie determines if it is a student film or not.

8) Pre-decide the music of your film to know the rhythm of the shots.

9) If the movie is for 8 mins - have story of 4 mins to get the emotions out.

10) Take inputs from everyone on the team - they are useful - but not on the day of the shoot - before that.

11) Have good ADs who feel for your movie as much as you feel for it.