If you don’t know about or aren’t using Evernote, you are missing out big time. Simply put, Evernote allows you to take all types of notes (from text to audio to images) and store them in the cloud. They have fantastic programs on tons of platforms that allow you to access and create/edit notes from your desktop and your phone. Make a change anywhere, and it syncs to the cloud.

I’d recommend signing up for a premium (paid) account, but the basic account is free, and so are the clients.

With a technology like Evernote, use cases are far-ranging and diverse, but today we’re going to take a look at some uses specifically for DiY Filmmakers.

With Evernote, you can …

Scout Locations

With Evernote’s mobile app for the iPhone, you can take a picture of a location and Evernote will automatically geo-tag it. Create a location scouting Notebook to store all those images, and you’ll automatically have a catalog of images and lat/long for potential locations.

Organize Releases and Other Documents

A great Evernote feature is the ability to scan right into it. This is a great way to keep production documents in the cloud in case a folder full of releases go missing or catches on fire.

Keep Equipment Checklists

I find paper checklists cumbersome and ineffective because they can’t be easily re-used. Using Evernote’s checkboxes feature, you can create different checklists for equipment and even scenes and broll that need to be shot that day. In the chaos of a shoot, having an easily accessible checklist on your phone can be a lifesaver.

Track Daily Shooting Notes

Taking notes during a shoot is something that is both essential and extremely annoying. It’s very seldom that anyone has any time to jot down anything about a script change or a note that will become important next week in the editing room. Using Evernote’s audio note feature, you can quickly record audio notes throughout the day and refer to them later on your desktop or during editing.

Distribute Daily Sides

Sides are the pages of the script that will be shot on any given day. Distributing them can be a hassle, but using Evernote’s sharing feature, you can just copy/paste the pertinent pages of the script into a new note and share with the cast and crew via the web. It may not completely replace physical sides, but it helps.

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There you have it. If you aren’t incorporating Evernote into your workflow, I say dooo it!