CineCraft: Unified Shot Planning, Capture, and Post-Processing for Mobile Cinematography

CHI 2026

Nhan (Nathan) Tran Sam Belliveau Zixin Xu Abe Davis
Cornell University, NY, USA
Paper (Soon) Video (Soon) App (Soon)
CineCraft Teaser

Our tool, CineCraft, uses animated storyboards—shot plans (Top)—to unify three stages of mobile filmmaking. Our shot planning interface (Left) lets users design and previsualize shots by keyframing foreground/background layers and camera motion. During capture (Center), we overlay the shot plan on the live view, track subjects to guide framing, and automate zoom and focus. During post-processing (Right), we use the planned storyboard to group captured footage under each shot panel, let users select the best take for each shot, and string them into a rough cut—all within a single app.

Abstract

We present an interactive mobile application that supports the design, AR guided capture, and post-processing (stabilization, take management, and rough cut assembly) of cinematic shots on mobile devices, unifying filmmaking stages that traditionally require separate tools and personnel.

See you at CHI 2026 in Barcelona! 🇪🇸

Paper, video presentation, and app download will be available closer to the conference.