How can you write a scene without the location and logistics?

I had this discussion with someone:
Me: Some scenes the writer should have a say how it must be shot.
Him: Only if he's the one doing the shooting, and I can assure you it'll change on the day.

Me: In my case, as a writer-director it doesn't matter.
Him: It will when you discover nothing you directed on the page can be shot that way.

and this did make me think. Say for example I am shooting a readaptation of Night of the living dead on an island. How will I write the scenes(or any scenes) of the stuff that goes on....random talking shots walking along a street, they find a telephone booth etc etc without actually visiting the location and taking pictures and creating massive records?

I'd say in big productions of Hollywood they just make or create them but what on this independent level?

By the sound of it, you're putting the cart before the horse.

I'd suggest on focusing on writing a great script. When it comes down to the logistics step, you may need to alter the script to fit your reality. If you think of every contingency when you're writing, you increase the risk of writing crud.

rishi851 said:

Say for example I am shooting a readaptation of Night of the living dead on an island. How will I write the scenes(or any scenes) of the stuff that goes on....random talking shots walking along a street, they find a telephone booth etc etc without actually visiting the location and taking pictures and creating massive records?

I'd say in big productions of Hollywood they just make or create them but what on this independent level?

Click to expand...

On this independent level you write what you have access to. You
visit the locations you can use and if you need to you take pictures
and create massive records.

I write with an eye to what I either know or (realistically) think I'll have access to. Once we're in pre-production and actively scouting locations, I re-write as needed to fit what we actually have.

I aim for something that can be achieved on a reasonable budget. It's part of the challenge.

Some movies climax with a big scene that goes down in the middle of a packed stadium, or opera house or something but the more you deviate from a low budget cast/location the harder reality will hit you when you try to produce the script.

It's something I've been struggling with myself lately - a cheap feature script that isn't just a bunch of houses. I have a couple ideas but they're little more than seeds.

Why do you need to make massive records? I mean visiting a location and a handful of pictures should suffice right? I usually know what I'm looking for before I go location scouting, and either a place will work or it won't.