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preproduction

American  
[pree-pruh-duhk-shuhn] / ˌpri prəˈdʌk ʃən /

noun

  1. Movies. the steps necessary to prepare a film for production, as casting, choosing locations, and designing sets and costumes.

adjective

  1. occurring before production.

preproduction British  
/ ˌpriːprəˈdʌkʃən /

noun

  1. preliminary work on or trial production of a play, industrial prototype, etc

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

adjective

  1. (of a period, model, etc) preliminary; trial

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of preproduction

First recorded in 1935–40; pre- + production

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Raicek has been busy in preproduction on her play “Fire Season,” which has already been workshopped with actors including Billy Crudup and Amanda Seyfried.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 16, 2026

A late-night voice memo between Baldoni and Lively during the preproduction phase of "It Ends With Us" in 2023 gets leaked.

From Salon • Jan. 29, 2025

They began discussing it years ago in its initial preproduction stage before the pandemic, when the project was temporarily scuttled and recast.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 8, 2025

The “17 Again” star is expected to star in the upcoming Disney version of the 1987 comedy “3 Men and a Baby,” which is in preproduction.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 6, 2024

If I had the financing for one of the five scripts that I have now I’d start preproduction tomorrow.

From Salon • Jun. 3, 2024

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.