In filmmaking, dailies or rushes are the raw, unedited footage shot during the making of a motion picture. The term "dailies" comes from when movies were all shot on film because usually at the end of each day, the footage was developed, synced to sound, and printed on film in a batch (and later telecined onto videotape or disk) for viewing the next day by the director, selected actors, and film crew members. After the advent of digital filmmaking, "dailies" were available instantly after the take and the review process was no longer tied to the overnight processing of film and became more asynchronous. Now some reviewing may be done at the shoot, even on location, and raw footage may be immediately sent electronically to anyone in the world who needs to review the takes. For example, a director can review takes from a second unit while the crew is still on location or producers can get timely updates while travelling. Dailies serve as an indication of how the filming and the actors' performances are progressing.[1] The term was also used to describe film dailies as "the first positive prints made by the laboratory from the negative photographed on the previous day".[2]
In some regions such as the UK, India and Canada, dailies are usually referred to as rushes or daily rushes, referring to the speed at which the film prints were developed.[3] In animation, dailies are also called rushes or sweat box sessions.
Film dailies may also refer to the process of viewing dailies in a theater, usually by a group.[4]