The ability to bring a story to life on television involves a vast, diverse team of people with specialized expertise. It can be difficult to know who you need, and this can be dependent on a number of things such as the size of the production and the budget. To help get you started, we have listed some of the common crew members on a film or video production below and a brief description of what they do. Let’s take a closer look:4
Director
Arguably the most important role on a film set is the director. The director is the person in charge of a set, who has an overview of the whole film and works to tell the story through staging and directing the actors on how they should approach their performance. The director works closely with all other aspects of the team to ensure that everyone is on the same page and focused on the same goal.
Producer
The producer of a project is in charge of overseeing the film’s entire production, including the overall budget and production timelines. They serve as the primary point of contact for the director, the cast, and the production’s funding sources, ensuring that everything goes smoothly and on schedule.
Cinematographer
The cinematographer, usually referred to as the director of photography, is in charge of capturing the movie’s overall theme. They work alongside the director to develop the aesthetic and make sure that the special effects, lighting, and camera angles all work together to achieve this final result.
Makeup and Hair Artists
If you are dealing with many actors on set, you may wish to consider hiring some professional hair and make-up artists to take care of their looks. An actor’s hair and make-up can really convince viewers of the location or time period of the production, so it is important to keep these consistent throughout filming. Additionally, make-up artists understand how actors look on camera and can help create any special effects such as bleeding or bruising that you may require for your storyline.
Gaffer
The gaffer on a film set is responsible for lighting the sets and locations. They work with the cinematographer to ensure that the lighting is consistent across all takes – which can be harder than it looks if the time or day has changed. They will have technical experience on how to work all the lighting equipment and work to ensure that the lighting complements the theme of the project.
Grip
Another technical role to make sure that you have on-site is the grip. The grip is in charge of maintaining a lot of the equipment on a production – including the cameras and the lighting and sound equipment. They help set up the equipment, make sure that it is in full working order and aim to fix any issues with it, limiting the impact this will have on the production.
Cameramen
Cameramen are there to do exactly what their name suggests – control the cameras and record the shots that the director is looking to film. Depending on the size of your production and the number of cameras that you have on set, you may need multiple cameramen working at different angles to ensure that you get the perfect final cut.
The Takeaway
There can be hundreds of roles on a film set during the filming process, never mind the editing and production process after filming has been completed. The number of different roles for each production varies depending on the size of the product, but some of the crew listed above are essential for a successful production.
Photos by: Cottonbro Studios/Martin Lopez/Bence Szemerey
