How to Keep Your Super Low-Budget Film Crew Happy

So you've rented the equipment and hired your crew and now you're ready to shoot. Maybe you're a first time A.D., or maybe you're the director of producer of a student project. You don't have much experience and you can't afford to pay your crew much (if anything). Here's how to keep your crew happy so they don't walk off the set.

Be Clear On Rates and Overtime

This is obvious but remember that lack of clear communication will only set the stage for a mutiny.

Your crew should know what their rates for the day or week are and whether that includes overtime. If they are working for a flat rate, then do not constantly abuse it by going 16, 18, or god forbid, 20 hours a day. One or two exceptions a week are okay as long as you make up for it with 1) lots of food and 2) lots of beer. Also be clear on what overtime is. 12 or 14 hours is a normal workday. (But second meal is ALWAYS after 12.)

If you are not paying them anything, keep a well-stocked crafty and do not go over 12 hours.

Be Clear On Kit Fees

Departments like camera, lighting, sound may have their own gear they can rent you.

Makeup artists bring their own makeup to work with. You must pay them a separate kit fee on top of their day rate. If one day you have 30 actors who need to be in makeup when normally you usually have 4, you need to pay them extra kit fees for that day.

If you are not paying them a day rate (they are working for free), but you expect them to provide equipment, you must pay them a kit fee. This stuff ain't cheap.

Have Good Craft Services and Catering

It's amazing what good food will do for morale and it doesn't necessarily require a big budget. Make sure crafty is ready to go when the crew arrives to set up. Have you ever done grip work? It is a job that requires a lot of sweat, and not having water on set when these guys arrive is a sure way to make them unhappy.

Crafty should also have healthy snacking items, as much as you can afford on your budget. Six hours is a long time to go before lunch. If you're determined not to spend money here, at the very least get some water, ice (to keep it cold) and fruit and granola bars. Junk food may be popular with some, but for people who spend almost every day on a film set, there needs to be healthy snacking options.

If you can afford it, get a real catering service for lunch. If you can't, it helps if you have a friend of parent who is a really good cook as it is better to provide a nutritious meal than a fast-food one. Repeat after me: pizza or cheeseburgers is not a lunch, it's a second meal.

Always have a vegetarian option. A caterer will already know to do this, but if your parent is cooking and meatloaf is their specialty, ask 'em to make a vegetarian dish as well.

Calling Grace

The only time to call grace (ask for a extension before going to lunch) is when you know you cannot get the shot after lunch, e.g. the sun will be down after lunch and you need that last daylight shot. Grace should only last five or ten minutes, tops. If it goes into fifteen minutes, then you should save it for after lunch or schedule a reshoot. When you call grace, get the permission of the people you need to stay (camera operators, sound, talent) and let the others you don't need go.

You may be shooting an independent feature that will blow all the critics minds out, but you need your crew to do it. And these people deal everyday with directors who think highly of themselves and their work. Don't expect them to make an exception and miss lunch to work on your shoot.

Second Meal

If you are going over 12 hours on your shoot, you MUST provide second meal. It is legally and morally wrong not to provide a meal every six hours, plus it is a deal breaker for crews who are about to walk off your set.

This is when it's okay to order your crew pizza or cheeseburgers from the local fast food joint.

Be Conscious of the Duties That Pertain to Each Position

You may be a non-union shoot but the people you've hired are probably working for you because 1) they want more experience in the position they've been hired for, or 2) they're used to bigger projects and work is slow.

The latter are used to hard and fast rules about what they can or cannot do (or even touch!) and the former will resent you for asking them to do things that don't further their career.

It is generally accepted that there will be a certain amount of inter department work on a small shoot. But if it's something outside "film" work, such as fixing the toilet or babysitting the producer's kid, don't push your luck by asking a grip or wardrobe to do it. When in doubt, get a PA to do it, or even better--do it yourself. (Okay, unless you're the director herself. But producers are fair game.)

Last Words

Remember that each member of your crew is a human being and a professional: respect the work that they do for you, communicate your needs clearly, and never expect them to go hungry for you!

It is in your best interest to keep your crew happy: they will appreciate your efforts and, in turn, go the extra mile for you.