Every film project goes through the stages of development, production and distribution prior to final showcase in front of audience. Within the production stage there are again three sequential phases for pre-production, principal photography and post-production process. There are distinctions between above the line personnel who are involved in the entire process right from development phase, like Producers, Director and Screenwriter. Rest of team forms the ‘below- the- line’ technical crew that takes part in different phases of production. While working on a project, one should have a fair understanding of roles and hierarchy of team to minimize time and efforts during production which is somewhat standard across the globe; however each crew operates a little differently, depending on their team size and the requirement of production. Typically, every production team requires the following on-set technical crew for bringing the elements of a film shoot together.
AD Team: Consisting of a 1st AD, 2nd AD, and a trainee AD or set PA, they form a link in the chain of command from the director down to the individual departments for purpose of handling call sheets, shooting schedules and scripts for filming unit.
Script Supervisor: Also known as continuity person,Script supervisor keeps track of shots to observe continuity between different shots and scenes by taking notes, keeping track of blocking, props used, movement of actors and other details ensuring that everything is in order.
Production Designer: Responsible for overall aesthetic expression of the film including set design, color scheme and costumes, the production designer heads the team of art director, set/ prop/ costume designers, illustrators and graphic artists. A production designer works closely with the director and the director of photography to achieve the desired look of the film.
Camera Team: A camera team consists of Director of photography or Cinematographer, Camera operator, 1st assistant camera or focus puller and 2nd assistant camera, a steadicam operator, a DIT to ensure smooth filming.
Lighting Team: Working closely with director of photography, lighting director heads the team of gaffer, key grip, electricians and genny operator to choose the appropriate lights, flags, filters, and corresponding lighting gears to achieve the desired look.
Grips: Trained lighting and rigging technicians, grips assemble and manage dollies, tripods, C-stands, sandbags, cranes and work closely with the lighting team to put in the non-electrical components required for a shot, such as flags, overheads, and bounces.
Sound team: Production sound team is headed by the Production sound recordist/mixer, responsible for all aspects of production sounds with the help of a boom operator and assistant sound/ sound utility.
Production Assistant: The production assistant or PA is more or less the assistant to every team on set. They might help with grip work, help with camera or lighting, take notes, get lunches or do whatever needs to be done on set during filming of scenes.
Production support in India
Argalian Pictures produces documentaries, dramas, films and corporate videos for clients and therefore have our own production team including director, cinematographers, sound mixer and set designers available for all kind of shoots. In addition to our in-house team, we also have a great network of technical crew to help with any project to assist Indie filmmakers or foreign filmmakers looking for production support crew anywhere in India. We can also shoot the desired footage for you by visiting remote locations if your camera team is unable to personally visit that place due to budget constraint or any other reason.