Just Booked Your First Feature Film Gig, What Now?
Looking back at what It felt like working your first feature film can be an enjoyable experience for some & a daunting one for others. There’s a lot to be said about what one might encounter while working on a feature film set in general & this can vary depending what department you find yourself working in. Let’s also not forget to mention that working on a feature film vs working on a short film are two completely different beasts in and of themselves. Let’s look at how you can best prepare & what you should expect to see during each stage of production so that you can walk onto that set fully prepared & with the utmost confidence in yourself to perform at your best on day 1 of principal photography, all the way to final shooting day.
Pre-Production
During the pre-production phase, there are a lot of important decisions that are going to be made that will ultimately affect you as a crew member working on the project that you’re attached to. More than likely, the producer of the project is going to host a few pre-production meetings prior to the first shooting day. A pre-production meeting is a vital meeting that is held before production on a project officially begins & they’re designed to get all key crew members & anyone else that’s playing a major role in putting the production together on the same page. These meetings will either happen virtually or in person depending on where everyone working on the project is located & their availability as well. You should attend as many of these as you can. This is where you’ll meet all the crew heads, you’ll be updated on any important logistical information, you’ll meet everyone working in your department, & you’ll be updated on any important tasks that you or your department members may need to accomplish. There’s much more that’ll typically happen in a pre-production meeting, but these are at the top of the list when it comes to what you should expect to hear & talk about in these meetings.
Pre-production meetings can sometimes become sporadic but that’s okay. Stay up to date on your emails & keep an eye out for any updates from the producer. In the meantime, meeting with members of your department on your own time can prove to be very helpful to you in your preparation for the production phase. If possible, doing this will allow you & everyone in your department to understand what equipment will be used, what everyone’s on set workflow will be, & you’ll be able to get all the clarification that you need to ensure that you’re all set for day 1 of production. Now let’s look at what you can expect to see once pre-production is underway & you’ve stepped foot onto that set.
Production
Prep days have been completed; equipment rentals have been acquired & shooting locations have been locked down. The production phase has arrived. Getting a good night’s rest prior to day 1 of principal photography is in your best interest. Whether it’s a union or non-union production, 12–14-hour days are usually the standard as it pertains to feature film production days. Occasionally, you may have 6- or 8-hour production days depending on what needs to be shot that day. Checking the call sheet before every shooting day is a good habit to practice. It’ll tell you when you’re supposed to report to set, parking instructions, what scenes are being shot that day, when to break for lunch, etc. Getting to set before the crew call time is going to allow you to get your bearings & get familiar with the space. Usually, you’ll see your fellow crew and department members arriving to set as well. If you get to set early, you’ll also get the chance to have some breakfast or your morning coffee from the crafty table. Set up begins! During this time, the wardrobe department will be dressing the actors in their costumes, the grip & electric team will be setting up & staging their lighting rigs, members of the camera department will be building out the camera with all its necessary accessories, & the sound department will be setting up their equipment as well. This can be a very overwhelming time for some as there’s a lot happening at one time. Don’t stress! Take a deep breath, shake off those nerves, & remember that you were chosen to be on that set for a reason. You’re the best one for the job & you absolutely deserve to be on that set with everyone else. Remember all the prep work that you’ve done. Focus on your tasks & completing them in the way that you know how. It’s hard to describe but there’s a certain energy that permeates through the air just before that camera rolls for the first time. Be observant, take everything in, & learn as much as you can. Feature film shooting schedules can range anywhere from a few weeks to over 100 days for productions with larger budgets. Get to know everyone as best you can, especially the folks working in your department. You guys will be seeing each other every single day on set. When the camera starts rolling & a few scenes have been shot, nerves will settle & you’ll get into your groove. Hiccups will happen but you can’t let it throw you off your game. In the great words of Novacat’s own Kevin Baker, “Don’t let a bad moment make a bad day, because a bad day can make a bad week, and a bad week can make a bad movie”.
Post-Production/The Aftermath
Congratulations! You’ve wrapped on principal photography of the feature film. You’ve made a movie! All equipment has been wrapped & now everyone gets to go home after the long journey. Make sure to get contact info from everyone that you met on set! Numbers, emails, Instagrams, all will suffice. This is where your next gig will most likely come from. You officially now have a feature film credit under your belt. You should be proud of yourself for this achievement. When you get back home, make sure to update your credits, & post any BTS photos of you on set. Show the world what you’ve created! Reach out to other filmmakers as well & let them know that you’ve just finished working on a feature & that you’re eager to work on any of their upcoming projects. Take everything that you’ve learned & build on it. You never know when the next one might come around. When it does, go out there, be confident in yourself, work hard, & have fun!
To learn more about what working on a feature film for the first time entails, listen to the newest episode of Cat’s Cast with Quinn & Hazen!