Video Production Hire Checklist

Why Do Film Shoots Almost Always Go Over Budget On Equipment?

Overruns are the norm, not the exception.

The average Hollywood film runs over budget, and independent productions run over by an even wider margin. Budgets rarely blow up all at once.

They blow up department by department, from estimates nobody quite got right.

Equipment is a classic example. A production will nail down the camera and lens package early, since that's the obvious cost.

What gets missed is everything that sits around it: enough batteries to actually run a full day, the right cables, an adapter for a lens that doesn't natively fit.

None of those items are expensive on their own, but they add up, and they're the ones that get discovered late.

What Do Most People Actually Forget To Hire?

Almost never the camera. Nearly always the small stuff.

Experienced camera assistants build their own kits around the little things that keep a day running: spare batteries, cables and connectors, the kind of items that don't make it onto a first-pass equipment list.

One working camera assistant describes always carrying spare cables and a signal converter just in case, because productions rarely think to hire a backup.

It's the same pattern we see from our side.

We always get people asking for last-minute additions once they're actually on set or about to be: something they hadn't accounted for, or assumed would come with the camera body.

V-Lock batteries are a good example. They're always a separate line item, never bundled with the camera body, and it's an easy thing to miss if you're not used to how kit hire actually works.

We've supplied kit, studio space and crew on over 10,000 jobs since 1997, and the shape of what gets missed hasn't really changed. It's rarely the headline item. It's the thing that supports it.

Why Do Lens And Mount Adapters Get Missed So Often?

Because they only become a problem once everything else is attached.

An adapter can look fine sitting on a shelf, but mount problems hide until you add the matte box, the follow focus, or the specific filters you're planning to use.

An adapter is really just the bridge between a camera body and a lens that wasn't built for it, and if that pairing isn't right for the mount, a lens can end up not focusing correctly, or not working at all.

This is exactly why it's worth checking mount compatibility before the shoot, not on the day.

If you're planning to pair PL or EF glass with a body that doesn't natively take it, sort the right adapter at the same time you book the lens, not as an afterthought.

Where Does Gear Planning Actually Fit Into Pre-Production?

Later than most people expect. In a typical pre-production process, "gear up" comes as a distinct, late-stage step, after the shot list and the tech scout, not right at the start.

Other planning frameworks treat gear and tech as their own dedicated phase too, separate from casting, locations or legal.

That's worth knowing, because it means your equipment list should keep changing right up until close to the shoot, as the shot list and location firm up.

It's also why we've always leaned toward supplying equipment, studio and crew together where we can.

When one supplier can see the whole picture, it's easier to catch the thing that's about to fall through the gap between departments.

Your Free Video Production Equipment Checklist

This is exactly what the checklist below is built for.

It's grouped the way a kit list should be, camera, lighting, audio and grip, then location, crew and the admin bits people forget, so you can run through it before you ever pick up the phone.

How To Actually Use This Checklist Before You Book

Most people only check a list like this right before they book, which is better than never, but not by much.

Run through it again once your shot list and location are locked, since that's usually when the real gaps show up.

If you're hiring from us, it's also worth knowing our pickup and return windows upfront.

For a weekday job, collection can typically happen the afternoon before, with return the morning after, so factor that into your own schedule rather than assuming same-day.

Still not sure what you need? Talk to us before you book. It's easier to catch a gap on the phone than on set.