Second film crew production technician

The second film crew technician: role and mission

Blockbusters are super-productions that sometimes require special staging. Stunts, action scenes, chases, explosions, big mechanical special effects… Behind these cinematic moments of great intensity for the viewer is a seasoned professional: the second-team film technician director. It’s their job to direct and stage these situations. Under the direction of the principal director, he is in charge of an entire team, which he supervises to meet the initial demand. Even though they are responding to a specific order, the second-team cinema technician-director has a duty to be a source of ideas: they submit their ideas for staging to the director, and may even go further than the initial specifications.

Training and qualifications: how do I get to be a film second unit technician director?

Like the job of film director, the job of film second shift technician director requires a solid training in film, which will give students all the keys to audiovisual production. This is what the CinéCréatis cinema training programme offers, with the option in the final year of choosing one of the following majors: pre-production, image or post-production.

Second-team cinema technician-directors start out in production, on small or medium-sized productions, before specialising. They may also come from related professions, such as grips, after having trained in directing.

Qualities and skills of a second-team cinema production technician

When working on a production, the second-team film technician director is working on a project that is not his or her own. To remain consistent with the overall project, they immerse themselves in the intentions of the principal director and understand his or her vision. In fact, they are capable of putting aside their ego and their personal vision as director, so as not to get in the way of the project. However, he must know how to find the right balance, and put his expertise at the service of the director and the production.

Patient, organised and rigorous, he manages his teams with a master’s hand, ensuring that the scenes entrusted to him run smoothly.

Career and career opportunities

Second-team technical directors work almost exclusively on big-budget films. As a result, they are often required to work with foreign studios – particularly American and Asian – and generally have to go abroad to develop their careers.

Salary of a second unit film technician director

The salary of a film second unit technician starts at around €2,600 gross per week. To this salary must be added royalties and resale rights, which can considerably increase their income.