Employee onboarding process for Documentary Producers: a crew induction for the field
A documentary crew member often meets the team at the airport or at the location. Onboarding has to travel with them, and be short enough to read the night before.
Not sure what you need? Tell us about your business in six short steps and we will come to the first meeting prepared.
Share your requirementsWhy employee onboarding process matters in documentary producers
Most documentary crew join on a phone call and a date. They arrive knowing the director but not the subject, the host family, the local contact or what the production expects when the camera is off. A new assistant may learn the rules only by getting one wrong in front of the people being filmed.
A good induction is a single page and a ten minute call. It covers the subject and the sensitivities, the daily plan, how people are addressed, who to call and where the money question gets answered. It costs little and protects both the film and the people in it.
How to set it up
1. Send the engagement note first
Role, dates, rate, travel terms and credit go in writing before departure, so nobody travels on a verbal promise. Use the template from the HR documentation process.
2. Share a one page location brief
Cover the place, the people being filmed, the local contact, clothing and conduct, safety points and the nearest help. Keep it plain and printable.
3. Hold a ten minute call with the line producer
Go through the schedule, equipment responsibility, meal and rest arrangements and what to do if the plan changes. Let the new person ask questions.
4. Pair every new assistant with a named lead
The lead is the person to ask, on the first day and every day after. Name them on the brief.
5. Check in at the end of day two
A short chat on how it is going, anything unclear and any concern about the subject or the team. Note what you learn for the next brief.
Check these first
Before changing anything, find out what is true today. These take an afternoon and use your own records.
- Look at the last film and ask each new crew member what they were told before arriving.
- Count how many had written terms at the time of travel.
- Note any early problem on location that a brief would have prevented.
- Check who the crew would have called if the director was unreachable.
GullyHR can do this with you. Read how we approach employee onboarding process in general, or share your requirements and we will tell you where to start.
Questions owners ask
Under an hour in total, spread over a one page brief and a short call. Anything longer will not be read. The aim is clear terms and clear conduct, not a classroom session.
Yes. They represent the production in front of the people being filmed. A short brief on conduct and the subject protects the film as much as it helps the freelancer.
The line producer, since they know the schedule and the money. The director can add a few words on the subject and approach, but should not carry the whole task.