Watch: Why DPs Should Hire the Best Crew, Let Them Do Their Jobs, and Take the Credit
Your crew won't mind, as long as you keep bringing them back for more.
If you’re just starting off your career as a DP, Geoff Boyle has one big piece of advice for you: Don’t be afraid to hire people who have more experience than you do.
In the new video from Cooke Optics below, Boyle advises you not to fear that you’ll be shown up, or that just because they have more experience than you, they’ll be gunning for your job. In fact, you should be looking to hire the most experienced crew you can get. That way, you can listen and learn from them about what they’ve done to stay in a pattern of success for so long. Boyle insists, “They’ll get you out of trouble, they’ll look after you.”
Boyle also recommends that you try and be loyal to your crew. If you find a person you work well with, you should be looking to bring them along with you to other gigs. After a while, it becomes a family thing.
He recalls a conversation with Terry Donovan, who stated something along the lines of “hire the best people you can, let them do their job, and then you can take the credit.” While this may be a bit cheeky, if you’re the DP, trusting people to do their jobs well is paramount.
And what are two great ways to develop trust in someone? Either judge them based on their experience or work with them again and again.
