Film crew hire/New York/2nd AD
Hire a 2nd AD in New York. The cast ready before the 1st AD asks, and the call sheet right first time.
Second assistant directors for commercials, music videos, drama and brand films across the five boroughs, DGA or non-union. They write the call sheet, move the cast through hair, make-up and wardrobe, run the background and the set PAs, and keep a New York sidewalk moving round the unit. From $600 a day, paid to the 2nd AD in full.
- 54 five-star Google reviews
- 2 hrs for our team to read your brief, in working hours
- 10 hrs a New York crew day, plus a meal break
- 500+ productions, filmed in sixteen countries
Photos: Huong Do, Mike Bautista, Leuchtturm Entertainment, Rendy Novantino and Tri Vo
The role
What a 2nd AD does on your shoot
The 2nd AD (second assistant director) works to the 1st AD, who runs the set and the schedule. The 2nd looks after everything that feeds the set: the call sheet, the cast’s movements through hair, make-up and wardrobe, the background and the paperwork. When the 1st calls for the next actor, the 2nd already has them standing by.
On a US set the 2nd AD also runs the set PAs, and on a big unit there’s a 2nd 2nd AD to help. On an interview or a small brand film there’s often no AD team at all: the producer runs the floor. Book one when there’s a cast, background, a schedule with no slack, or a sidewalk full of New Yorkers who didn’t ask to be in an advert.
- The call sheet, right. Call times, the location, the permit, the nearest subway and the nearest hospital, out the night before.
- Cast where they should be. Through hair, make-up and wardrobe and onto set, in the order of their scenes.
- Background managed. Signed in, checked, briefed and placed, then signed out with their times.
- The sidewalk kept moving. Set PAs placed, and passers-by asked politely to wait for the take, then let through.
What’s included
What the day rate covers
In the day rate
- A 10-hour day, plus a meal break
- The call sheet and the next day’s schedule
- The cast’s day: pick-ups, hair and make-up, wardrobe, set
- Signing in and placing background
- Running the set PAs on the radio
- Releases, timecards and the production report
On top, each on its own line
- Our 10% booking fee, on the whole quote
- Payroll and insurance for the job, at cost
- DGA fringes, on a signatory production
- Prep days for scheduling and call sheets
- A 2nd 2nd AD or extra set PAs, for a big cast or a busy street
- Travel outside the five boroughs, and any cars or vans, at cost
How our rates work, and the two ways to book: crew rates in New York.
Two ways to book
Crew hire or full production: who’s the producer of record?
One question sets the price: who’s the producer of record? Book an AD for your own production, or have us take the production on.
Crew hire
You run the shoot.
10% booking fee, on everything we book for you: crew, kit and travel. Payroll and insurance at cost, on their own line.
We do
- Find, book and brief the New York crew
- Every crew member employed for the job: payroll, workers’ compensation and COIs
- Book kit, vans and travel too, if you want them
- Send the full price, in dollars, before anything is booked
- One person to call all day
You do
- Run the shoot, or your producer does
- The plan, the schedule and the call sheet
- The location, its COI and any Mayor’s Office permit
- Responsibility for the production: you’re the producer of record
Payroll and insurance are their own line on the quote, at cost: payroll for each crew member, the insurance they need for the job, New York workers’ compensation included, and the certificates of insurance your location asks for.
Full production
We’re the producer of record.
From $20,000 for a New York production; most land between that and $75,000. One quote, in dollars, every line shown.
We do
- Our producer plans it with you and runs the job
- Locations, permits, kit, studio and travel, booked in the production’s name
- The production’s insurance, the COIs and the Mayor’s Office permit
- One quote and one contract with us, wherever you’re based
You do
- The creative calls
- Signing off the plan and the budget
The production’s insurance, the crew’s payroll and any permits are lines in the quote, so you see each one before you sign.
Not sure which you need? If your own producer or director will run the day, it’s crew hire. If you want us to take the production on, it’s a full production quote.
On the day
A day with a 2nd AD, call to wrap
A commercial on a residential street in Brooklyn: six cast, 20 background and a Mayor’s Office permit for the day. Times are an example; the call sheet sets the real ones.
- 05:30 Cast arrive Signed in and sent to hair, make-up and wardrobe in the order of their first scenes.
- 06:30 Crew call Changes to the call sheet briefed, radios out, and the set PAs sent to their corners with a copy of the permit on hand.
- 07:15 Background Twenty background signed in, wardrobe checked, briefed and kept in the holding area, off the sidewalk.
- 08:00 First set-up Cast walked to set as the 1st calls them, the next actor already in the chair, and a path kept open for the people who live on the street.
- 12:30 Meal break Called on time, six hours after crew call, and cast and crew fed in turn so the afternoon starts on time.
- 14:00 The afternoon Progress tracked against the schedule and the permit’s hours, and the 1st warned early if anything is running long.
- 17:00 Wrap Cast and background signed out, times logged, the street handed back, and tomorrow’s call sheet out by nine.
The AD team
Which AD do you need?
The assistant directors work as a team, and a New York set names the jobs its own way. Here’s who does what, and when each is worth booking.
1st AD Runs the set and the schedule Quoted on the brief
Breaks down the script, builds the schedule and runs the floor on the day: when to turn over, when to move on.
Best on commercials, drama and anything with a cast and a tight day.
2nd AD The call sheet, the cast and the base Scale $750
Feeds the set from the base: call sheets, cast, background, the set PAs and the paperwork. DGA scale on a signatory production; non-union from our day rate.
Best alongside a 1st AD on any shoot with a cast.
2nd 2nd AD A second pair of hands for the 2nd Quoted on the brief
Runs the floor side of the 2nd’s job while the 2nd works the call sheet: background on set, the set PAs, the cast’s last walk in.
Best on big units, crowds and busy streets in SoHo or Midtown.
Set PA The AD team’s runner From $250 a day
Holds the sidewalk, runs messages and walks the cast to set for the ADs. See runners and set PAs in New York.
Best on any shoot with background or a public street.
A producer on the floor Small crews, no cast From $750 a day
On an interview or a corporate shoot, the producer runs the floor. See producers in New York.
Best when there’s no cast to move.
What it’s for
What people book a 2nd AD for in New York
Commercials with a cast
Actors through hair, make-up and wardrobe and on set when called, on a stage in Brooklyn or Long Island City.
Music videos
Background, playback and a long day in a Brooklyn warehouse or on a Lower East Side street.
Drama and short films
A schedule, a cast and a call sheet for every day, and a production report at the end of each one.
Brand films on the street
SoHo, the Village or a Midtown avenue, where passers-by outnumber the unit.
Shoots in parks
A Parks Film Shoot Request first, and some parks run their own process: Central Park, Prospect Park, Bryant Park, the High Line.
Recent work
AD teams on New York shoots
How we crew it · New York
An AD team sized to the cast, and the street
A cast of two needs a producer on the floor. A cast of six with background needs a 1st and a 2nd AD, and set PAs. A crowd adds a 2nd 2nd AD. Then the street has its say. A crew hand-held or on a tripod, with no exclusive use of the sidewalk and no parked production vehicles, needs no permit in New York; a cast, background and a truck at the curb take you past that, to a Mayor’s Office permit (checked October 2026). The permit lets the unit work. It doesn’t stop New Yorkers walking through, and keeping them moving, politely, is the AD team’s job. So the team gets sized to the call sheet and the street together.
How we crew it · New York
DGA or non-union
Non-union is our default on corporate and branded work. If your production is signatory to the DGA, the ADs work at DGA scale: a 2nd AD is $750 a day on a commercial, and the DGA’s fringes go on top, at 20.5% plus 0.45% (checked October 2026). Union rules bind only signatory productions, so a non-union shoot books a non-union AD team at our day rate. Tell us which you are when you send the brief, and the quote shows the fringes and the payroll on their own lines.
Before you book
Things to know
The day
- 10 hours, plus a meal break.
- Any overtime is agreed with you before it happens.
- Prep days for scheduling are quoted separately.
Cast, background and the street
- Background comes through a casting agency or your own casting; the 2nd AD runs them on the day.
- Releases for everyone on camera, signed before they leave.
- Prop weapons, prop vehicles, stunts or actors in police uniform need a Mayor’s Office permit, which brings free police assistance (checked October 2026).
Paying and changes
- Nothing to pay until you confirm the 2nd AD.
- 50% when you book, 50% on receipt of the final rushes.
- Every line on the quote: day rate, booking fee, payroll and insurance, kit, travel.
- Cancellation terms are on every quote.
Employment and insurance
- Every 2nd AD we book is employed for the job, on payroll, with New York workers’ compensation.
- Certificates of insurance (COIs) for your location or permit, naming whoever needs naming, on request.
- On a crew hire the location, its COI, the permit and your own general liability stay with you. When we’re the producer of record, the production carries them.
- In New York, Here Now Films books its crews through established New York production companies, so every crew member is employed, on payroll and fully insured for the job.
$600 a day
Union scale in New York: $750 a day for a DGA 2nd AD, before fringes.
| Day rate, 10 hours | $600 |
| Booking fee, 10% | $60 |
| One day, before payroll, kit and travel | $660 |
Every 2nd AD we book in New York is employed and insured for the job. Payroll and insurance are their own line on the quote. What that covers
You won’t pay anything until you confirm the 2nd AD.
- Every crew member employed and insured for the job
- 50% at booking, 50% on the final rushes
- Our team reads every brief within 2 working hours
Or call us on +44 7412 543822.
Reviews
What clients say about our crews
Straight from our Google Business Profile.
Book a 2nd AD in New York.
Tell us the date, the cast, any background, and where you’re filming. Our team reads every brief within 2 working hours. Or call us on +44 7412 543822.
Check availability
The whole crew
Every role in New York, booked the same way
One brief, one quote in dollars, every role on its own line. Our day rates in New York, paid to the crew member in full:
Production 06
- Director From $1,500
- Producer From $750
- Production manager $650
- 2nd AD This page $600
- Production assistant $250
- Runner $250
Camera 07
- DP From $1,200
- Camera operator $750
- 1st AC $700
- 2nd AC $550
- Steadicam operator From $1,500
- Gimbal operator $750
- Drone operator From $1,000
Data and playback 02
- DIT $750
- Video playback $650
Sound 01
- Sound mixer $850
Hair, make-up and costume 02
- Hair and make-up $650
- Costume $700
Art department 02
- Art director $750
- Set builders $550
Post-production 01
- Editor From $600
How our rates work: crew rates in New York. Or start from a set-up: interview crews and units in New York.
Questions
Hiring a 2nd AD in New York: questions
How much does a 2nd AD cost in New York?
Our New York 2nd ADs start at $600 for a 10-hour day, and the 2nd AD is paid all of it. DGA scale for a 2nd AD on a commercial is $750 a day, before fringes, and applies when your production is signatory. On top goes our 10% booking fee, so one day comes to $660, before payroll and insurance (at cost, on the quote) and travel. Prep days for scheduling are quoted separately.
Who employs the crew, and are they insured?
Every crew member we book in New York is employed for the job and fully insured: payroll, New York workers’ compensation, and certificates of insurance for your location or permit. Payroll and insurance show as their own line on the quote, at cost. On a crew hire, the location, its COI and the permit stay with you, because you’re the producer of record. If you’d rather we were, it’s quoted as a full production.
What’s the difference between a 1st AD and a 2nd AD?
The 1st AD runs the set and the schedule on the floor: when to turn over, when to move on. The 2nd AD works behind them, at the base and on the radio, making sure the next actor, the next background and tomorrow’s call sheet are ready before anyone asks. On a New York set the 2nd also runs the set PAs, and a big unit adds a 2nd 2nd AD to cover the floor while the 2nd works the paperwork.
Do I need an AD team for a corporate shoot?
Usually not. An interview or a corporate film with a few contributors runs fine with a producer on the floor and a PA to meet people in the lobby. Book ADs when there’s a cast, background, a schedule with no slack, or a public street to work. A fireside chat or a panel in a loft needs a producer who can run a clock, and the AD budget is better spent on another camera.
Do we need a permit for a cast on a New York street?
Almost always. The City’s no-permit rule covers a crew hand-held or on a tripod, with no exclusive use of the sidewalk and no parked production vehicles. A cast with background, lights or a truck at the curb takes you past it, and prop weapons, prop vehicles, stunts and police uniforms always need a permit. It’s one Mayor’s Office permit per shoot day, every vehicle listed, processed 48 to 72 business hours ahead; Times Square needs seven business days (checked October 2026). More in filming permits in New York.
Are your New York crews union or non-union?
Non-union by default, on corporate, branded and documentary work. If your production is signatory to a union agreement, or you need union crew for a commercial, we quote at scale: the IATSE/AICP commercial agreement for camera and make-up, Local 52 for grip, electric and sound, USA 829 for the art department, and the DGA for directors and ADs. Scale is wages only: fringes and payroll go on top.
How far ahead should I book a 2nd AD in New York?
Book the AD team as soon as the shoot date is real: they need prep days to schedule a cast, and the call sheet depends on the permit, the casting and the location. Our latest New York shoot, Nevis × Focus, was filmed twelve days after the first email. A park wants at least five business days for the Parks Film Shoot Request before the permit, and Times Square seven business days (checked October 2026). Our team reads every brief within 2 working hours.