Film crew hire/New York/Hair and make-up
Hire hair and make-up in New York. Camera-ready at call, and still camera-ready at wrap.
Hair and make-up artists for New York shoots: leadership interviews in Midtown conference rooms, fireside chats in Chelsea lofts, commercials on a stage in Brooklyn or Long Island City. They work to the camera, not the mirror, and keep every look the same until wrap. From $650 a day, paid to the artist 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: hessam nabavi, Christian Agbede, Here Now Films, Bright Eliya and Rhamely
The role
What hair and make-up does on your shoot
A hair and make-up artist (HMU on the call sheet) gets everyone in front of the camera looking like themselves on a good day, then keeps them that way: powder between takes, flyaways, collars, and the shine that creeps back under the lights. On a bigger New York job it’s often two people, a make-up artist and a hair stylist.
On a commercial or a brand film they build a look to a brief. On an interview day the work should go unnoticed. We crew hair and make-up for the camera: film, video and stills.
Much of New York’s interview work happens in someone else’s building: a conference room on the 40th floor, a law firm’s library, a loft rented by the day. The artist needs a table, a mirror, good light and a socket near set, and their name on the list at the lobby desk.
- Made up for the camera. Products and techniques that read true on a 4K sensor, checked on the monitor under the real light.
- The same look all day. A continuity photo of every look, so the afternoon matches the morning and day two matches day one.
- Contributors settled. Ten minutes in the chair is often where a nervous executive stops thinking about the camera.
- Every skin tone and hair texture. Tell us who’s on camera and we’ll book an artist with the right kit and experience.
What’s included
What the day rate covers
In the day rate
- A 10-hour day, plus a meal break
- Their professional kit: foundations, powders, brushes and hair tools
- Hair and make-up for your contributors or cast, to the brief
- Checks and touch-ups between set-ups
- A continuity photo of every look
- Brushes cleaned between people, and single-use applicators
On top, each on its own line
- Our 10% booking fee, on the whole quote
- Payroll and insurance for the job, at cost
- A kit fee, if the artist charges one, on its own line
- A separate hair stylist, for full looks or a big cast
- Wigs, prosthetics and special effects materials, priced to the brief
- 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 artist for your own shoot, or have us take the whole production on, wardrobe and all.
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 hair and make-up, call to wrap
An interview day with five senior contributors in a Midtown office tower, fitted in between their meetings. Times are an example; the call sheet sets the real ones.
- 07:30 Lobby Names checked at the security desk, badges issued, the kit cases up the freight elevator with the camera carts.
- 07:45 Set up the station A table, a mirror, good light and a socket, out of shot: usually the conference room next to set.
- 08:30 First contributor in the chair 15 to 20 minutes for natural grooming: skin evened out, shine down, hair and brows tidy. Longer for a full look.
- 09:15 Camera check The look checked on the monitor with the DP, under the real light.
- 09:30 Through the takes Beside the monitor, watching. Powder, flyaways and collars between set-ups, and a continuity photo of every look.
- 13:00 Lunch, then the afternoon Lips and powder back on before the first set-up after. A contributor between meetings may give you ten minutes, so the artist works to their diary.
- 18:00 Wrap Make-up off for anyone who wants it, the kit packed and down the freight elevator before the loading dock closes.
Which hair and make-up
Which hair and make-up do you need?
What it’s for decides who we book. Times in the chair are per person, as a rough guide.
Natural grooming Interviews, corporate and documentary From $650 a day
15 to 20 minutes a person: even skin, no shine, tidy hair and brows. Nobody watching should be able to tell. One artist can usually see six to eight contributors in a day.
Best for leadership interviews, testimonials and conference speakers.
Presenter and host Talking to camera, all day From $650 a day
30 to 45 minutes, built to last under lights for hours and checked between every take.
Best for presenters, hosts, and anyone carrying a piece to camera or a fireside chat.
Commercial and beauty Commercials, brand films and product Scale $857
45 to 90 minutes: a designed look to a brief and a mood board, with close-ups that hold up at 4K. On a union commercial the artist is Local 798, at scale before fringes.
Best for commercials, beauty and fashion brands.
Hair stylist When the hair is the point Quoted on the brief
A separate hair stylist with heated tools, extensions or wigs, working alongside the make-up artist and the wardrobe stylist.
Best for fashion and campaign shoots. See costume designers and stylists in New York.
Special effects and prosthetics Wounds, ageing and casualty make-up Quoted on the brief
Prosthetic pieces, blood, bruising and casualty simulation, made and tested before the shoot.
Best for drama, and safety and training films. Book it early: pieces are made to order.
What it’s for
What people book hair and make-up for in New York
Midtown interviews
Leadership films in towers where everyone signs in at the lobby desk, and the work should go unnoticed.
Overseas productions
A visiting team flies in its director and DP, and books hair and make-up with the rest of the crew in New York.
Panels and fireside chats
A host and guests touched up between segments under studio light, in a loft in Chelsea or Tribeca.
Commercials and brand films
A look that has to match across two or three days on a stage in Brooklyn or Long Island City.
Stills on the same day
Headshots or campaign photos alongside the film, with the look carried across both.
Recent work
Hair and make-up on our jobs, in New York
Crew hire · New York · October 2025
Hair and make-up for a visiting director and DP
An agency’s one-day shoot in New York, in October 2025. The client flew in its director and DP; we booked the rest of the crew in New York, hair and make-up among them, alongside a producer, an assistant producer, a camera operator, a sound mixer, a gaffer and a stills photographer. Every one of them was employed and insured for the day.
How we crew it · New York
Interviews between meetings
Senior people in a Midtown tower give you 20 minutes between meetings, so the artist works to their diary, not ours. We put the make-up station in the room next to set, send every name to the lobby desk the day before, and book a second artist when more than eight people need the chair or anyone needs a full look.
Before you book
Things to know
The day
- 10 hours, plus a meal break.
- Any overtime is agreed with you before it happens.
- In a Midtown building, the artist’s name goes to the lobby desk with the crew’s.
Kit and the chair
- Their own professional kit, cleaned between people, with single-use applicators.
- Tell us about allergies and skin sensitivities when you book; we pass them on.
- Contributors arrive with clean, moisturised skin, hair as they usually wear it, and their clothes on a hanger.
Paying and changes
- Nothing to pay until you confirm the artist.
- 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 artist 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.
$650 a day
Union scale in New York (Local 798, make-up and hair): $857 a day, before fringes.
| Day rate, 10 hours | $650 |
| Booking fee, 10% | $65 |
| One day, before payroll, kit and travel | $715 |
Every artist 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 artist.
- 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 hair and make-up in New York.
Tell us how many people are on camera, the look, and the building or studio you’re shooting in. 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 $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 This page $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 hair and make-up in New York: questions
How much does a hair and make-up artist cost in New York?
Our hair and make-up artists in New York start at $650 for a 10-hour day, and the artist is paid all of it. Union scale for make-up and hair (Local 798, on the IATSE/AICP commercial agreement) is $857 a day, before fringes. On top go our 10% booking fee, so one day comes to $715, before payroll and insurance (at cost, on the quote), any kit fee and travel. A separate hair stylist is quoted the same way.
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.
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.
Do I need hair and make-up for a corporate interview?
Usually, even a light touch. Under lights skin shines and a 4K camera sees it, especially on a long day in a conference room with the HVAC turned off for sound. If the budget is tight, book one artist and schedule contributors back to back: six to eight in a day for natural grooming. For senior people with ten minutes between meetings, the artist sets up in the room next door and works to their diary.
Can a make-up artist work on a New York street shoot without a permit?
Yes, if the shoot needs no permit in the first place. The artist works from a set bag beside the camera, which keeps a small crew hand-held, and hand-held filming on a City sidewalk or in a City park isn’t a permit activity (checked October 2026). Put a make-up table on the sidewalk, or want parking privileges for a vehicle to work from, and the shoot is past hand-held: it needs a permit from the Mayor’s Office. See filming permits in New York.
Where do contributors get ready in a Midtown office?
In a room next to set, ideally with a window and a door that shuts. The artist needs a table, a mirror, good light and a socket, and the building needs their name at the lobby desk with the rest of the crew. Ask facilities for a spare conference room or an office for the day when you book the floor: in a busy tower, the room next door is often the hardest thing to get.
How far ahead should I book hair and make-up in New York?
A week is usually enough for an interview day; a commercial with a designed look needs longer, for a test and a mood board. Our latest New York shoot, Nevis × Focus, was filmed twelve days after the first email. Our team reads every brief within 2 working hours. Tell us who’s on camera, the look and any allergies, and we’ll match the artist to the cast.