Film crew hire/Bristol/Production manager
Hire a production manager in Bristol. Bookings, budgets, unit bases and the hundred things in between.
Production managers for shoots across Bristol and Bath. They book the crew, kit, vans and hotels, chase Bristol Film Office’s permits, the bay suspensions and the building passes, keep the budget straight, and get a unit from a house in Clifton to a stage at The Bottle Yard on time. From £504 a day, paid to the production manager in full.
- 2,800+ freelance crew on our books across the UK
- 150+ of them in and around Bristol and Bath
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- 2 hrs for our team to read your brief, in working hours
Photos: Kelly Sikkema, Jakob Owens, Nathan Dumlao, Brands&People and Sheila C
The role
What a production manager does on your shoot
A production manager (PM) runs the logistics of a production, working to the producer. They book the crew and kit, sort travel, vans, hotels and catering, chase permits and insurance certificates, and track the spend against the budget. On the shoot, they’re the person who knows where everything is.
On a one-day shoot a producer usually does all of this. A PM earns their place on multi-day, multi-location shoots, and Bristol adds its own layer: a parking suspension at £22 plus VAT a vehicle for a day in a pay and display bay, a unit base from the film office’s list, and a Clean Air Zone that charges crew cars as well as vans (checked October 2026).
- Everything booked. Crew, kit, vans, hotels, catering and parking, confirmed in writing.
- A budget that holds. Spend tracked against the budget every day, and overages raised before they happen.
- Paperwork in order. Risk assessments, insurance certificates, film office permits and location agreements, filed.
- Movement planned. Call times, routes, unit bases and suspended bays, all on the call sheet.
What’s included
What the day rate covers
In the day rate
- An 11-hour day, including an hour for lunch
- Booking crew, kit, vans and hotels
- The movement order and travel plan
- Spend tracked against the budget
- Permits, bay suspensions, passes and certificates, chased
- The production file, handed over at wrap
On top, each on its own line
- Our 10% booking fee and 2% insurance, on the whole quote
- Prep days before the shoot, which most jobs need
- A wrap day for returns and paperwork
- Permit fees, unit bases, bay suspensions and the Clean Air Zone charge, at cost
- Travel from outside Bristol, at cost
How our rates work, and the two ways to book: crew rates in Bristol.
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 a PM for your own production, or have us take the production on.
Crew hire
You run the shoot.
10% + 2% booking fee and insurance, on everything we book for you: crew, kit and travel.
We do
- Find, book and brief the crew, and pay them
- Book kit, travel and hotels too, if you want them
- Send the full price before anything is booked
- One person to call all day
- Employers’ liability for the crew we book, and insurance on kit we hire in
You do
- Run the shoot, or your producer does
- The plan, the schedule and the call sheet
- The location, its permission and its public liability
- Responsibility for the production: you’re the producer of record
What the 2% insures: employers’ liability for every crew member we book, and the kit we hire in for you. Nothing else on the shoot. A large kit rental may need extra insurance, as its own line on the quote.
Full production
We’re the producer of record.
15% + 5% production fee, plus insurance and contingency, on the whole production budget. Quoted as a production.
We do
- Our producer plans it with you and runs the day
- Locations, permits, kit, studio, travel and hotels, booked and paid in our name
- Insurance for the whole shoot, public liability included, plus the risk assessment and the call sheet
- One contract and one invoice, so overseas teams need no UK company
You do
- The creative calls
- Signing off the plan and the budget
What the 5% pays for: our production insurance across the whole shoot, £10m public liability included, and the contingency.
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 production manager, call to wrap
Day two of a three-day shoot: a house in Clifton in the morning, a stage at The Bottle Yard Studios after lunch. Times are an example; the call sheet sets the real ones.
- 06:30 Before call The vans into the bays suspended outside the house, the council’s cones already out, breakfast in before anyone else arrives.
- 07:30 Crew call Radios out, the day’s changes briefed with the producer, and a neighbour who missed the letter drop spoken to in person.
- 09:00 Behind the scenes Tomorrow’s lighting top-up confirmed with VI Rental at The Bottle Yard, a hotel added for a focus puller coming down from London, a missing certificate sent to the studio.
- 12:00 The move Vans out of Clifton and across the city to Whitchurch, about 20 minutes from the centre by The Bottle Yard’s own reckoning, with the stage told when to expect the unit (checked October 2026).
- 13:00 Lunch At the studio, on time, and the drivers and runners briefed for the afternoon.
- 15:00 The numbers The day’s spend logged against the budget, every car and van checked against the Clean Air Zone and any charge paid on GOV.UK, overtime agreed with the producer before it happens.
- 19:00 Wrap Kit secured on the stage, timesheets signed, tomorrow’s call sheet and movement order out.
Which kind
Which production role do you need?
The production office has several jobs that overlap. Here’s how we match one to a brief.
Production manager Logistics, bookings and the budget Card £504–627
Books and runs everything around the shoot, and keeps the costs against the budget, working to the producer.
Best on multi-day, multi-location and multi-country shoots.
Production coordinator The office, the calls and the paperwork Quoted on the brief
Works to the PM: call sheets, bookings, travel, passes, contact lists and the production file.
Best on long shoots and series, where the office never stops.
Line producer Budget and schedule, start to finish Quoted on the brief
Owns the budget and the schedule from the first day of prep to delivery, and reports against both.
Best on documentaries, series and productions that run for weeks.
Location manager Finds and runs the locations Quoted on the brief
Finds the locations, negotiates them, gets the permissions from the owner, Bristol Film Office, Bath Film Office, the bridge trust or Network Rail, and runs them on the day. Private sites have their own paperwork: The Mall at Cribbs Causeway, for one, wants £5m public liability, a method statement and a signed location agreement (checked October 2026). See filming permits in Bristol.
Best when the shoot moves between several locations, or has one difficult one: the bridge, Temple Meads, the water.
Producer Runs the day and the client From £450 a day
If someone needs to make the decisions on the day, that’s a producer. See producers in Bristol.
Best on one- and two-day shoots, where a separate PM isn’t needed.
What it’s for
What people book a production manager for in Bristol
Multi-day shoots
Three days or more, with crew, kit, vans and hotels to keep track of, and some of the crew coming in from across the South West, Cardiff or London.
Several locations
Clifton in the morning, the Harbourside in the afternoon, Bath the next day, each with its own permission and, in Bath, its own film office.
Studio days
Stage time at The Bottle Yard Studios in Whitchurch, or a smaller cove in Bedminster or Barton Hill, with set builds, deliveries and power.
Road closures
A road closure of up to two days needs two weeks’ notice and costs £721 plus VAT; one of three days or more usually takes eight to ten weeks (checked October 2026).
The bridge, the station and the water
Clifton Suspension Bridge, Temple Meads and the Floating Harbour, each with rules of its own on top of the film office’s.
Recent work
Production management on our jobs, and on a Bristol week
Crew hire · Manchester, London and Bolton · October and November 2024
Three cities at short notice for Davies Group
Four shoot days for DTV, Davies Group’s internal talk show: two in Manchester, then the company’s office on Gracechurch Street in London, then its office at Parklands in Bolton. The enquiry came 22 days before the first shoot. The spec came from Davies’ post-production house and the look from footage a US crew had already shot in Chicago, so the kit in each city was chosen to match it. A week after the enquiry Manchester grew from one day to two, and its crew was locked one to two days out.
“Their ability to quickly assemble professional and talented crews was impressive, and their dedication to meeting our deadlines was commendable.” Mopani Mkandawire, Davies Group
How we crew it · Bristol
Unit bases, bays and two clean air zones
On a multi-day Bristol shoot most of the production manager’s week is paperwork with a deadline on it. A unit base from Bristol Film Office’s list, Church Lodge car park at Ashton Court or Redcliffe Wharf, is £600 a day plus VAT, with the arrival and departure days charged too (checked October 2026). Suspended bays need three working days, and a purchase order for the full cost before the council approves them. Bristol’s Clean Air Zone charges cars as well as vans, so every crew car is checked, not only the vans; cross into Bath and its zone charges the vans but not private cars (checked October 2026). Local crew first, the rest from across the South West, Cardiff or London, and every item on one quote, each on its own line.
Before you book
Things to know
The day
- 11 hours, including an hour for lunch.
- Overtime at card rates, agreed with you before it happens.
- Prep and wrap days are quoted separately.
Permits, parking and the charges
- A parking suspension in Bristol needs three working days: one day in a pay and display bay is £22 + VAT per vehicle, and several days £15 + VAT per bay per day plus a £30 coning fee (checked October 2026).
- Bristol’s Clean Air Zone is Class D, so it charges cars as well as vans: £9 a day for a car or van below Euro 6 diesel or Euro 4 petrol, £100 for an HGV or coach, around the clock. Bath’s zone is Class C and doesn’t charge private cars (checked October 2026).
- Bristol Film Office asks for at least £5m public liability and a full risk assessment with every application.
- All at cost, each on its own line of the quote.
Paying and changes
- Nothing to pay until you confirm the production manager.
- 50% by card when you book, 50% on receipt of the final rushes.
- Every line on the quote: day rate, booking fee, kit, travel.
- Moving the date? Tell us as soon as you know.
- Cancellation terms are on every quote.
What our insurance covers
- Employers’ liability for the production manager we book: £10m.
- Kit we hire in for you is insured. A large kit rental may need extra insurance, as its own line on the quote.
- Nothing else on a crew hire. Public liability, the location and your own kit stay with you, and your venue will want your certificate. When we’re the producer of record, our policy covers the shoot.
£504 a day
APA/Bectu card benchmark: £504–627 a day.
| Day rate, 11 hours | £504 |
| Booking fee, 10% | £50.40 |
| Insurance, 2% | £10.08 |
| One day, before travel | £564.48 + VAT |
The 2% is employers’ liability for the production manager we book, and cover on kit we hire in. What it covers
You won’t pay anything until you confirm the production manager.
- 50% by card at booking, 50% on the final rushes
- Our team reads every brief within 2 working hours
- Every line on the quote before anything is booked
Or call us on 07412 543822.
Reviews
What clients say about our crews
Straight from our Google Business Profile.
Book a production manager in Bristol.
Tell us the dates, the locations and what needs booking. Our team reads every brief within 2 working hours. Or call us on 07412 543822.
Check availability
The whole crew
Every role in Bristol, booked the same way
One brief, one quote, every role on its own line. Our day rates in Bristol, paid to the crew member in full:
Production 06
- Director From £500
- Producer From £450
- Production manager This page £504–627
- 2nd AD £355–448
- Production assistant £400
- Runner £245
Camera 07
- DOP From £850
- Camera operator £529–656
- Focus puller £461–575
- Clapper loader £355–448
- Steadicam operator From £950
- Gimbal operator £529–656
- Drone operator From £750
Data and playback 02
- DIT £527
- Video playback £334–518
Sound 01
- Sound recordist £550
Hair, make-up and costume 02
- Hair and make-up £398
- Costume £519–694
Art department 02
- Art director £675–878
- Set builders £341–512
Post-production 01
- Editor From £350
How our rates work: crew rates in Bristol. Or start from a set-up: interview crews and units in Bristol.
Production support
Everything around the crew
A Bristol PM’s week runs on other people’s deadlines: the film office, the council’s parking team, the studio, the kit houses. Each of the guides below sets them out, and any item can go on the quote.
02
Locations and permits
Bristol Film Office, Bath Film Office, the harbour, the bridge and the drone rules.
03
Studios and set builds
The Bottle Yard’s stages, green screen and blackout studios, and set builds.
Questions
Hiring a production manager in Bristol: questions
How much does a production manager cost in Bristol?
The APA/Bectu card puts a production manager at £504–627 for an 11-hour day, including an hour for lunch, and the PM is paid that in full. On top go our 10% booking fee and 2% insurance, so a day starts at £564.48 + VAT. Most shoots need prep days too, quoted separately, and permit fees, unit bases, bay suspensions and the Clean Air Zone charge go on at cost.
What does the insurance on a crew booking cover?
Two things. Employers’ liability for every crew member we book, up to £10m, and insurance on the kit we hire in for you. That’s what the 2% pays for. A large kit rental may need extra insurance, as its own line on the quote. The 2% doesn’t insure the rest of the shoot: public liability, the location, your own kit and anything you book yourself stay with you, because you’re the producer of record. If you’d rather we were, it’s quoted as a full production, and our insurance covers the whole shoot, public liability included.
Do I need a production manager or a producer?
For a one- or two-day shoot, a producer can do both jobs. Book a PM as well when the shoot runs for several days, moves between Bristol and Bath, or has a building, the bridge trust and Bristol Film Office all wanting paperwork.
Can a production manager sort permits and parking in Bristol?
Yes. Bristol’s 2026–27 street filming permit is £84 for a crew of up to ten and £163 for 11 to 40; parks, green spaces and the harbourside are £178 for up to ten, all plus VAT (checked October 2026). A parking suspension in Bristol needs three working days: one day in a pay and display bay is £22 + VAT per vehicle, and several days £15 + VAT per bay per day plus a £30 coning fee (checked October 2026). Yellow lines need at least three working days’ notice and a £30 coning fee per street, and a bay on an unrestricted street can’t be enforced, so if the space has to be there, it’s a road closure (checked October 2026). Bristol Film Office asks for at least £5m public liability and a full risk assessment with every application. On a crew hire that certificate is yours; on a full production our policy covers it. See shoot logistics in Bristol.
What does the Clean Air Zone mean for a Bristol shoot?
Bristol’s Clean Air Zone is Class D, so it charges cars as well as vans: £9 a day for a car or van below Euro 6 diesel or Euro 4 petrol, £100 for an HGV or coach, around the clock. Bath’s zone is Class C and doesn’t charge private cars (checked October 2026). The charge runs midnight to midnight, so a van driven in the zone either side of midnight pays for two days, and a parked vehicle that doesn’t move isn’t charged. It’s paid on GOV.UK up to six days before or six days after; miss it and the penalty is £120 plus the charge, or £60 plus the charge within 14 days (checked October 2026). Your PM checks every car and van on the job against it, and any charge goes on the quote at cost.
Can a production manager book a studio in Bristol?
Yes. The Bottle Yard Studios in Whitchurch, the largest film and TV studio in the West of England, has 11 stages across two sites, the biggest 21,700 sq ft, plus a 5,000 sq ft green screen studio (checked October 2026). Its second site, TBY2 on Hawkfield Way, has its own unit base parking. For smaller jobs there are hired coves round the city: Qu Studios in Bedminster from £275 a half day, and The Hold, a black box on a 1905 Dutch barge on Welsh Back, from £250 a half day (checked October 2026). The PM books the stage, the deliveries and the power, each on its own line. See film studios in Bristol.
Where do your production managers come from?
We’re a crew agency with 2,800+ freelance crew on our books across the UK, 150+ of them in and around Bristol and Bath, so we can scale a crew from one person for a morning to a full unit for a week. Local crew first. When a shoot needs more hands, or a role Bristol is short of that week, we bring them in from across the South West, Cardiff or London, and the travel is on the quote before anything is booked. Temple Meads is 1 hour 19 minutes from London Paddington on the fastest trains, 11 minutes from Bath Spa, 48 minutes from Cardiff Central and about 1 hour 25 from Birmingham (checked October 2026).
How far ahead should I book a PM in Bristol?
Our team reads every brief within 2 working hours, and the earlier a PM starts, the more they save. Bristol’s notice periods set the real date: seven days for a permit and the letter to the neighbours, three working days for a parking suspension, two weeks for a road closure of up to two days, and usually eight to ten weeks for one of three days or more (checked October 2026). A week’s prep for a multi-day shoot is normal.