Film crew hire/Bristol/Art director
Hire an art director in Bristol. The room, the props and the details the camera finds.
Art directors and art departments for adverts, brand films, music videos and drama across Bristol and Bath. They design the look, dress the location and run the props, graphics and builds that fill the frame, from a ship’s saloon on the SS Great Britain to a stage at The Bottle Yard, then put it all back at wrap. From £675 a day, paid to the art director in full.
- 2,800+ freelance crew on our books across the UK
- 150+ of them in and around Bristol and Bath
- 54 five-star Google reviews
- 2 hrs for our team to read your brief, in working hours
Photos: Here Now Films, Kumpan Electric, Paolo Chiabrando and Raúl Cacho Oses
The role
What an art director does on your shoot
An art director looks after everything in the frame that isn’t a person or a light: the set, the dressing, the props and the graphics. They turn the look agreed with the director and the DOP into drawings and a budget, then run the props buyers, dressers and builders who make it real.
On a brand film that can mean dressing an office so it looks like the company on its best day. On an advert or a music video, it can mean a set built from nothing.
Bristol is used to playing other places, which gives an art department plenty to work with. Princes Wharf has stood in for 1940s Guernsey and 1950s Cobh, Phoenix Wharf for 1700s Boston, and Redcliffe Caves for Poldark’s Cornish tin mines. Behind that sits The Bottle Yard Studios, where Set Smith builds sets, scenery and props in its workshop, and Bristol Old Vic’s scenic workshop takes on fabrication in wood and metal for outside clients (checked October 2026). 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. We book the art director from Bristol and Bath first, then scale the department with props buyers, dressers and builders as the job grows, bringing anyone else in from across the South West, Cardiff or London, with the travel on the quote.
- The look designed first. Mood boards, references and drawings, signed off before anything is bought, hired or built.
- Every prop chosen. Sourced, hired, bought or made, and nothing in shot you can’t clear.
- Locations dressed and put back. A real place changed just enough for the camera, photographed first so it goes back exactly as it was.
- A budget that holds. Spend tracked, hires returned on time, nothing lost.
What’s included
What the day rate covers
In the day rate
- An 11-hour day, including an hour for lunch
- Designing the set and the dressing to the brief
- Running the props, dressing and build team
- Sourcing props, furniture and graphics
- Dressing on the day, and changes between set-ups
- The art budget, tracked and accounted for
On top, each on its own line
- Our 10% booking fee and 2% insurance, on the whole quote
- The art budget: props, hires, materials and graphics, at cost
- Prep, dressing and strike days, which most jobs need, quoted separately
- Props buyers, dressers and set builders, as the brief needs
- The props van and any bay suspensions, at cost
- Travel from outside Bristol, and mileage, parking and the Clean Air Zone charge where the day needs them, 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 an art director for your own production, or have us take the whole film 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 an art director, call to wrap
A period brand film at Bristol Dockyards: the First Class Dining Saloon on the SS Great Britain in the morning, the dockside in the afternoon. Times are an example; the call sheet sets the real ones.
- Prep The week before The look agreed with the director, a recce with the venue’s team, and period props sourced: some from the Dockyards’ own theatrical props hire, the rest from Bristol’s prop hire houses, such as Valentina Hire Company’s vintage pieces.
- 07:00 Load in The props van parked on site, where the Dockyards’ car park has around 150 spaces, and the dressing unloaded (checked October 2026).
- 08:00 Dress The saloon tables laid for the period: linen, glassware and a menu card printed for the day. The venue’s own pieces are photographed before anything moves.
- 09:30 Camera check The DOP lines up the first shot; a lamp moved, a modern sign covered, a fire extinguisher kept out of frame but in reach.
- 10:00 Standby A props person on set for continuity, while the art director dresses the dockside ahead of the crew.
- 13:00 Lunch Food props replaced, and the afternoon set-up checked against the drawings.
- 15:00 Turnaround Ship to dockside: the hero props moved across and the dressing reset for the wide.
- 18:30 Strike Everything out, the venue’s things back where the morning’s photos say, and the hires loaded for return.
Which kind
Which art department do you need?
One person with a van of props, or a whole department: the job decides. Card rates are per 11-hour day.
Art director Designs and runs the look Card £675–878
Designs the set and the dressing, budgets it, and runs the team.
Best for adverts, brand films, music videos and drama.
Props buyer Finds and buys everything on screen Card £493–585
Sources, buys and hires props and dressing to the art director’s list.
Best on any shoot with a dressed set. In Bristol that means knowing what Full To Bursting Prop Hire, Valentina Hire and Bristol Dockyards’ theatrical props hire can lend, and what is cheaper to buy.
Standby props and dressers On set, every take Quoted on the brief
Look after the props on set, reset between takes and keep continuity.
Best on drama and any shoot with props that get handled.
Set builders Carpentry, paint and construction From £341 a day
Build, paint and strike sets and pieces to the art director’s drawings. See set builders in Bristol.
Best when the location can’t do it alone.
Armourer Replica and prop weapons Quoted on the brief
Looks after any firearm, replica or prop weapon on set, and who handles it.
Needed whenever a weapon is on set. Bristol Film Office wants weapons, real or imitation, declared on the application, and police guidance before a firearm is used (checked October 2026).
What it’s for
What people book an art director for in Bristol
Period doubles
Bristol’s harbour and streets dressed as somewhere else: Princes Wharf has played 1940s Guernsey and 1970s Port Royal, and Phoenix Wharf 1700s Boston.
Adverts and brand films
A home, a shop or an office dressed as the brand’s world, from a Bedminster terrace to a shopfront on Gloucester Road.
Studio sets
A build and its dressing on a stage at The Bottle Yard, or a smaller set on a cove in Bedminster, Barton Hill or Bishopston.
Music videos
A look built in a warehouse, or in the black box of a 1905 Dutch barge moored on Welsh Back.
Heritage and museums
Dressing around the collections at Bristol Dockyards, M Shed or Bath’s No.1 Royal Crescent, on each venue’s terms.
Recent work
Art departments on our jobs
Our work · Canada, Norway, Cornwall and Portugal · 2026
One art director, four countries
AI for Empowerment, our 35mm campaign for Cohere, had one rule: no technology on screen, so no phones, laptops or devices in any frame. The art director travelled to every shoot with the director, the DOP and the producer, from a maple wood in Ontario to the Lizard in Cornwall, where an art assistant and props buyer joined our crew. The Lizard’s clifftops are a Site of Special Scientific Interest, so nothing broke the ground: every gazebo was weighted, and the kit went in on beach carts.
Crew hire · Canary Wharf, London · October 2024
A podcast set, dressed the day before
Two podcast episodes on three cameras, on Level 48 of One Canada Square, after the client’s own office fell through. We booked an art director the day before, with the sign-off of Magnet Media, the New York agency running the shoot, to dress the backgrounds and cover the logos in shot. The four Shure SM7B microphones on black arms were props, for the look of a podcast: the sound came from lavs and a boom. Crew in at the loading bay at six, both episodes shot by one.
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, dressing and strike days are quoted separately.
The art budget
- Props, hires and materials at cost, each on its own line.
- Ask each hire house how it charges: by the day or by the week.
- A venue’s own things are photographed before anything moves, and put back from the photos at wrap.
Filming in Bristol
- Bristol Film Office asks for at least £5m public liability and a full risk assessment with every application.
- Weapons, real or imitation, go on the Film Office application, with police guidance before any firearm or staged crime (checked October 2026).
- Council interiors such as City Hall, the museums, A Bond warehouse and Redcliffe Caves are priced by negotiation with Bristol Film Office (checked October 2026).
Paying and changes
- Nothing to pay until you confirm the art director.
- 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 art director 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.
£675 a day
APA/Bectu card: £675–878 a day for an art director.
| Day rate, 11 hours | £675 |
| Booking fee, 10% | £67.50 |
| Insurance, 2% | £13.50 |
| One day, before the art budget | £756 |
The 2% is employers’ liability for the art director we book, and cover on kit we hire in. What it covers
You won’t pay anything until you confirm the art director.
- 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 an art director in Bristol.
Tell us the location or set, the look, and what needs dressing, building or propping. 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 £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 This page £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
An art department lives on its suppliers: here’s where the studios, the props, the wardrobe and the permits come from on a Bristol shoot.
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 an art director in Bristol: questions
How much does an art director cost in Bristol?
The APA/Bectu card puts an art director at £675–878 for an 11-hour day, including an hour for lunch, and we pay that in full. On top go our 10% booking fee and 2% insurance, so a day starts at £756 + VAT. The art budget, for props, hires and materials, is at cost, and prep, dressing and strike days are their own lines. Our rates are national, so a Bristol day costs the same as anywhere else we crew.
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.
Where do the props come from on a Bristol shoot?
Some are bought in the city and the rest are hired. Full To Bursting Prop Hire, just outside Bristol, supplies theatre, TV, film and photo shoots; Valentina Hire Company lends vintage pieces such as typewriters; and Bristol Dockyards hires theatrical props and has Victorian props on site (checked October 2026). Anything specialist comes from further afield by van, at cost, and every hire is its own line on the quote. See props and wardrobe for Bristol shoots.
Can Bristol stand in for another place or period?
Often. Bristol Film Office lists Princes Wharf as 1940s St Helier and Guernsey, 1950s Cobh and 1970s Port Royal, Phoenix Wharf as 1700s Boston, and Redcliffe Caves as Poldark’s Cornish tin mines. City Docks and the Harbourside are council locations, £178 plus VAT for a crew of up to ten (checked October 2026). The art director takes out what gives the present day away, and dresses in the period.
Can we use replica weapons on a Bristol shoot?
Yes, declared up front. Bristol Film Office wants weapons, real or imitation, and any violence declared on the permit application, and police guidance before you stage a crime, an accident or a firearm. In Bath, the film office tells the police about every permit application, and productions ask the police directly about firearms (checked October 2026). An armourer looks after the weapons on set.
Can you dress a set at The Bottle Yard?
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). Set Smith, one of its tenants, builds sets, scenery and props in its workshop and on location, and Real SFX, another, handles special effects (checked October 2026). If we book the stage or a workshop, it goes on the quote as its own line. See film studios in Bristol.
Can you dress a listed building or a museum?
Yes, on the owner’s terms. Council interiors, City Hall, the museums, A Bond warehouse and Redcliffe Caves among them, are negotiated through Bristol Film Office; Bristol Dockyards and Bath Preservation Trust’s four museums, No.1 Royal Crescent among them, take filming requests themselves (checked October 2026). We photograph everything first, dress for the camera, and put it back as it was.