Film crew hire/Cornwall/Focus puller
Hire a focus puller in Cornwall. Sharp on the eyes, on a moving shot, wide open.
Focus pullers (1st ACs) for adverts, brand films and drama across Cornwall, from clifftop paths on the Lizard to harbour towns and private estate roads. They prep the camera at the kit house, keep the shot sharp, and run the camera department so the DOP can light. From £461 a day, paid to the focus puller in full.
- 2,800+ freelance crew on our books across the UK
- 30+ of them in and around Cornwall
- 54 five-star Google reviews
- 2 hrs for our team to read your brief, in working hours
Photos: ShareGrid, Here Now Films, Voice + Video, Johannes Blenke and Nick Fewings
The role
What a focus puller does on your shoot
A focus puller, or 1st AC (first assistant camera), keeps the picture sharp while the camera, the actors or both are moving. They measure distances, mark the ground at rehearsal and pull focus live with a wireless follow-focus, often from beside the camera or at a monitor. They also build the camera, swap lenses and keep it running all day.
A large sensor and a fast lens make focus very shallow: on a close-up at T1.5 it can be a few centimetres. That’s why a brand film or an advert needs one, and a two-camera interview usually doesn’t. On film there’s no playback to check it either: the video tap is for framing and focus, and nobody sees the negative until the lab has processed it.
We crew a Cornish focus puller where we can. For a film package, or a date when the right one isn’t free, they come down from Bristol, Devon or London, as the 1st AC did for Cohere on the Lizard, with the travel, the hotel and the prep day on the quote before anything is booked.
- Sharp where it matters. Eyes, hands and product, held through every move and every take.
- A camera that works. Prepped at the kit house, built and tested at call; lenses cleaned, swapped and logged, salt and sand kept off the glass.
- Fewer takes lost. Marks at rehearsal, and a quiet word if a move won’t hold focus.
- The DOP’s right hand. Runs the camera team, so the DOP can watch the light.
What’s included
What the day rate covers
In the day rate
- An 11-hour day, including an hour for lunch
- Pulling focus on every take, live
- Building, testing and maintaining the camera
- Lens changes, cleaning and the lens log
- Marks and measurements at rehearsal
- Running the camera team: loader, trainee, DIT and video
On top, each on its own line
- Our 10% booking fee and 2% insurance, on the whole quote
- A prep day at the kit house, if the package needs one
- Their own focus kit, if it’s not in the camera package
- Travel from outside Cornwall, hotels where the day needs them, mileage and parking, at cost
How our rates work, and the two ways to book: crew rates in Cornwall.
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 focus puller for your own camera team, 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 focus puller, call to wrap
A brand film on a large-sensor camera with cine primes: a walking shot on the coast path, then a tracking shot on a private estate road. Times are an example; the call sheet sets the real ones.
- 06:30 Camera build At the unit base, half an hour before the unit call: lenses checked, follow-focus calibrated, monitors and video sender paired. The package was prepped at the kit house the day before.
- 07:15 Carry in No vehicles on the clifftop, so the camera goes out along the path on a cart, built, with the lens case beside it.
- 08:00 Rehearsal The talent walks the move. Marks on the path, distances measured, focus points set. Out on a headland there may be no phone signal, so the camera team is on radio.
- 08:30 Turnover Pulling focus live as the talent walks towards a long lens, the wind moving the grass between them. A note to the DOP if a take was soft.
- 10:30 Lens change A 35mm to a 75mm for the close-up: swapped, cleaned of salt spray and logged in under two minutes.
- 13:00 Lunch Camera on charge from a portable power station, filters cleaned, the afternoon’s set-ups walked.
- 14:00 Tracking Camera on the tracking vehicle with the grip, focus pulled by wireless from inside it. A private road needs no traffic management; on a public one, Cornwall Council asks 12 weeks’ notice for it (checked October 2026).
- 18:30 Wrap Camera packed for the return to the kit house, lens log and camera report handed to the loader.
Which kind
Which camera assistant do you need?
The camera department in order of seniority, and when each is worth booking.
Focus puller (1st AC) for adverts, brand films and drama
Pulls focus, builds and runs the camera, and leads the camera team, from the prep day at the kit house to the return.
Best on large-sensor cameras with cine lenses, and on film.
Remote focus puller for vehicles, cranes and stabilised rigs
Pulls focus by wireless from a monitor, when the camera is on a tracking vehicle, a crane, a Steadicam or a gimbal.
Best for moving shots where nobody can stand beside the camera: a cyclist on an estate road, a car on a coast road.
Clapper loader (2nd AC) for slates, media and the camera report
Slates every take, changes cards or film magazines, and keeps the camera report. See clapper loaders in Cornwall.
Best alongside a focus puller on any shoot with more than one camera, or on film.
Camera trainee for an extra pair of hands
Carrying, charging and learning, and on a clifftop location a real help moving the camera cart.
Best on long or film shoots: on the Lizard for Cohere, a camera trainee worked alongside the 1st and 2nd ACs.
No focus puller for a simple interview
A two-camera interview on Sony FX6s with autofocus or a deep stop often doesn’t need one.
Book one when the lens is fast, the shot moves, or the picture is the point.
What it’s for
What people book a focus puller for in Cornwall
Adverts and brand campaigns on the coast
Large-sensor cameras and fast primes on the coast path and the beaches, where wind and a moving subject make every take a test.
Tracking and car shots
Focus pulled by wireless from a tracking vehicle, on a private estate road or with traffic management booked 12 weeks ahead.
Drama and features
Screen Cornwall lists House of the Dragon, shot at Holywell Bay and St Michael’s Mount, among the productions filmed here.
Film shoots
35mm and 16mm packages from Bristol or London, prepped by the 1st AC before they travel.
Visiting productions
A DP coming down from London or in from abroad, who needs a 1st AC to prep the package and know the ground.
Recent work
Focus pullers on our jobs, and how we crew them in Cornwall
Our work · The Lizard, Cornwall · June 2026
A 1st AC on 35mm, on the Lizard
For Cohere’s AI for Empowerment the 1st and 2nd ACs travelled down to the Lizard, with a camera trainee alongside them and a kit assistant from The Cornish Camera Co. The camera was an Arricam LT on 35mm with an Angénieux Optimo 28–340mm zoom, and each film opens tight on a face and zooms out to the landscape. The camera team was called at 06:30, the fog stayed in, and the unit wrapped at 21:00.
How we crew it · Cornwall
A 1st AC for a Cornish camera package
We book a Cornish focus puller where we can, for the prep day as well as the shoot. Local packages come from The Cornish Camera Co. in West Cornwall, which Screen Cornwall says carries vintage and anamorphic glass, or from Falmouth University’s stores, on 24 hours’ notice. A cinema or film package from Bristol or London is prepped there the day before, and the 1st AC travels down with it, the travel and hotel on the quote. For a moving shot on a public road, the traffic management goes to Cornwall Council 12 weeks ahead.
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.
- A prep day at the kit house is quoted separately.
Kit
- The camera package comes from a kit house or the DOP; the focus puller checks it out, usually on a prep day.
- For kit in Cornwall there’s The Cornish Camera Co. in West Cornwall, and Falmouth University’s film school stores, which hire to outside productions on 24 hours’ notice: a Sony FX6 kit is £200 a day (checked October 2026). Bigger kit comes down from Bristol or London.
- Wireless follow-focus and monitors are usually in the package. If not, theirs goes on the quote.
Filming in Cornwall
- Cornwall Council asks for £5m public liability and a location-specific risk assessment with every application.
- Any traffic management or road closure needs 12 weeks’ notice to Cornwall Council, and no vehicle drives onto council land without specific permission (checked October 2026).
- On a Site of Special Scientific Interest the landowner needs Natural England’s written consent first, which can take up to four months (checked October 2026).
Paying and changes
- Nothing to pay until you confirm the focus puller.
- 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 focus puller 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.
£461 a day
APA/Bectu card: £461–575 a day for a focus puller.
| Day rate, 11 hours | £461 |
| Booking fee, 10% | £46.10 |
| Insurance, 2% | £9.22 |
| One day, before travel | £516.32 + VAT |
The 2% is employers’ liability for the focus puller we book, and cover on kit we hire in. What it covers
You won’t pay anything until you confirm the focus puller.
- 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 focus puller in Cornwall.
Tell us the date, the camera and lenses, where the package is coming from, and what moves. Our team reads every brief within 2 working hours. Or call us on 07412 543822.
Check availability
The whole crew
Every role in Cornwall, booked the same way
One brief, one quote, every role on its own line. Our day rates in Cornwall, 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 This page £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 Cornwall. Or start from a set-up: interview crews and units in Cornwall.
Production support
Everything around the crew
A focus puller works from the camera package: kit from West Cornwall, Falmouth, Bristol or London, a crew hotel and the permission for a moving shot each go on the quote as their own line.
01
Kit rental
Kit in West Cornwall and Falmouth, the crew’s own kit, and what comes down from Bristol and London.
02
Locations and permits
Cornwall Council, the National Trust, Natural England, the harbours and the drone rules.
Questions
Hiring a focus puller in Cornwall: questions
How much does a focus puller cost in Cornwall?
The APA/Bectu card puts a focus puller at £461–575 for an 11-hour day, including an hour for lunch, and we pay that to the focus puller in full. On top go our 10% booking fee and 2% insurance, so a day starts at £516.32 + VAT, before travel from outside Cornwall. A prep day at the kit house is quoted separately.
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.
Is a focus puller the same as a 1st AC?
Yes. In the UK the first assistant camera is usually called the focus puller. The second assistant camera is the clapper loader, and on a bigger shoot a camera trainee works with both.
Where do focus pullers prep the camera for a Cornish shoot?
At the kit house, usually the day before. In Cornwall that’s The Cornish Camera Co. in West Cornwall, or Falmouth University’s film school stores, which hire to outside productions on 24 hours’ notice. When a cinema or film package comes from Bristol or London, the 1st AC preps it there and travels down with it. The prep day and the travel go on the quote.
Can a focus puller work on a tracking vehicle in Cornwall?
Yes, from a monitor on a wireless follow-focus. On a public road, any traffic management needs 12 weeks’ notice to Cornwall Council, and a road closure order is £1,942.50 with 12 weeks’ notice or £2,137 with less (checked October 2026). A private road can be simpler: on the Lizard for Cohere, the cycling moved to a private road on the Trelowarren Estate, filmed from a tracking vehicle and its three-person team.
Are your focus pullers from Cornwall?
We’re a crew agency with 2,800+ freelance crew on our books across the UK, 30+ of them in Cornwall, so we can scale a crew from one camera operator on a beach to a full unit on a clifftop. Cornish crew first. When a shoot needs more hands, or a role that’s scarce down here, they come from Bristol, Devon or London, and the travel and hotels are on the quote before anything is booked. On the Lizard for Cohere the 1st and 2nd ACs travelled down, and the crew hotel was in Helston. London Paddington to Truro takes 4 hours 21 minutes on the fastest trains, and to Penzance 5 hours 4; the Night Riviera sleeper runs six nights a week, Paddington to Penzance (checked October 2026).
Do I need a focus puller for an interview?
Usually not. A two-camera interview on Sony FX6s with autofocus or a deep stop can do without one. Book one when the lens is fast, the camera moves, or you’re shooting on film, where nobody sees the negative until the lab has processed it.
How far ahead should I book a focus puller in Cornwall?
Our team reads every brief within 2 working hours and comes back with a focus puller and a price. Then allow for the prep day, and for the permission the shot needs. Cornwall Council asks for ten working days’ notice, or five for a crew under five with a handheld camera, and 12 weeks for any traffic management or road closure (checked October 2026).