Film crew hire/Case studies/The Athletic
The Athletic: Truth or Padel. Eight cameras, one padel court, five shoot days.
David Ornstein plays padel against a footballer. If he wins the point, the guest answers his question; if the guest wins, they skip it. For The Athletic, owned by The New York Times, we planned the cameras, booked and ran the crews, and handed over the rushes. The Athletic’s team cut the episodes. Thiago Alcântara, Gary Neville and Danny Drinkwater have played so far.
- 5 shoot days, April 2025 to June 2026
- 8 cameras on court, A to H
- 2 countries: the UK and Spain
- 1.5 hrs to set the court before the guest arrives
Frames from the episodes: The Athletic
The brief
One format, shot the same way every time
The pilot set the rules. Every episode after it had to look like it, whichever city the court was in.
We shot the pilot for The Athletic in April 2025, on a private court in Alderley Edge, Cheshire. After it, The Athletic commissioned four more episodes, and the pilot became the reference for every shoot: the same angles, the same rhythm of point, question and answer, and the same sit-down to finish.
The guests are footballers with a fixed window, so the court is set and every camera is rolling before they arrive. Whichever court we’re on, the episode has to cut with the last one.
Who did what
Our shoot, their show
Here Now Films
We ran the shoots.
5 shoot days in two countries, April 2025 to June 2026.
What we did
- The camera plan: eight angles, drawn up as floor plans for every crew
- Crew and kit, booked in each city, Barcelona included
- A producer on every shoot day, and a recce in Barcelona the day before
- Flights, hotels and per diems
- Every camera fed to one monitor, so The Athletic’s team watched the match live
- The rushes, backed up on set and handed over on a drive
The Athletic
They made the show.
In-house edit, graphics and publishing.
What they did
- The format, the questions and the mini-games
- The guests, and their time on court
- The host: David Ornstein, the football journalist
- The edit, the graphics and publishing
Your team owns the format and the edit; we turn up with the plan, the crew and the kit, and hand back the rushes. On a quote that’s crew hire, or a full production if you want us as the producer of record: the two ways to book.
The camera plan
Eight cameras, one padel court
A padel court is a glass and mesh cage, so every camera either looks through it or is rigged onto it. This is the plan we drew up for the crews after the pilot.
A and B
Sony FX6s with 70–200mm lenses on loose tripods, one tracking each player across the net. Loose enough to feel handheld, steady enough for a long lens. When the players meet at the net, both punch in for the question and the answer.
C
A Sony FX3 with a 16–35mm, low at the net: the wide that sees both ends of the court.
D
A third FX6 on a high tripod behind the net, holding the whole court.
E and F
Insta360 X3s rigged high on the cage in the back corners, on the crew’s side, so we’re never in the frame.
G and H
Insta360 Go 3S cameras worn by the host and the guest, for the point-of-view shots.
Sound
Radio mics on both players through the match, and a boom for the sit-down.
Monitoring
Every camera into one monitor, so the client watches the match as it’s played.
On the day
How a shoot day runs
Our June day in Essendon ran from 07:30 to 13:30. The order never changes.
Set the court
We ask for an hour and a half before the guest arrives: eight cameras, the rigging on the cage, the mics and the client’s monitor.
The match
David reads a question card before each point. If he wins it, the guest answers at the net; if the guest wins, they skip it.
The challenge
Mini-games, if the day allows. The pilot’s was a bucket challenge: serves into small nets on the far side of the court.
The sit-down
A seated interview on three cameras: a wide, and a crop on each of them. Natural light, controlled with reflectors and bounces, because there’s rarely time to light.
B-roll
Cameras off the sticks, handheld and on a stabilised rig: eyes, grips and feet, the ball across the net, and any rally worth playing again.
Wrap
Cards backed up, and the rushes on a drive for The Athletic’s edit.
The shoots
Five shoot days, two countries
Pilot · Alderley Edge, Cheshire · April 2025
The pilot
A producer, two camera operators and a sound recordist, on a court in the back garden of a private house. It was made under NDA, so it stays off this page.
Episode · Barcelona · March 2026
Thiago Alcântara, in Barcelona
Our producer flew out from London, recced the court the day before, and ran the shoot with a camera and sound crew we booked in the city. We bought two Insta360 X3s for it, and the rushes came home on a drive.
Episode · Alderley Edge, Cheshire · April 2026
Danny Drinkwater, back on the pilot’s court
The Athletic booked the same back garden as the pilot, for 14 April. Morgan Cartlidge, our head of production, ran the day, and asked for an hour and a half to set the court before Danny arrived.
Episodes · Manchester and Essendon · June 2026
Two shoots, back to back
A court in Manchester city centre on 1 June, then Essendon Country Club in Hertfordshire on 2 June, 07:30 to 13:30: the match on radio mics, then the sit-down with a boom.
The work
Watch the episodes
As The Athletic published them.
What we changed
What the pilot taught us
Set-up time
- At the pilot, finding the angles took longer than planned, and the walk-and-talk was cut.
- Now we ask for an hour and a half before the guest arrives, and only walk if an operator has a safe route walking backwards.
The high angle
- It needs a ladder to rig.
- And a wireless video link, so the shot can be checked from the ground.
Small cameras
- Action cameras are awkward to rent for a day, so for a series we bought our own.
- They’re paired with the app and tested before the shoot, not on court.
Light
- There’s rarely time to light the sit-down.
- Scrims and bounces on natural light, and a key light only if the day allows.
Booking a crew like this
Crew hire or full production: who’s the producer of record?
One question sets the price: who’s the producer of record?
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.
10% + 2% on everything we book
Crew hire: crew paid their full day rate, with our booking fee and insurance on top. Full production: 15% + 5%.
| Client | The Athletic |
| Series | Truth or Padel |
| Host | David Ornstein |
| Shoot days | 5, April 2025 to June 2026 |
| Courts | Alderley Edge, Barcelona, Manchester, Essendon |
| Cameras | 8 on court, 3 on the sit-down |
| Edit | The Athletic, in-house |
You won’t pay anything until you confirm the crew.
- Most Manchester bookings confirmed within 48 hours
- 50% by card at booking, 50% on the final rushes
- Our team reads every brief within 2 working hours
Or call us on 07412 543822.
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What clients say about our crews
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Crew a shoot like this.
Tell us the format, how many cameras, where and when, in the UK or abroad. Our team reads every brief within 2 working hours. Or call us on 07412 543822.
Tell us about the shoot
Questions
Crewing a multi-camera sport shoot: questions
How many cameras do you need to film a padel match with interviews?
We use eight on Truth or Padel. Two long lenses on loose tripods track each player across the net, a low wide sits at the net, a third camera holds the whole court from high, two Insta360 X3s are rigged high on the cage, and the host and the guest wear Insta360 Go 3S cameras. The seated interview after the match runs on three: a wide, and a crop on each person.
Can you crew a shoot abroad, like Barcelona?
Yes. For The Athletic’s Barcelona episode our producer flew out from London, recced the court the day before and ran the shoot with a camera and sound crew we booked in the city. We contract and pay the local crew, so you deal with one company.
Can you hand over the rushes for our own team to edit?
Yes. The Athletic’s team cut every Truth or Padel episode. We backed the cards up on set and delivered the rushes on a drive after each shoot. If you’d rather we cut it, our post-production team can.
How long does a multi-camera padel shoot take to set up?
We ask for an hour and a half on the court before the guest arrives: eight cameras, the rigging on the cage, the mics and a monitor for the client. Our June day in Essendon ran from 07:30 to 13:30, match and seated interview included.
What does a crew like this cost?
On a crew hire, every crew member is paid their full day rate, and we add a 10% booking fee and 2% insurance to everything we book: crew, kit and travel. If you want us as the producer of record, it’s quoted as a full production, at 15% plus 5% insurance and contingency. Each role’s day rate is on its own page: camera operators in Manchester are £529–656 a day, for example.