Film crew hire/Cornwall/Grip
Hire a grip in Cornwall. The camera moving smoothly, safely and the same way every take, coast path included.
Key grips and grips for adverts, brand films, drama and car work across Cornwall. They build and push the dolly, lay the track, rig the camera to cars and bikes, and plan every move around the ground it crosses: a private estate road, a quay, or a clifftop where nothing can be pegged. Cornish crew first, from Bristol, Devon or London where the brief needs it. From £526 a day, paid to the grip 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: sippakorn yamkasikorn, David Glessner, Rendy Novantino and Here Now Films
The role
What a grip does on your shoot
Grips move and hold the camera. They lay track and push the dolly, build sliders and jibs, rig the camera to a car, a crane or a wall, and check every rig before the camera goes on. A good dolly grip hits the same mark at the same speed, take after take.
In the UK, grips handle the camera support. Lighting stands and flags belong to the sparks, which is different from the US, where grips do those too. Worth saying when a US crew comes down with its own DP: the grip here won’t be rigging the lights.
On the Cornish coast a lot of grip work is about the ground: track levelled on sand, a slider on a slipway, a jib carried up a coast path because vehicles can’t go, and nothing pegged where the land is protected. Moving shots usually go onto a private road, where the owner can say yes, because closing a public one needs at least 12 weeks’ notice to Cornwall Council (checked October 2026).
We’re a crew agency with 2,800+ freelance crew on our books across the UK, 30+ of them in Cornwall, and we scale a crew up as the shoot needs. Cornwall is short of grips, as it is of the lighting crew they work beside, so grips come down from Bristol, Devon or London, often with the package, and the travel and hotels are on the quote before anything is booked. Dollies can come from Falmouth University’s stores; tracking vehicles and cranes travel in with their own crew.
- Moves that repeat. The same push-in at the same speed, so the director can choose any take.
- Track laid level. On a studio floor, a quay or a beach, levelled with wedges until it’s silent.
- Rigs that hold. Cameras on cars, bikes, cranes and walls, rigged and checked by someone who does it every week.
- Safety first. Weights, straps and a plan for every rig, before the camera goes on.
What’s included
What the day rate covers
In the day rate
- An 11-hour day, including an hour for lunch
- Building and operating the dolly, slider or jib
- Laying and levelling track
- Rigging cameras to cars, cranes and structures
- Risk-checking every rig
- Striking and loading out the grip kit
On top, each on its own line
- Our 10% booking fee and 2% insurance, on the whole quote
- The grip package: dolly, track, jib or car mounts, at a day rate on its own line
- A tracking vehicle or crane, with its own crew
- Road closures, traffic management and permits for car work, at cost
- 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 grip for your own camera team in Cornwall, or have us take the production on, road plans and permissions with it.
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 grip, call to wrap
A bike sequence on a private estate road in the morning, then a slider interview in the estate’s house after lunch. A private road, so it’s the owner’s permission, not a road closure. Times are an example; the call sheet sets the real ones.
- 06:30 Load in The grip van and the tracking vehicle at the estate gate; the route driven at walking pace with the estate manager.
- 07:00 Rig The camera on the tracking vehicle’s arm, checked by its own team and our key grip together.
- 08:00 First run The rider on the estate road, the vehicle ahead. Marks for start and stop, and the turning point agreed.
- 10:30 Reset The vehicle back to first position between runs, and the road clear before each one.
- 13:00 Lunch Track and slider carried into the house.
- 14:00 Interview A slow slider move on the contributor, levelled on old floorboards so it doesn’t creak.
- 17:30 Wrap Rigs struck and counted, the van loaded for the drive back up the A30.
Which kind
Which grip set-up do you need?
The camera support decides the grip. Here’s what each involves, and where Cornwall adds a rule.
Key grip Runs the grip department Card: Up to £575
Plans the camera support with the DOP and runs the grips.
Best on any shoot with dolly, crane or rigging work.
Dolly grip Track, dolly and repeatable moves From £526 a day + kit
Lays track, builds and pushes the dolly, and hits the marks every take. Falmouth University’s film school stores hire a PD1 track dolly at £250 a day plus VAT (checked October 2026). On a quay, the harbour master agrees it first.
Best for adverts, drama and slow, precise moves.
Slider and jib Small moves, small crews From £526 a day + kit
A slider, a Dana Dolly or a jib arm, set up and operated by one grip, and light enough to carry up a coast path.
Best for interviews and brand films that need a bit of movement.
Car rigs and tracking vehicles Cameras on moving cars and bikes Quoted on the brief
Suction and hard mounts, or a tracking vehicle with its own crew, on a private road or a closed one. A road closure goes to Cornwall Council’s Street Works team with at least 12 weeks’ notice, and a full order is £1,942.50 (checked October 2026). See locations and permits in Cornwall.
Best for car films, bike sequences and driving scenes.
Cranes and remote heads Big rising and sweeping moves Quoted on the brief
A telescopic crane with a remote head, operated by a crane crew and a camera operator, brought in from outside the county with its own team. On council land the vehicle needs specific permission before it drives on.
Best for big adverts, events and music videos.
What it’s for
What people book a grip for in Cornwall
Car and bike films
Tracking vehicles on private estate roads, where it’s the owner’s permission and not a 12-week road closure.
The coast path
Sliders and small jibs carried in, weighted rather than pegged where the clifftop is a Site of Special Scientific Interest.
Harbours and quays
Track along a quay in Newquay, St Ives, Falmouth or Padstow, with the harbour master’s agreement first.
Studio and barn days
Dolly moves on the floor at Falmouth University’s studios, or in a converted barn standing in for a stage.
Drama
Series and features, with Screen Cornwall’s SCEPI fund investing in up to ten film and HETV projects filmed between 2025 and 2028 (checked October 2026).
Recent work
Grips on our jobs, and how we crew Cornwall
Our work · The Lizard, Cornwall · June 2026
A tracking vehicle on a private estate road
For Cohere’s AI for Empowerment, shot on 35mm, the Lizard sequence had a cyclist riding above the sea. We treated a non-athlete cycling on a public road on camera as a stunt, so the ride moved to a private road on the Trelowarren Estate, one of three landowners’ permissions for one sequence. The moving shots came off a tracking vehicle and its three-person team: a head technician, a precision driver and a Level 3 grip. The tracking team travelled in, as did the 1st and 2nd ACs, and the crew hotel was in Helston.
How we crew it · Cornwall
Grip kit in the county, key grips from further afield
Falmouth University’s film school stores hire to outside productions on 24 hours’ notice: a PD1 track dolly is £250 a day, a Jackal rickshaw dolly £100 and an Indie Dolly £30, plus VAT, with a copy of your public liability insurance before collection (checked October 2026). The Cornish Camera Co. in West Cornwall hires camera grip, tracking and a mini jib. Key grips and bigger packages come down from Bristol, Devon or London, and the travel and hotels are on the quote before anything is booked.
Before you book
Things to know
The day and the kit
- 11 hours, including an hour for lunch.
- Overtime at card rates, agreed with you before it happens.
- The grip package goes on its own line, at a day rate.
Roads and permission
- A road closure goes to Cornwall Council’s Street Works team with at least 12 weeks’ notice; a full temporary traffic regulation order is £1,942.50 (checked October 2026).
- Cornwall Council’s FilmApp terms ask for 12 weeks’ notice for any traffic management.
- On private land the owner’s permission covers the road, which is why we take car and bike work there where we can.
Filming in Cornwall
- Cornwall Council asks for £5m public liability and a location-specific risk assessment with every application.
- Cornwall Council’s permit terms don’t allow vehicles onto its land without specific permission, so the kit often goes in on carts.
- On Cohere’s clifftops on the Lizard, a Site of Special Scientific Interest, nothing could be pegged or driven into the ground, so every gazebo was weighted.
Paying and changes
- Nothing to pay until you confirm the grip.
- 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 grip 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.
£526 a day
APA/Bectu card: £526–575 a day, grip to key grip.
| Day rate, 11 hours | £526 |
| Booking fee, 10% | £52.60 |
| Insurance, 2% | £10.52 |
| One day, before kit and travel | £589.12 + VAT |
The 2% is employers’ liability for the grip we book, and cover on kit we hire in. What it covers
You won’t pay anything until you confirm the grip.
- 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 grip in Cornwall.
Tell us the moves, the camera and the ground they’re on: a road, a quay, a beach or a studio floor. 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 £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
Grip work often needs a road plan, a landowner’s permission or a studio floor. Here’s how each works in Cornwall, each item its own line on the quote.
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 grip in Cornwall: questions
How much does a grip cost in Cornwall?
The APA/Bectu card puts a grip at £526–575 for an 11-hour day, from grip to key grip, and we pay that in full. On top go our 10% booking fee and 2% insurance, so a day starts at £589.12 + VAT. The grip package is priced on its own line, and so are travel and hotels from outside Cornwall.
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.
What’s the difference between a grip and a gaffer?
In the UK, the gaffer runs the lighting and the grip runs the camera support. In the US, grips also handle lighting stands and flags.
Can you rig a camera to a car or a bike in Cornwall?
Yes. On private land, with the owner’s permission, which is where we take it when we can: for Cohere on the Lizard we moved a bike sequence onto a private estate road rather than a public one. On a public road, a closure goes to Cornwall Council’s Street Works team with at least 12 weeks’ notice, a full order is £1,942.50, and an application still missing information six weeks before the date is declined (checked October 2026).
Can we lay track on a beach, a quay or the coast path?
With permission. Filming on Cornwall Council land, its beaches, woods, parks, gardens and old mining sites among them, needs a permit through FilmApp. Screen Cornwall’s Film Office gives advice, locations and introductions to landowners, but doesn’t issue the permits. Vehicles can’t drive onto council land without specific permission, so the kit goes in on carts. A quay belongs to the harbour: Cornwall Council’s harbour masters run Newquay, Truro, Penzance and St Ives, and Falmouth and Padstow have harbour commissioners. Much of the coast has other owners: the National Trust signs a contract for any commercial shoot and doesn’t allow unauthorised drones; the Duchy of Cornwall holds over 160 miles of Cornish foreshore; and on a Site of Special Scientific Interest the landowner needs Natural England’s written consent, which can take up to four months (checked October 2026).
Where does grip kit come from in Cornwall?
Falmouth University’s film school stores hire to outside productions on 24 hours’ notice: a PD1 track dolly is £250 a day, a Jackal rickshaw dolly £100 and an Indie Dolly £30, plus VAT, with a copy of your public liability insurance before collection (checked October 2026). The Cornish Camera Co. in West Cornwall hires camera grip, tracking and a mini jib. Cranes, remote heads and tracking vehicles come in with their own crew.
Are your grips local to Cornwall?
Some are. As a crew agency we have 2,800+ freelance crew on our books, 30+ of them in Cornwall, and we scale a crew up as the shoot needs. 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. Grips are one of the roles that often travel. We started in Cornwall, and our founders still work from our Newquay office.