Film crew hire/Cornwall/Runner
Hire a runner in Cornwall. First in, last out, and up and down the beach path in between.
Runners for shoots across Cornwall. They run the errands, carry the kit down to the sand and back, hold the car park bays, keep an eye on the tide and keep the unit base going, so everyone else can do their job. £245 a day, the full APA/Bectu card rate, paid to the runner 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: Omotayo Kofoworola, patsanannnn, Jakob Owens, sippakorn yamkasikorn and Here Now Films
The role
What a runner does on your shoot
A runner does whatever the shoot needs next: fetching, carrying, holding doors and paths, minding the parking bays, making tea, collecting a forgotten cable from a kit house in West Cornwall. It’s the first job on a crew, and a good runner makes the whole day calmer.
Production runners work to the producer or production manager; floor runners work to the ADs on set. On a small shoot one runner does both.
As a crew agency we have 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: one runner on an interview day, three or four on a beach with a cast. Runners are the role where travel makes least sense, so we book them from as close to the shoot as we can.
- Errands done fast. The shop, the kit house, the courier, and back before anyone notices.
- Kit carried and minded. Down the beach path, along the cliff, and never left alone on the sand.
- The base running. Tea, water, snacks and the bins, all day.
- Paid properly. The full APA/Bectu card rate for a runner, £245 a day, every time.
What’s included
What the day rate covers
In the day rate
- An 11-hour day, including an hour for lunch
- Runs to shops, kit houses and couriers
- Loading in and out, down to the beach and back
- The unit base: water, tea and snacks
- Holding the car park bays and meeting the vans
- Keeping the public out of shot, with the AD or producer
On top, each on its own line
- Our 10% booking fee and 2% insurance, on the whole quote
- Parking dispensations for the vans, 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 runner for your own shoot, or have us run the whole production, runners included.
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 runner, call to wrap
A brand film on a beach below a council car park, with the unit base at the top of the path. Times are an example; the call sheet sets the real ones.
- 06:30 Before call The car park bays the dispensation covers kept clear, the vans met and parked, the urn on, water and snacks out.
- 07:15 Down to the sand Kit carried down the path on carts. Nothing drives onto council land without Cornwall Council’s permission, so the vans stay at the top (checked October 2026).
- 09:00 On set The path held, the public politely kept out of shot, the lifeguards in the loop, the next set-up’s kit staged above the tide line.
- 11:00 A run Up to the van for the spares, and the tide time checked again with the producer.
- 13:00 Lunch Carried down, laid out and cleared.
- 15:00 The tide Kit moved back up the beach as the tide turns, before anyone has to ask.
- 19:00 Wrap Last out: the base cleared, the rubbish gone, the bays handed back as they were found.
Which kind
Which runner do you need?
Runners do different jobs on different crews.
Production runner Works to the producer or PM £245 a day
Runs, deliveries, catering, the base and the car park bays.
Best on any shoot with a unit base or lots of kit.
Floor runner Works to the ADs
Moves people and messages for the AD team. See 2nd ADs in Cornwall.
Best on shoots with a cast or background artists.
Runner with a car Collections and drops
Collects kit, props and people, with their own car and business insurance, and the mileage on the quote.
Best when the kit is in West Cornwall or Falmouth and the location is on the north coast.
Production assistant More responsibility £400 a day
Contributors, releases and the call sheet. See production assistants in Cornwall.
Best when the producer needs someone to share the load.
What it’s for
What people book a runner for in Cornwall
Brand films and adverts
A unit base in a car park, lots of kit, and a set at the bottom of a path that needs minding.
Beaches and clifftops
Kit carried down and back, the public kept out of shot, and an eye on the tide.
Studio days
Deliveries, catering and runs around Falmouth University’s film school studios.
Shoots with a cast
Floor runners for the ADs, on a quay, a beach or a street in the holidays.
Collections
A runner with a car for kit from The Cornish Camera Co. in West Cornwall or Falmouth University’s film school stores.
Recent work
Runners on our jobs, from the cliffs to the car park
Our work · The Lizard, Cornwall · June 2026
Kit in on beach carts
Our 35mm day on the Lizard for Cohere had a runner and driver on the call sheet. Vehicles couldn’t reach the clifftop, so the kit went in on beach carts and over a stone wall; there was no phone signal, so the unit ran on twelve radios along a mile of cliff path, from a 07:00 call to a 21:00 wrap, in fog.
How we crew it · Cornwall
Car parks, bays and the beach path
On the coast the vans need somewhere to stop, and it’s rarely the beach. A unit base in a council car park is agreed with Cornwall Council’s parking team, outside FilmApp. A parking dispensation for a vehicle essential to filming is £20 a day, with at least five working days’ notice, and there’s none on double yellows, footways, or bus, taxi or residents’ bays. Nothing drives onto council land without the council’s permission, so the runner meets the vans at the top and the kit goes down on foot or on carts (checked October 2026). Dispensations go on the quote at cost, 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.
Cars, vans and parking
- Tell us if the runner needs a car: mileage and parking go on the quote at cost.
- Runners drive only on business insurance.
- Parking dispensations for the vans go on the quote at cost, each on its own line.
Filming in Cornwall
- Cornwall Council asks for £5m public liability and a location-specific risk assessment with every application.
- RNLI lifeguards patrol 20 Cornish beaches from May; tell the lifeguards before filming on a patrolled beach.
Paying and changes
- Nothing to pay until you confirm the runner.
- 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 runner 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.
£245 a day
We pay the full APA/Bectu card rate for a runner: £245 a day.
| Day rate, 11 hours | £245 |
| Booking fee, 10% | £24.50 |
| Insurance, 2% | £4.90 |
| One day, before mileage | £274.40 + VAT |
The 2% is employers’ liability for the runner we book, and cover on kit we hire in. What it covers
You won’t pay anything until you confirm the runner.
- 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 runner in Cornwall.
Tell us the date, the place, and whether the runner needs a car. 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 This page £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
Runners keep everything around the crew moving, from the car park bays to the kit runs to Falmouth and West Cornwall, each item its own line on the quote if you want us to book it.
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 runner in Cornwall: questions
How much does a runner cost in Cornwall?
Our runners are £245 for an 11-hour day, including an hour for lunch: the full APA/Bectu card rate, paid to the runner. On top go our 10% booking fee and 2% insurance: £274.40 + VAT for the day, plus mileage and parking if they drive.
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 runner and a PA?
A runner fetches, carries and keeps the unit base going. A production assistant works closer to the producer, on contributors and paperwork.
Can your runners drive in Cornwall?
Some can, with their own car and business insurance; tell us when you book. Mileage and parking go on the quote at cost. The A30 is mostly dual carriageway, but Visit Cornwall advises following road signs rather than the sat-nav, which sends drivers down narrow lanes, and warns of heavy traffic in peak season, in the school holidays and at weekends (checked October 2026). Nothing drives onto council land, a beach included, without Cornwall Council’s permission (checked October 2026).
Where do runners collect kit from in Cornwall?
Mostly from two places: 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. Collections are booked the day before where the hire house needs notice, and the mileage goes on the quote.
Can a runner hold parking for the vans?
Yes, once the parking is booked: a dispensation from Cornwall Council, or a unit base in a council car park agreed with its parking team. There’s no dispensation on double yellow lines, footways, or bus, taxi, disabled or residents’ bays (checked October 2026), so the spot is picked with that in mind. The runner is there before the vans to keep the space clear, meets each one in, and hands the space back as it was found.
Why pay a runner the full card rate?
Because it’s the rate. Runners work the same 11-hour day as everyone else, and the people who start as runners are the crew of the next ten years.
How far ahead should I book a runner in Cornwall?
Our team reads every brief within 2 working hours. If the runner is holding parking, it’s the parking that needs the notice: Cornwall Council wants at least five working days for a dispensation, and an application after 3pm is reviewed the next working day (checked October 2026).