Don’t let others know you're green when you can’t understand all the film lingo crew spews out on set. Don't worry - set lingo will become so second nature where you will accidentally start using it with family and they’ll look at you utterly confused. My mom loves using “dummy check” every time we’re on vacation now.
As I was writing a list of terms, I came up with over 200! I decided to narrow it down to terms that I think are important for communication and ones you may hear crew using with each other. I also broke it into two articles so it's not overwhelming. Equipment, gear, and crew positions have a lot of unique names and I have left them off for the most part except ones I believe to be essential. Subscribe for when we release the master glossary!
1. 10-1
Taking a quick restroom break
Ex. "I'll be right back, I'm 10-1"
2. 10-2
Taking a "longer" restroom break
3. Going off walkie
A phrase someone says to let you know they are turning off their walkie or pulling their ear piece out and will not be available
4. Flying in
This phrase is equivalent to saying something is on it's way. This can refer to people or objects.
Ex. "First Team Flying in" or someone can ask for a C-stand and you walkie back, "Flying in"
5. C-Stand
Looks like this and has multiple uses. They're typically seen holding flags or diffusion to shape light, but you'll find they are pretty versatile stands.
6. 86
To cancel what was previously requested. People have argued this is a restaurant term but you will hear this being used on set.
7. Abby Singer
Second to last setup of the day
8. Martini
Last setup of the day
9. Audible
When a plan is changed on short notice.
Ex. "We're calling an audible"
10. Audition
To try out.
Ex. "Let's audition the striped shirt under this lighting."
11. Blocking rehearsal
This is when the director works with their actors to establish where they will be standing and moving throughout the scene
12. Marking rehearsal
This is for the actors to show how they move around the scene and gives the 2nd AC a chance to mark the actors positions for lighting purposes
13. Second team
Second team are stand-ins usually called in after marking rehearsal. They stand in on those marks so the Director of Photography can have them as a reference as they light the actors. Marks are also useful for the focus puller.
14. First team
Primary/principle actors of the scene
15. Stand in Title of the person who literally stands in for first team for lighting purposes. Some jobs will not have a stand in and sometimes the 1st AD or a nice crew member will stand in for the DP temporarily.
Ex. DP says to 1st AD, "Do you think we can get someone to stand in for a second?"
16. Company move
Entire crew and company move to a different location before the shoot day is over. You would not call it a company move if tomorrow's location is different from todays.
Ex. "We have two company moves today?!"
17. Day play/day player
A day player is someone who is not part of the main crew, but comes in now and again on days when additional crew is required, or a regular crew member is not available. If the B-camera operator could not be there for Day 17, a day player would come in place of them.
Ex. "I just day played on a show for 3 days."
18. Dummy check
The process of taking a quick walk through of the location to see if anything was left behind
19. AKS
All Kinds of Stuff. Many camera assistants have an AKS case that has all kinds of knick knacks and accessories thrown in
20. Eyes on
A phrase to ask if anyone has seen a person or item.
Ex. "Anyone have eyes on the Director?"
21. Fire watch
To stand guard and keep an eye on trucks and equipment to make sure nothing gets stolen.
Ex. 1st AD says to PA, "Can you take lunch early so when we break you can firewatch the truck?"
22. Fraturday
A concept that came to fruition due to crew having late start work times on Fridays which in turn, seeped into their Saturday morning.
23. Green
Refers to a person who is very new to working in the film industry. They're green because they have not ripened yet
Ex. "Steve is a little green, but he is a faster learner and has a great attitude."
24. Greens Very different from "green". Greens with an "s" is referring to the crew members who take care of the plants on bigger budget productions
25. Hot brick
This refers to a fully charged walkie battery
Ex. "Do you know where I can get a hot brick? Mine is dying."
26. Hot set
This is to communicate that the set is live and should not be touched in case you mess something up with continuity
Ex. 1st AD says, "This is a hot set. Do not leave your drinks on the counters please."
27. Indie film
A movie that is produced outside of the major film studio system, typically made without the financial backing of a major production company
28. Kill it
To get rid of
Ex. "Let's kill the 2k, it's not working."
29. Last looks
A call from the 1st AD to give vanity (make-up, hair, costumes) a moment to check the actors before we roll.
30. Stage
A temporary storage location for equipment and props.
Ex. "Do you know where camera will be staging? Can we stage G&E here?"
31. Moments away
A phrase a 1st AD would say to essentially mean we are very close to rolling the camera
32. On the move This term is self explanatory but it more is to notify people out loud as a warning that big expensive and/or heavy items are moving around. This can also be "Camera moves!" or "Dolly moves!"
Ex. “Camera on the move” or “Dolly on the move”
33. Peel
A term that means it was difficult.
Ex. "I was on a music video last week and we got peeled."
34. Points
A warning call to say that something that can poke your eye out is right around the corner.
Ex. "Points! Points coming through", says the grip carrying a c-stand as he enters the house
35. Repo
Short for “reposition”.
Ex. "Can we repo the lamp so it’s not in the shot?"
36. Reset
To reset any number of things on set; cameras, actors, lights, etc. It can also mean to reset the entire move for that take. You might hear this more often when it's a difficult gag or when the team wants to repeat the move without cutting the roll.
Ex. 1st Assistant Director shouts, “Okay, lets reset, back to one. Dolly… and action.”
37. Shuttle
A shuttle is a sprinter or mini-van that takes crew from crew parking to base camp. Typically the call sheet or e-mail will mention if there is a shuttle. If so, make sure to budget some time to get on the shuttle to make your call time.
38. Standby
A term to ask someone to wait.
Ex. Camera Assistant asks Director of Photography, “Did you say you wanted N.D. 3 or 6?” DP looks at the light and has a thinking face. She says, “Standby.”
39. Turnaround
This refers to the amount of time you are called off work and back on set. Typically you should be getting a minimum 10 hour turnaround. If your turnaround is invaded, you should be getting additional pay for those invaded hours.
Ex. “Yesterday’s turnaround was only 8 hours, so I only got 5 hours of sleep”
40. Video village/Client Village
Client village is for clients, video village is for director/director of photography.
Ex. “Hey, do you know where video village is?”
41. Walkway
A term to mean at the end of the day the production will not be wrapping out of the location. You will turn everything off, put away everything in a safe spot, and literally walk away. There is no need to pack up anything to the trucks.
Ex. "We’re at this location for 3 days so tomorrow is going to be walkaway."
42. What’s your 20
This is to ask where someone’s location is.
Ex. “Hey, I’ve got a hot brick for you, what’s your 20?”
43. Wheels up
This usually refers to a time when production wants to be ready to be rolling out. This term is more frequent in travel jobs where production is taking you to locations. It can also be used for when trucks should be rolling out at end of day.
Ex. “We want to be wheels up at 8:00am sharp.”
44. Bump take
This refers to when the camera accidentally gets rolled on and cut.
Ex. Script supervisor says to camera assistant, “Was that a bump take just now?”
45. Rate bump
A rate bump happens when you get promoted in your position, which will also give you a promotion in your rate.
Ex. “Yesterday the camera operator got sick, so I got a rate bump from 1st AC to cam op.”
46. Dolly bump
This is when the dolly runs out of air and needs to be charged back up to operate the boom.
Ex. Dolly Grip says to Electric, “Can I get a dolly bump?”
47. Bump the slate
This refers to doing a bump take, but with the slate in it. This is frequent for jobs where they like to do a series of shots and only want to do a few frames of the slate before rolling as they please. This also is frequent for high speed shooting. Instead of having a slate in frame and pulled out, you can do a quick roll and cut on the slate and have a bump slate rather to save time.
Ex. 1st Assistant Camera says to the 2nd Assistant Camera, “Let’s go ahead and bump the slate.”
48. Playing
This refers to if something is actively working. This can mean a camera, a gag, or a light.
Ex. 1st AC says, “Is B camera playing on this one?” Camera Operator says, “No, I think we don’t play until 5”
49. 50/50
Not sure where this term came from, but it means the director and DP want to start rolling the camera secretly without the actors or the subject knowing. They do this to capture more authentic performances sometimes.
Ex. Director of Photography says to the 1st AC, “Psst. 50/50” the 1st AC rolls the camera.
50. Adults/grown ups
This is a fun way to describe the people who make the decisions. This refers to mostly people who are above the line.
Ex. Crew member says, “Do you know if we’re moving on or doing another?” Another one response, “Not sure, the grown ups are still talking.”
Mastering film lingo can feel overwhelming at first, but the more time you spend on set, the more these terms will become second nature. Keep this list handy and don’t forget—no one knows it all right away. You’ll be surprised at how quickly you’ll find yourself using these terms like a pro. Be sure to subscribe to get updates for even more tips and resources to help you thrive in the industry.
Which terms in this list were new to you, and which ones have you already encountered on set? Are there any terms you feel are missing that you'd like to learn more about? What other areas of the film industry would you like to see covered in future articles?
Stay organized with FreeMe! As you familiarize yourself with the essential lingo, don’t forget that communication is just one part of staying on top of things. Tracking information and keeping up with your work schedule can feel just as overwhelming as learning the language of film. That’s where FreeMe comes in. Our app helps streamline these tasks, so you can focus on honing your skills and becoming a more efficient crew member. Whether you're just starting out or well into your career, FreeMe keeps the admin work simple, so you can spend more time doing what you love on set.
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