Video and Photo Crews for Manufacturing Companies

Why a factory film is hard to arrange

Manufacturers often have the most interesting visuals in B2B and some of the hardest conditions in which to film them. Production lines run on a schedule, sites have strict safety rules, and the machine you want to show may be hidden behind something proprietary. Plants are also often far from any major production hub, and that makes flying a crew in expensive.

Hiring someone local solves the distance problem, and your preparation solves the others. Fame Crew sends a vetted videographer from the nearest part of our network, and if a remote site does mean travel, we flag the cost upfront. The rest depends on getting the right information into the brief well before the shoot.

What to agree with the site first

Your site manager's approval is the first thing to get, because no amount of creative planning helps if the crew is turned away at the gate. Your health and safety team sets the rules, and these go into the brief. Questions worth answering:

• Is an induction required, and how long does it take?
• What personal protective equipment is needed, and who supplies it?
• Who will escort the crew, and which areas are off limits?
• Are there rules about batteries, lights, tripods or wireless equipment in any zones?
• When can a line be slowed or stopped, if at all?
• How noisy is each area, and where can an interview be recorded?

Protecting what should not be shown

A wide shot can reveal more than you intended: a process layout, a supplier's name on a crate, a customer's product on the line or a production figure on a screen. Decide what is sensitive before filming, then walk the route and clear or cover anything that should not appear.

Crew members and editors can sign your NDA before arriving. If you want extra reassurance, ask someone from the plant to review the raw footage, which can be supplied by secure link or hard drive, before anything goes to a wider group. Put the same care into customer work: get the customer's permission before filming their parts or project.

Noise, light and movement

Factories create practical problems for a camera. Sound is the most obvious: a shop floor is rarely suitable for an interview, even with a lavalier microphone. A common approach is to record the interview in a quieter room and use the footage from the floor as supporting shots, which gives you the energy of the plant without the noise.

Lighting can also be uneven, and machine movement may need to be filmed several times to get a usable shot. Tell the crew what happens in each process and when the interesting moment occurs, especially if it only comes once every few minutes. Having someone who knows the process beside the camera will save a lot of time.

Common briefs for manufacturers

One well-planned plant visit can feed a lot of channels, from sales and recruitment to investor communications. Typical content includes:

• Facility overviews that sales teams can share with prospects who cannot visit.
• Process and capability films showing how a product is made.
• Recruitment content featuring real employees and their workplaces.
• Trade show coverage of product demos, booth tours and customer reactions.
• Internal videos, such as leadership updates and training material, delivered securely.
• Photography for websites, brochures and annual reports.

Aerial footage

Aerial shots can show the scale of a facility in a way that nothing on the ground can. We use licensed pilots and can match you with a licensed and insured drone operator local to the site. It is subject to local flight rules, so your location, and any nearby airports or restricted areas, may limit what can be done. Get site permission too, since some operators of neighbouring or high-risk sites may have their own rules. Mention aerial work when you first ask for a quote.