1. Someone knows a guy
You might think that because you’re coming onto a job and that you’re being hired for a certain position (whether that’s a camera operator, AC, Data Wrangler, DOP), that the kit will automatically be hired. In actual fact, it works very differently.
The political rental battle field
Whether it is the first time you are being hired by a client or not, someone else may have a stronger relationship with someone on the job and their kit will be used instead of yours. Agreements have been made and kit arrangements have been agreed – not because someone else’s equipment is better than yours – it can be the same exact equipment. It is because someone is doing someone else a favour because kit rental equals extra payment.
DOPs, ACs, Wranglers can be very prideful and territorial about their kit being rented on a show. I’ve known VFX supervisors to offer their kit for free for the duration of the show (as part of their overall fee) and other crew members have become very cheesed off.
This can also work in your favour. If you have a buddy on a job who really loves working with you, and he has some seniority, he or she can push other bids out to get you on board. It can also be down to timing and a bit of semi-positioned luck.
2. Artistic / technical purpose over fees
You might think you’re offering the client a really good deal and potentially halving the costs. But, if your solution doesn’t stand up to the technical or artistic intensions of the director or DOP, then your kit can take a back seat. I’ve worked on shows where our 3-Way RED KOMODO-X VFX Array rig hire, was turned down for an even bigger system with 5+ cameras and definitely a punchier price tag.
3. You don’t discount for longer rental periods
You might think that, if your camera is worth £50,000, you automatically have the potential to earn back the cash after a couple of jobs. But that’s not how it works.
The client is not refunding you the kit bills because they’re not keeping the kit after. They are renting the kit temporarily and using it as a service. They are paying for usage not ownership and that should be reflected in the fees. Clients who are hiring for longer shoot periods should receive a discount rate.
Most kit has a standard rate card, and it should be adaptable depending on the length of the job. If a last-minute request comes in and it’s only a few days, they can expect to pay closer to the full rate.
4. If you can’t buy it off the shelf
What makes something valuable is if it is rare. Our RED KOMODO-X VFX Array, with RED KOMODO-X cameras, ZZEISS 21mm CP.3 XD lenses, Teradek Bolt 6 1500, CTRL.5 Controller, and custom parts, is an ecosystem of multiple high-end components that builds a product which, as one unit, could not be purchased off the shelf.
Even if the products individually can all be purchased off the shelf, the bespoke in-house engineered system cannot be made without significant time, research and investment. By this time, you may as well just rent the bespoke VFX array that already exists.
5. People don’t want to own one, but need one
A good example of this, which links back to the 4th point, is that supervisors, wranglers, directors and producers often find that they need things on jobs last minute. They will repeatedly rent the item rather than buying. Maybe it’s not in their interest to own one of our VFX Chrome Balls (50% Grey / 50% Chrome) and colour chart kits, but it’s still an essential part of the shoot. Rental items like this are great because they cost a lot to buy, but a fraction of the cost to rent.
