In keeping with the honey vs. vinegar approach, it’s important to remember that travel can be hectic and it is always harder work on the road than it is at home. The easier you can make the logistics of the travel, the more production time you can get out of a day. For example, try to book hotels near the job site, this is much more important to the crew than deluxe accommodations. However, they do want their own separate rooms. 5-Star Dining is not necessary, but dinner should at least be a step above airport food, they’ll get plenty of that anyway.

Allow for additional time getting in and out of airports. Book direct flights, preferably to airports closest to the shoot locations. Remember that at least two crew members are needed to go on an out-of-town shoot, for safety and security reasons. A two-person crew should be able to hand-carry onto a plane enough production equipment to get started, even if baggage was lost. This would include: camera/deck, monitor, battery, tape, microphone and cables. Typically, the crew will send as baggage a tripod, lighting kit, battery charger/AC adapter and additional cables, tape and batteries.

The videocamera/deck should be hand-checked and not sent through the x-ray. You should also avoid passing film or shot videotapes through the x-ray, no matter what they tell you. The hand-checking can take time, so allow at least another 45 minutes.

Tips for airport baggage handlers and hotel valets are good insurance on valuable equipment that is needed or cart rentals may also be used.