If the location manager makes the deal, the assistant location manager keeps the deal intact while 80 people and eight trucks use someone's property for 12 hours. The ALM is the one standing at the curb at 4:45 AM with a clipboard of parking assignments, and the one who gets the call when a grip leans a C-stand against a wallpapered hallway.
KALM and ALM
On a studio feature or series, the locations department often looks like this:
| Position | Typical focus |
|---|---|
| Location manager | Future locations, negotiations, permits, budget |
| Key assistant location manager (KALM) | Today's location, all day, every day |
| Assistant location manager | Tomorrow's prep, second unit, or a split location |
| Location PAs | Signage, cones, restrooms, trash, holding parking |
The Local 399 agreement treats key assistant and assistant as separate classifications with separate weekly "on call" rates. In the July 2024 memorandum, the KALM rate was set at flat dollar amounts ($2,525, then $2,700, then $2,950 per week) instead of following the general percentage increases, which is why the gap between the two jobs grew over the contract.
Before the company arrives
Two or three days out, the ALM confirms everything the location manager negotiated:
- Posts the film permit and any parking permit signs the jurisdiction requires, on time. Many cities want street signs up a set number of hours before filming.
- Walks the property with the owner and takes dated photos of every room, floor, and fence the crew will touch.
- Confirms restroom access, power tie-in permission, and which rooms are off limits.
- Checks that the neighborhood notification went out and knows which neighbors had concerns.
- Builds the parking and base camp map with the transportation captain.
The day itself
A 6:00 AM crew call at a restaurant location might run like this for the KALM:
| Time | Task |
|---|---|
| 3:30 AM | Arrive, unlock with owner's key or meet the manager, turn on lights |
| 4:00 AM | Cones out, pull "no parking" signs, confirm towing if cars are in held spots |
| 4:30 AM | Trucks arrive; guide grip, electric, and camera trucks to their spots |
| 5:00 AM | Layout board and corner guards down along the path to set |
| 6:00 AM | Crew call; brief security and location PAs |
| 11:30 AM | Coordinate catering setup so it doesn't block the restaurant's delivery door |
| 6:00 PM | Wrap called; start pulling layout board once equipment is out |
| 7:30 PM | Walk the space with the manager against the morning photos |
| 8:00 PM | Lock up, text the location manager a wrap report |
That's a 16.5-hour day for a 12-hour shoot. The weekly on-call structure exists because of days like that. Using the Local 399 minimum, an ALM on a five-day week at $2,153 earns about $430.60 per day ($2,153 / 5). For partial weeks the agreement's sick leave and bereavement language uses one-fifth of the weekly rate as a day's pay for on-call employees, which is the same arithmetic.
Problems that land on the ALM
Most of the job is preventing small problems from becoming the location manager's problem. Common ones: a neighbor who never got the notice, a car parked in a held space, crew smoking where the owner said not to, a generator too close to a bedroom window, a delivery truck that needs the driveway at noon, or a production vehicle blocking a fire hydrant. The ALM settles what they can on the spot and logs the rest.
Safety sits here too. The ALM knows where the nearest hospital is, keeps walkways clear for the safety meeting, and checks with the 1st AD when a scene involves effects or stunts that change who can be near the property. The Contract Services safety bulletins cover those specialized situations.
How people move into the job
Nearly every ALM was a location PA first. The path is day-playing on commercials and features, learning signage and parking rules for one city at a time, and getting asked back. In Los Angeles, union work goes through Teamsters Local 399. The 2024 agreement pays a $25 per hour stipend to people attending required Contract Services safety classes on their own time, including Safety Pass course A, whether it was taken before or after placement on the Industry Experience Roster.
The ALMs who get promoted tend to stay calm with angry neighbors and never let the company arrive to a surprise.
Paperwork the ALM touches
- Pre-shoot and wrap photo logs
- Permit copies and posting records
- Parking and base camp maps
- Security and fire safety officer schedules
- The daily location report to the location manager
- Damage notes that feed any claim against the location agreement
The location address and parking map the ALM builds ends up on the call sheet, which is why errors here cost the whole crew time the next morning. Our location scouting checklist lists the site details worth recording before the ALM ever gets there.