The electrician is the person carrying a 4-by-4 LED panel up a staircase at 6:40 AM while the gaffer is still walking the set with the DP. The work is physical and repetitive, with long stretches of standing by and short bursts of fast work when the 1st AD calls "turning around." Good electricians anticipate. When the gaffer says "give me a quarter off that key," someone is already holding the diffusion.
What electricians do, by phase
Rigging and prep come first on bigger shows. Rigging electricians hang fixtures in stage perms and on truss, run feeder cable from the stage box or generator to distribution boxes, and label circuits so the shooting crew can find them. Local 728 treats this as its own work, with separate classifications for chief rigging technician, assistant chief rigging technician, and rigging technician (off production).
During shooting the crew is smaller: on a mid-size feature, a gaffer, best boy, and three to five electricians, plus a lighting console programmer if the show uses networked LED fixtures. The electricians set lamps where the gaffer points, run and dress stingers and cable so actors and the camera dolly don't trip on them, and stand by at dimmers or fixtures during takes. When the scene has a practical, like a table lamp or a TV that has to flicker on cue, an electrician wires it and works the cue.
At wrap they strike everything in the reverse order it went in: lamps off and cooling, heads down, stands collapsed, cable coiled and counted. On location, that can mean an hour of wrap after the last shot, which is why electricians watch the clock as closely as anyone.
A night exterior, start to finish
Here is what a crew call of 5:00 PM looks like for a residential street night exterior:
| Time | Work |
|---|---|
| 5:00 PM | Truck opens. Crew lays cable from the generator, parked out of the shot, down the block |
| 5:45 PM | Safety meeting with the 1st AD about lift work and traffic |
| 6:00 PM | Condor with an 18K or large LED unit gets powered as a moonlight source, with grips rigging the frame |
| 7:30 PM | Blocking. Electricians set porch practicals and a soft source for the car interior |
| 8:15 PM | First shot, well after sunset |
| 10:45 PM | First meal, inside six hours of call. Lamps are dimmed or shut down and one electrician watches the generator |
| 5:00 AM | Last shot before sunrise; wrap and cable pickup |
| 6:15 AM | Truck closed |
That shift is over 13 hours. Under the Basic Agreement, hours past 12 are double time, so a long night costs the production much more than a 10-hour day. It also sets up the next turnaround for the entire crew.
Money: scale and what adds to it
For Local 728's third contract year, starting August 2, 2026, Wage Schedule 1 lists the electrical lighting technician minimum at $56.70 an hour and the entry level employee at $49.87 an hour. Gang bosses, special lighting technicians, and running repair technicians are $57.91, and a lighting programmer hired by the day is $59.20.
A worked example for one electrician on a 12-hour day at $56.70:
- 8 straight hours: 8 × $56.70 = $453.60
- 4 hours at time and a half ($85.05): $340.20
- Day total: $793.80, plus the employer's pension and health contributions
Low budget and new media agreements pay less, so check the tier. The IATSE low budget theatrical agreement explains how budget size changes the rate.
Electricians rarely charge a kit rental, but many carry their own hand tools, gloves, a multimeter, and a belt kit. If a production asks an electrician to bring something bigger, such as a personal set of dimmers or a wireless DMX kit, that should go on the deal memo as a rental with an inventory.
Breaking in and joining Local 728
Most electricians start on non-union shows, student films, or commercials, often as day players. The union route in Los Angeles follows Local 728's joining guide: build 30 days of permitted employment on signatory productions within one year of the first permitted day, apply for the Contract Services Industry Experience Roster or Commercial Roster, pass a color-blind test, and complete the Contract Services general safety and harassment prevention courses. Local 728 tells people on non-union shows to send in call sheets or crew lists, because productions that get organized are the most reliable way to earn permitted days.
In New York, electricians work under IATSE Local 52. Other regions have their own locals, and the IATSE glossary entry lists how the union is organized.
Who they work with
Electricians take direction from the gaffer on set and from the best boy electric for crew calls and paperwork. They work shoulder to shoulder with grips, who own flags, frames, and rigging hardware. The dividing line is simple: if it has a plug, it is electric. They also check in with the camera assistants about where the lens is pointed, since a stand in the shot costs everyone a take.
Paperwork an electrician touches
Start paperwork and I-9 on the first day, a daily time sheet or digital time card, and a safety bulletin sign-off when the show is doing lifts, water, or rain effects. In Storiara, crew members are added in Cast & Crew, where a union and contract can be selected with the rate filled in, and the Callsheets and Reminders modules send the day's call sheet to the people on it by email.