CREW SELECTION
Crew selection can be as important as casting. Usually it
is, especially in low budget productions, since the overall look of the
film and the technical quality depends heavily on the crew.
Unless you've made some great friendships while working on low budget
films as crew person yourself and in some cases as a film student and
upon meeting some old friend who's made it in the business as a
technician, most of the time you'll have to pay something to get a good
crew.
If you're doing a shoestring film, you'll have to be a "jack of all
trades" on your production. And hopefully you're really good, otherwise
you'll screw it up royally! But, look at it this way: you gotta screw
up a few films before you learn how you do it. And you're in good
company! The great film maker Ingmar Bergman said that it took him
about four films before he felt he knew what he was doing. Check it
out!
Let's say you have enough money in your budget to pay something. Okay,
your camera person and sound person are your most important positions
from a technical point of view. But your most important person from a
production point of view is your Production Manager.