For newcomers and assistants

How to become a film technician when you have never been on a set

Nobody is born with a film contact. Every technician working today started by being reachable when a unit needed one more pair of hands.

Cinema is 94 crafts across 15 departments. Only one of them faces the camera. Units need assistants on every single film, and they have no proper place to find new ones. Be where they look.

Create my technician profile

Plans start at ₹1,000. Your profile can be live today.

Every industry member is ID checked by hand before they see a single profile.

Why getting the first job is so hard

It is not talent. It is that nobody knows you exist.

Junior crew is hired by phone call

A production manager filling a unit rings the people he already knows and asks who they can bring. If you are not in that chain of calls, you never hear the job existed. It is not personal. He simply has a start date to meet.

Film schools end, contacts do not begin

You finish a course with skill and a certificate. Nobody hands you a unit. Most people then wait outside production offices or send messages that never get read.

There is no list of new crew anywhere

Every unit needs camera attendants, makeup assistants, art assistants and second ADs on every film. There is no place a production manager can search for them. So the same few names get called again and again.

Who this is for

Mainly people at the start. Experienced technicians are welcome too.

Freshers with no credits at all. Trained, self taught, or straight out of a course. Units take on new hands constantly and you have to be findable on the day they look.
Assistants already on set. Camera assistants, makeup assistants, second ADs, art assistants, sound assistants. You have some work behind you and want more units to know your name.
People switching in from other work. A tailor moving to costume, an electrician moving to lighting, a photographer moving to camera. Your existing skill counts.
People outside the big film cities. Shoots travel. Production teams search by city, so being in a smaller town is not the barrier you think it is.
Experienced technicians who want work outside their circle. If you are known in Kochi but want Hyderabad units to find you, list yourself too.

Every department is listed

Pick the role you are hired for. Your profile then asks for what matters in that craft.

Direction

Director, Associate director, Assistant director, Second assistant director, Continuity, Dialogue prompter, Translator

Writing

Script writer, Story writer, Screenplay writer, Dialogue writer, Script assistant

Camera

Cinematographer, Camera assistant, Camera team assistant, Camera attendant, Focus puller, Steadicam operator, Gimbal operator, Drone operator, Helicam and aerial operator, Underwater cameraman, Still photographer

Light and Grip

Gaffer, Lighting technician, Lighting assistant, Generator operator, Crane operator, Trolley operator, Jimmy jib operator, Grip assistant

Art direction

Art director, Production designer, Art assistant, Set decorator, Prop master, Set carpenter, Set painter, Modeller

Makeup

Makeup artist, Makeup assistant, Hair dresser, Prosthetic makeup artist

Costume

Costume designer, Costume assistant, Dress man, Tailor

Dubbing

Dubbing artist, Dubbing director, Dubbing engineer

Post production

Editor, Assistant editor, VFX artist, CG artist, Motion graphics artist, Rotoscopy artist, Matte painter, Colourist, DI technician, Subtitling

Sound

Sound engineer, Sound designer, Sound recordist, Sound assistant, Sound effects artist, Foley artist, Re-recording mixer

Music

Music director, Song writer, Lyricist, Musician, Playback arranger

Action

Stunt master, Stunt assistant, Fight choreographer

Dance

Choreographer, Assistant choreographer, Dance master

Production

Production controller, Production manager, Assistant production manager, Line producer, Production executive, Location manager, Production accountant, Liaison officer

Publicity and design

Publicity designer, Graphic designer, Title designer, Trailer editor, Making video and BTS, Social media manager, PRO, public relations officer, Unit publicist

Working in a craft that is not on this list? Write to us and we will add it. The list grows as members ask for it.

How it works

Five steps. Most people finish in under twenty minutes.

1
Pick your plan
Choose how many work samples you want on your profile and how prominently you appear.
2
Pay and register
Name, email and phone. Pay by UPI, card or net banking.
3
Verify your email
Tap the link we send you, then set your own username and password.
4
Choose Technician, your craft and your level
Pick your department and say whether you are a fresher, an assistant or independent. Units filter on exactly that.
5
Get found
Verified producers, production managers and department heads search the directory and contact you through the platform.

What your profile holds

Written for crew, not for actors. You will never be asked for your height or complexion.

Your level. Fresher, assistant or independent. This is the first thing a unit filters on when hiring junior crew.
Credits so far. Leave it blank if you have none yet. It is not a requirement.
Training or course. Film school, diploma, or who you trained under.
Key skills. What you are actually called for, such as prosthetics, ageing makeup or HD grooming.
Software and tools. DaVinci Resolve, Pro Tools, Nuke, whatever you work on.
Equipment you own. Often the reason a unit picks one person over another.
Union or association. FEFKA, FEFSI, MACT and others.
Day rate range. Optional, and it saves both sides a phone call.
Work samples. Stills of your looks, sets, frames or graded shots.
City, languages and availability. So local units find you first.

Dubbing artists, singers and musicians also get a voice sample link, because that is what a buyer actually listens to before deciding.

How we keep fake people out

This matters more than anything else on this page.

Proof before access

Nobody sees the directory by paying alone. An industry member must upload proof that they work in the field. A company identity card, a business card, a casting credential or a GST certificate.

Checked by a person

Every document is opened and read by our team. No automatic approval. If the proof is weak, the account stays locked.

Contact stays on the platform

Producers reach you through Cinematic Vibe. Your phone number is not printed on your public profile for anyone to copy.

What your first job usually looks like

Nobody starts as head of department. Here is the real route in.

You get called for one day. A unit is short a pair of hands. Someone remembers your name or finds your profile. It is rarely more glamorous than that.
You turn up early and stay late. The people who get called again are the ones who were reachable, on time and easy to work with.
One day becomes a schedule. The same production manager needs you for the rest of the shoot, then for the next film.
Your credits start building. Two or three real credits change every conversation you have after that.

Every step of that depends on one thing. Being findable on the day a unit is looking. That is the only part we can help with, and it is the part most people never solve.

Who is on the other side

Every industry member is ID checked by hand before they see a single profile.

Production managers and controllers

The people who actually build the unit list. They hire assistants in volume, film after film, and they are always short of reliable new names.

Department heads

A cinematographer picking a camera team, an art director building a crew, a makeup head needing two more hands for a schedule.

Line producers and casting teams

People costing and staffing a project who need to find crew in a specific city, in a specific language, at short notice.

The things stopping you are smaller than they look

I have no credits yet

Mark yourself a fresher. Units hiring assistants often prefer someone new who will learn their way of working instead of arguing with it.

I did not go to film school

Most technicians in Indian cinema did not. Skill and willingness get you the first day. The training field is optional.

I am not in Chennai or Hyderabad

Shoots travel constantly and units hire locally wherever they land. Production teams filter by city, so your town is a reason to be found, not a reason to be skipped.

I do not have work photos

Practice work counts. Looks done on friends, sketches, your own photographs, a short you cut. Show what you can do, not only what you were paid for.

I already have contacts

Then you know how few of them are hiring at any one time. This is about the units you have never met.

Is this a job guarantee

No. It is a listing that makes you reachable. Anyone promising you guaranteed film work is lying to you.

Plans

One payment. Your listing stays live for a full year.

Star (Basic)

₹1,000/year

6 work samples on your profile
Image portfolio
Credits, skills, tools and union listed
Searchable by verified industry members
Edit your details any time

Choose Star (Basic)

Most chosen

Super Star (Pro)

₹2,500/year

9 work samples on your profile
Showreel video included
Credits, skills, tools and union listed
Searchable by verified industry members
Edit your details any time

Choose Super Star (Pro)

Mega Star (Premium)

₹5,000/year

12 work samples on your profile
Showreel video included
Credits, skills, tools and union listed
Searchable by verified industry members
Edit your details any time

Choose Mega Star (Premium)

Not sure which to take? Start with the lowest plan. Your details stay yours either way.

What we do not do

Read this before you pay. We would rather lose a sale than mislead you.

We do not promise you work, a call or a project. Nobody honest can promise that.
We are not an agent and we take no cut of anything you earn.
We are not a union and we do not replace one.
We do not sell your phone number or email to anyone.
We do not ask you to pay any person for a job. If someone does, walk away and tell us.

Questions people ask

Do you promise me work?

No, and be careful of anyone who does. We are a listing and discovery platform. We make you findable by verified industry members. What happens after that is between you and them.

I have never worked on a film. Can I still list?

Yes, and this site is built mainly for you. Mark yourself as a fresher. Units hiring assistants often prefer someone new who is willing to learn their way of working.

I am an assistant with two or three credits. Is it worth listing?

Yes. There is far less competition at assistant level than for senior roles, and units need those hands on every film.

Do I need to be a union member?

No. The union field is optional. If you are with FEFKA, FEFSI, MACT or another association you can state it, because some productions look for it.

What if my craft is not in the list?

Write to us with your craft and your city. We add departments and roles as members ask for them.

I work in more than one department. What do I choose?

Pick the craft you are hired for most often as your category, then use your skills and credits to show the rest.

What photos should I upload if I have no work yet?

Practice work counts. A makeup assistant can show looks done on friends. An art assistant can show sketches or models. A camera assistant can show their own photographs. Show what you can do, not only what you were paid for.

Should I put my day rate?

It is optional. Stating a range filters out enquiries that were never going to match your rate, which saves you calls.

Who can see my profile?

Only verified industry members and our team. Every one of them uploads proof of working in the field, and a person checks it.

How long does my listing stay up?

Twelve months from the day you join.

Can I get a refund?

Please read the refund policy on this site before you pay, so you know exactly what applies.

The next unit that needs your craft cannot find you yet

That is the only thing standing between you and the call. Fix it in twenty minutes.