Listen to Cole! If I had followed his checklist I would not have had to do rig removal in post.

I don't know that I've ever had someone make such a bold positive statement about me before ;) This stuff is all developed from making mistakes on set. The movie I'm making now is specifically a feature length learning piece. Play with it, screw up...you can't help but learn from doing!

Get some crew on your shoot! At least one or two other people. Really, there's loads of people who would be only too happy to lift boxes, get coffee and drive trucks for no pay just so they can say "I was on a film shoot last weekend". Big companies should feel guilty about taking on unpaid crew but when you're just starting out its the only way to get things done. And, you can learn from their mistakes as well as your own. Just make sure you thank them and buy them some food/beer and send them a DVD when it's finished.

One recommendation: Previz EVERYTHING. Make sure that every shot has been storyboarded, make use of a floor plan and a shotlist. That way you can go into your shoot knowing exactly what you want done and how, this will save you time, energy and project an air of experience towards your talents.

Visit the location with your DP and even the cast to block stuff out and be prepared.

A former fire fighter once said, "If you fail to plan, you plan to fail." It's that simple.

heath

Best way to find a crew is to volunteer on other people's shoots. A lot of times they'll return the favor and you will learn a lot quicker by watching what they do.