A camera trainee is the most junior member of the camera department. You answer to the 2nd AC (the clapper loader), you look after the monitors, cables, wireless video and batteries, you fetch the sides and the teas, and you keep the department's base tidy and safe. Nobody lets you touch a lens until you have earned it. Stage 1 is the work you do before any paid job: learning what the department does, the kit it uses, the language of the floor and the rules on pay and safety. Stage 2 is unpaid and student shorts, work experience, references and contacts. Stage 3 is paid trainee days, a credit list and a network of ACs who ring you. Work through the checklist one line at a time, mark each item done, next or later, and be honest, because a trainee who claims skills they do not have is found out on the first morning.
Read the career guide for what the job involves day to day.
Stage 1: Before your first job
34 things to do, know or be able to do
Experience 10
- If you are studying, push for work experience through your college or university.
- Look for departmental runner opportunities on the MFJF jobs board.
- Continue to work on student productions made by the established film schools.
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Skills 12
- Take your driving test if you do not have a licence; ScreenSkills offers bursaries for driving lessons.
- Drive vans up to 3.5 tonnes on your car licence when asked; never drive a minibus unless you hold D1 entitlement and the production's insurance covers you.
- Do you know how to coil a cable over-under?
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Knowledge 12
- Research the example CVs on MFJF to see what a great first CV looks like, and title yours Camera Trainee, never DoP.
- Use the MFJF CV Builder to write your one-page Stage 1 CV.
- Research kit hire companies to see if they are recruiting drivers and kit-room staff.
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Stage 2: Experience and contacts
27 things to do, know or be able to do
Experience 10
- Work towards 5 credits as a trainee or assistant on short films, choosing student and properly run no-budget shorts where nobody is paid and the insurance, schedule and feeding are in place.
- Create a network of contacts from short films and keep in touch with the 2nd and 3rd ACs you work with.
- Apply to the ScreenSkills Trainee Finder (camera is one of its 11 departments) in the autumn application window for the programme year that starts on 1 April.
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Skills 7
- Do you know how to mark up a camera report sheet and manage media: label the cards, log them and hand them to the DIT or 2nd AC in the right order?
- Can you efficiently prioritise tasks?
- Can you mark up a slate?
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Knowledge 10
- Do you know what is required from you as soon as you set foot on set?
- Do you know all the terms for the set amenities and the general film lingo?
- Do you understand film formats and aspect ratios?
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Stage 3: Paid work
24 things to do, know or be able to do
Experience 6
- Work consistently for 2-3 years as a trainee on low and medium budget feature films and high-end TV; in the current market allow longer than that.
- Work on short films as a 2nd AC (clapper loader) to practise the slate, the paperwork and media management.
- Gain experience in all areas of the industry that employ a large camera team; this maximises your chances to earn money.
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Skills 8
- Are you able to demonstrate a professional attitude on set?
- Are you adaptable when working on different productions?
- Driving licence and your own car.
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Knowledge 10
- Look for work before the job you are on finishes.
- Have a network of ACs that know who you are and what you can do.
- Keep refining your CV, try and keep it down to one page, and rebuild it in the MFJF CV Builder each time your title changes.
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Ways in for a camera trainee
Real schemes, checked on the organiser’s own page. A shut one is still here with when it comes back, because half the big schemes are closed at any one time and that is worth knowing.
- Trainee FinderScreenSkillsPeople over 18 who live in the UK and have less than 12 months of paid production experience in their chosen department. No on-set experience is needed, and there is no upper age limit.Final deadline 28 October 2026
- Sara Putt Associates Trainee SchemeSara Putt AssociatesTwo professional credits but under three years' cumulative experience, in Camera, Sound, Edit, Production Office, Art, Costume, AD, Script Supervisor, Locations, or Hair and Make-Up.Final deadline 24 January 2027
- GBCT Camera Trainee SchemeGuild of British Camera TechniciansPeople wanting to start in the camera department.Not open right now
Sources and References
This is MFJF’s own three-stage career plan for a camera trainee, written up from the career plan and the careers guide on our site. Open any of them yourself.
- MFJF career plan: Camera Trainee (PDF) the original plan this page was written up from
- MFJF careers guide: Camera Trainee what the job involves day to day
- The Three Career Stages the framework all three stages follow
Every link checked 19 September 2026. The plan itself was last revised September 2026.
