On set lingo PART 1

“Alright everybody, moving on! It’s a martini shot!” - WAIT, WHAT?! ARE wE getting drinks? Not at all!

Life on a film set is exciting but can get complicated at times. Understanding production lingo is essential for your survival. Not only does it speed up the entire process, but also makes doing your job well possible. Here is a list of few absolutely necessary words/phrases to know:

C-47

“Could you pass me a C-47, please?'“ - this is something you’ll hear very often. C-47 is basically a clothespin used to: holds gels to a barn doors of a lamp, modifies a piece of production design, used for wardrobe adjustments, emergency set-repairs etc.

Where does the name come from?

There are a lot of legends about the origins of C-47. One of them tells a story of a producer who needed studio executives to approve his/her budget. However, they were very reluctant to spend any money on clothespins. So a clever producer changed a name of the budget item from clothespin to C-47. Now that it sounded sophisticated the budget got approved with no delays. And this is how the legend was born.

Apple box

This is a set of apple boxes that are used on film sets. Every single department might end up needing them. They are just as crucial for every production as for instance C-47s.

Some of their functions are:
- actors stand on them to even out height differences
- camera operator often sits on it
- helps level out dolly tracks
- grips might use them to reach higher
- and many more.

Each size has a different name (from largest to smallest): full, half, quarter, pancake.

Martini shot

“Alright everybody, moving on! This is our martini shot!” - the phrase that every 1st AD wants to say.

Martini shot is the last scheduled shot of a day.

First time it was named it suggested that “the next shot is out of a glass”, referring to celebrations after wrapping up, which explains the logic behind.

What’s the importance of calling a Martini shot?

It is not a requirement to call it, it is up to 1st AD and the director to do so. However, it might be useful knowledge for many departments as they call start cleaning up and preparing to wrap.

Abby Singer shot

This is the second-to-last shot. It is called on film set right before Martini shot. You might not always hear it as it is entirely up to the 1st AD whether to call it or not. However, it is always good to know the terminology.

Where does the name come from?

Well you might guess correctly that is named after Abby Singer. He used to put a lot of importance on a second-to-last shot of a day, often calling “this and one more”. Hence, the Abby Singer shot.