From time to time, you will work as a stand-in on a set you’ve never worked. Maybe it’s your first day ever working as a stand-in. Maybe it’s your thousandth.

Whatever the case, no two sets treat stand-ins the same, which may mean you are nervous about how you might be treated as a stand-in on a set where you haven’t worked.

Here are some tricks for feeling out personalities you encounter when you stand in so that you can figure out how much to relax and how much to keep on your toes.

Note the General Air of the Crew

When you first show up on a stand-in job, production may have been going on for a number of weeks. Crew members may have gelled (or not gelled), and the traces of that harmony (or discord) may be apparent in little things they say or do. While crew members may be utmost professionals, when their guards are down, their general opinions about the work ahead or immediately in front of them may clue you in to the dynamics on set.

When you get the sense the crew gets along well, this is often a good indication that the crew will be warm to you as a stand-in. Since you will probably be a stranger to many of them, they may not treat you with the same respect or confidence they treat other crew members or stand-ins. But if you demonstrate over the day that you can do your job, often you will be welcomed in with similar respect they give other crew members.

When you get the sense the crew does not get along well, this could mean that you may be in for a bit of a ride as a stand-in. When crews don’t get along well, sometimes stand-ins are at the receiving end of short commands or evident rudeness. This may happen no matter whether you do your job well or poorly.

If you do your job well, keep in mind that the shortness of a crew may be more symptomatic of on-the-job displeasure than something you did in your job. If you don’t do your job well, keep in mind you may not be helping yourself if you want to be treated well by others on set.

Note Particular Crew Members

If you can’t get a general air of the crew’s attitude about the production, tuning in to the attitudes of more important crew members may give you a sense of the dynamics of the production.

Some of the more important crew members to observe are producers, the director, the DP, and even the 1st AD. You may not know who they are when you are new on set, but you can ask around or study the on-set interactions and usually figure out who is who.

While more of a principle than a rule, often the attitudes of superiors trickle down into the moods of those below them in the hierarchy of work on set, whether those attitudes are good or bad. In other words, if the director is a good-natured director, then the crew below the director usually is in a good mood. If the director is rude, then the crew below the director may seem disgruntled.

This is also to say that a crew who has worked together well over the years on one production may be in a generally bad mood about working on another production if the producers, director, DP, or other important crew member is demanding, offensive, rude, etc.

As a stand-in, usually you don’t take orders directly from higher-ups, but instead orders come from crew members like the 2nd 2nd or a camera crew member. However, from time to time you’ll be given direction from the DP or even the director. While a 2nd 2nd may protect you from a higher-up’s rudeness, there is no filter when interacting with a demanding director when you are standing in. In such situations, be on your toes and do your best.  You may have to heighten your awareness a bit in case the higher-up isn’t the best communicator and is short-tempered.

Note How ADs Treat Others

As you work more and more as a stand-in, you’ll learn that 1st ADs (who generally run the movement of the production day) show a wide ranger of personalities. Some are crazed and harried, some are calm, cool, and cheery.

When you arrive on a set, single out the 1st AD and gauge that crew member’s attitude. Study how the 1st AD treats others. If you have the opportunity, introduce yourself to the 1st AD.  You can use that interaction as a gauge of the 1st AD’s attitude.

You may glean from such interactions whether the 1st AD sees you (the stand-in) as a valuable, important part of the production or as an extraneous, unimportant part of the production — or something in between. Some sets really require stand-ins, while other sets don’t use them as much.

In general, presume that you’re a valued worker on set until you have a better sense just what your value is to a production. If you find you aren’t really that needed by the 1st AD, you can lower your expectations a bit for how well you do your job. If you are needed regularly by the 1st AD,  you can maintain high expectations for your work and performance as a stand-in on this production.

Ask Other Stand-Ins

Lastly, you can ask other stand-ins what the vibe on a set is. Other stand-ins who have worked the project before may clue you in to whether you are treated like “family” or treated with disrespect. They can also give you a sense of whether you read lines, go through intricate blocking, or just simply stand in the place of your actor.

Conclusion

Of course, there are plenty of other ways to gauge the personalities on a production, so use the above tricks to complement your own instincts in gauging personalities on set when you are standing in.

Have another trick for gauging on-set personalities? If so, share below!