What does Kit Rental mean?
Kit Rental is an additional fee paid to a crew member for the use of their personal professional equipment — tools, cases, specialized gear — that they bring to a production beyond what the production supplies. Kit rentals are common practice in many film and television departments, including camera, grip, electric, sound, makeup, hair, and wardrobe. The rental rate is negotiated as part of the crew member’s overall deal and is typically a daily or weekly fee on top of their base rate. Kit rentals compensate crew members for the depreciation and maintenance costs of their personal professional equipment.
Example:The makeup artist negotiated a kit rental as part of her deal — a daily fee that compensated her for bringing her personal collection of professional makeup products, brushes, and specialized tools that the production did not supply.
Example: The sound mixer’s agreement included a weekly kit rental covering his personal recording equipment, cables, and specialized audio accessories — gear that was essential to the quality of his work and that he had invested tens of thousands of dollars to acquire.
Did you know?
Kit rentals are one of the less visible but financially significant components of crew compensation on professional productions. A senior department head with an extensive personal kit — a camera operator with a specialty lens collection, a gaffer with specialized lighting fixtures, or a production designer with proprietary software and reference libraries — may negotiate kit rentals that add meaningfully to their overall compensation. The practice also benefits productions by giving crew members incentive to invest in and maintain high-quality personal equipment that elevates the production’s overall output.
You can also find “Kit Rental” and related terms in this category: Administrative and Financial.
