Navigating post-pandemic challenges, UK camera crews face growing skills gaps. CineCertified offers a solution with structured training, safety standards and a clear path to proficiency. 

For those working in the film industry since the pandemic, it has felt like navigating a small dinghy through stormy seas—one moment drowning in work, the next eerily quiet. It has always been an unpredictable business, but the developments of the past few years have left the UK camera department grappling with ever-increasing challenges. One of the most significant is the lack of recognised training standards for camera crew. 

As new, inexperienced individuals are fast-tracked into higher positions—often into situations for which they are not ready—insufficient attention is given to the essential learning stages of the craft for each role. This makes it less likely that they will acquire the knowledge and experience needed to fulfil the demands of their role or effectively train the next generation. This, in turn, exacerbates the decline in standards across all aspects of their work, not least in health and safety. 

Experienced crew members are increasingly having to compensate for the lack of skills among their less experienced colleagues, but their numbers are dwindling. Due to the impact of recent events at both industry and global levels, the people we need most are leaving, further widening the knowledge gap. If this trend continues unchecked, the UK film industry—renowned for having some of the most skilled crews in the world—risks great and potentially irreversible damage. 

The good news is that there is now a solution. Following discussions at the BSC Expo in 2023, CineCertified has been created to address these challenges. It is an initiative by camera crew for camera crew, led by a core group of over fifty dedicated industry professionals. Its aim is to establish a benchmark of competency, which will uphold and improve training and safety standards. This will be achieved through on-set learning in a peer-reviewed environment and is intended to strengthen and unify the UK camera department. CineCertified has been registered as a Community Interest Company (CIC) and will operate with the support of established camera associations including the ACO, the GBCT and the GTC, as well as numerous rental houses, other industry bodies and crew. 

CineCertified’s flagship initiative is the Camera Trainee Logbook, developed from the long-established See One, Do One, Teach One model (SoDoTo). Originating in the medical field, this system has been adopted by numerous apprenticeship-based professions. It emphasises the importance of observation, practice under supervision and eventually teaching others the “what,” “how,” and “why” of becoming an effective trainer. This structure ensures that skills are ingrained through repetition, enhancing not only the trainee’s abilities but also the trainer’s teaching proficiency. Furthermore, as tasks become second nature, the likelihood of hurried mistakes decreases, while on-set awareness and overall safety improve. 

A survey of UK crew conducted by BECTU and the Mark Milsome Foundation revealed that ‘over two thirds of respondents expressed serious concerns regarding people being promoted to positions of responsibility without adequate experience or safety qualifications.’ CineCertified has introduced mandatory health and safety training as part of its accreditation, including the Mark Milsome Foundation Health and Safety course and a First Aid certification. 

CineCertified has begun by focusing on camera trainees. A trial run was held in August 2024 with a selection of 26 camera trainees from various regions across the UK, each with a range of experience. They have been individually paired with a CineCertified Ambassador to oversee their learning experience and serve as a point of contact for questions about the CineCertified system. This trial has allowed the system to be tested on set and lays the groundwork for future expansion into all camera department roles. 

CineCertified has successfully laid out an accessible, guided and educational framework for camera trainees. It factors in the time required to build experience, defines the knowledge needed and enables the trainee to track their progress as they work through the logbook. It also empowers them to ask pertinent questions, take initiative and control their individual learning experience. This improves the entire training process for both trainees and their trainers. It can be applied to all production budgets, from long-form to short-form projects, without impacting the workday. 

CineCertified is also intended to simplify the crewing process. The straightforward question: ‘What stage are you at in your logbook?’ will provide a clear indication of a trainee’s proficiency, while the signature of established camera crew will act not only as a reference, but also as a seal of quality. Everyone will benefit from making the industry more accessible, fostering a healthier working environment where the sole deciding factor is the quality of a person’s work. 

Working together, CineCertified will grow into a recognised institution for quality training and provide a much-needed method of future-proofing our industry. With the collective support, engagement, and commitment of the entire camera department, we will preserve and continue the excellence for which we are so celebrated. 

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For further information, please visit: www.cinecertified.org and www.gbct.org