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Lighting Technician (Spark)

UK “spark”: rigger and operator for lamps, practicals and temporary power under the Gaffer/Best Boy on film and scripted TV. Core of the lighting crew on stage and location.

Duties

• Rig and de-rig lamps, softboxes and practicals to plot
• Run and label cable/distro safely; keep fire lanes clear
• Focus, gel and diffuse under Gaffer/Best Boy notes
• Operate fixtures and follow cue changes on shoot
• Maintain hired kit; log faults; assist generator tie-ins when asked
• Support pre-light, set moves and wrap
• Rig and de-rig lamps and practicals
• Run cable and distro safely

Reports to

Best Boy / Chargehand; department led by Gaffer

Works with

Gaffer, Best Boy, Console Operator, Grips, Practical Electrician, Generator Operator, Camera team, Locations

Career path

Trainee → Spark → Chargehand / Rigging Supervisor → Best Boy → Gaffer

Day to day

Arrive on lighting or unit call; take Best Boy/Chargehand briefing; run and label cable; hang and focus lamps; gel/diffuse as marked; operate during takes; make safe; report faults. Pre-light days are heavy loft work; shoot days mix standby with resets.

Call times

Lighting/pre-light call is often earlier than general unit; shoot sparks usually match unit call (commonly 07:00–08:00 on UK drama) and wrap after camera unless a lighting wrap is called. Night exteriors flip the day — always read the call sheet header.

What to wear

Matte blacks (no bright logos); steel toe-caps or production-approved boots; heat-resistant gloves; hard hat on rigs/lofts; hi-vis when Locations require; waterproof layers for UK weather; radio pouch.

Tools & kit

Personal: multimeter, gloves, headtorch, leatherman/multi-tool, gel clips/pegs, black wrap scraps, PPE. Production/hire supplies lamps, stands, distro and consoles.

Tips

Ask which agreement and budget band apply before accepting. OT rules differ film (MMPA) vs Scripted TV Drama. Confirm shooting vs rigging vs pre-light rate.

Software

• Gaffer tools / Lightwright (plotting, paid)
• DMX/consoles: ETC Eos, grandMA (console ops)
• ShotDeck / PureRef (ref boards, freemium)
• ChatGPT / Claude for quick gel/colour conversion notes (free tiers)
• Lightwright / Vectorworks / CAD plot PDFs
• Shared call sheets (StudioBinder / Yamdu / PDF)
• ShotDeck / PureRef for look refs
• DMX desk familiarity (ETC Eos, grandMA basics)

Bectu rate cards for this role are in the app.

Related roles

Gaffer, Best Boy, Console Operator

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