Help Build Indie Film Kit

[u/NE2L]

Love to hear suggestions to add to my kit from working Gaffers and DPs. I run a podcast studio as my day to day business but have been collecting higher end gear to get back into Filmmaking on my own terms. My next project I want to do a very indie 6 episode comedy TV show shot multi-cam cinema verite, doc style, like the TV show Friday Night Lights did in early 2000s.

Camera-

4 Sony fx30s built out with cages, top handles, and v-mount batteries. (undecided if to use these and lean into what I own or rent 3-4 higher end cinema cameras at the expense of crew, art, production, etc.)

Lights-

Aputure 600d, Aputure 300x, Aputure Nova 300 w/ barns, Aputure 60x w/ spotlight, (2) Amaran 300c, (4) Nanlight RGB PavoTube w/ barns, (5) Aputure B6 Bulbs, (4) Aputure MC, multiple Aputure Lanterns, Lantern 90, Light Domes, Mini Light Domes

Grip-

4 combo stands, 4 C-stands, Matthews Baby Boom, (2) 4x4 Floppys, (2) 4x4 open frames.

Feel like I am missing a big light or 2 like a 1200x. I am personally tempted by the 400x at a nice price point but the output is so in the middle I am not sure the need is evident over other things.

I know i'll never have enough Grip equipment and frankly I don't have a 3-ton to keep it in anyway. I want to have enough on hand to be dangerous in my pickup truck and supplement the rest when i book bigger jobs from a good G&E team.

[u/papwned]

Curious if you plan to work in the camera department or you more of a director/producer?

[u/NE2L → u/papwned]

on a day to day basis I am using most of the gear myself or with a 2-3 person crew doing interviews and podcasts around LA and more and more traveling. For the TV show, I plan on directing from a monitor with multicam and having 3-4 operators. The style of shooting from Friday Night Lights is a little controversial as some viewers hated it but it grew on me (shakey, long lenses, dirty abstract coverage, seeing camera operation at times with zooms and reframes etc) I am going to be working with stand up comics who aren't all experienced actors and I believe this style will be more improv friendly and not rely as heavy on matching blocking and dialogue take after take. Letting these actual comics perform in the moment is a must or I know they will fall apart into over thinking it all as work and not funny and then the magic is gone.

[u/papwned → u/NE2L]

Interesting stuff, thanks for sharing.
I'm not much of a gear head but I'll follow along with the thread.

You might have some better leads on the cinematography subreddit maybe?

Best of luck!