Film Career · Production Support
Medic (Set Medic)
Production Support · IATSE in some markets
- Union
- IATSE in some markets
- Day rate
- ~$350–$650/day
- Experience
- Entry level
What does a Medic do?
The set medic is the production's first responder, present whenever the crew works and mandatory on stunt and effects days. Beyond emergencies, they manage the routine wear of production life and file the injury reports the production's insurance depends on.
What does a Medic make?
- Day rate about $350-$650 depending on EMT versus paramedic certification, roughly $60K-$110K a year.
- Non-union or Teamster-adjacent by region.
Film work is gig based, so crew are paid a day or weekly rate rather than a salary. These are realistic 2024-2025 ranges grounded in union rate cards and industry data; actual pay swings with budget tier, market, overtime, and reputation.
Sources & how we estimate pay
Union scale is the floor; the ranges above also reflect market day rates above scale. They are grounded in the following 2024–2025 sources:
Union rate cards & wage schedules
Official guild scale — the floor each craft is paid from.
- IATSE — 2024 Basic Agreement wage scales (PDF) ↗
- IATSE Local 600 (International Cinematographers Guild) — camera rate cards ↗
- DGA — minimum salary rate cards (director, unit production manager, assistant directors) ↗
- WGA — schedule of minimums (writers) ↗
- SAG-AFTRA — theatrical & background rate sheets (cast, stunts, background) ↗
- Teamsters Local 399 — basic feature wage rates, 2024–27 (transportation, locations, wranglers) (PDF) ↗
On the job
- Provide immediate medical response for cast and crew
- Staff stunt, effects, and hazardous setups as required
- Manage routine care that keeps a tired crew functioning
- Document incidents for insurance and safety compliance
You’ll like and be good at this job if:
Hard skills
- You are EMT or paramedic certified and ready for emergencies
- You can assess and respond to on-set injuries
Soft skills
- You stay calm in a crisis and through a slow day alike
- You like caring for a crew
Career progression
Medics arrive from EMS, nursing, and military medicine, then build set-specific experience. Senior medics coordinate coverage across units and productions, and some grow into health and safety management.
How do you become a Medic?
Current EMT or paramedic certification is the entry requirement, then set experience through medic staffing agencies that supply productions. Stunt-heavy shows book medics constantly, and reliability plus discretion keeps the calls coming.
On covered productions, rates, hours, and conditions for the role are set by IATSE in some markets contracts.
Covered by a union? The joining a film union guide explains how each one takes members.