Seven questions I ask every fixer before booking a flight

A fixer is not a guide. A guide shows you the place; a fixer gets you into the rooms the place actually happens in. Finding the second kind takes one honest conversation.

The questions

Who have you worked with before, and may I write to them? What did the last crew get wrong? Which of these three ideas is boring to someone who lives here? Who says no to you? What will the weather actually do? What should I not film? And: if this goes badly, what is your plan?

The answer I listen hardest for

The third one. A fixer who tells you your idea is tired, on the first call, before any money has moved, is the one who will save the shoot.

Paying properly

Day rate, agreed in writing, paid on the day, in the currency they asked for. Credit on the film. If the budget cannot carry that, the budget cannot carry the film.