Get on set in Texas

Texas productions hire local crew from the state directory and city commission lists. Get on both before you need work.

Other paths

Actors
Texas stopped licensing agents in 2011. SAG-AFTRA’s franchised list is the credential.
Producers
There’s no statewide permit. Your first call is 512-463-9200.
Coming to Texas
Up to 31% back on Texas spend, if 35% of your crew and cast live here.

Step 1

Get on the state crew list

The Texas Production Directory is the free list productions search when they hire Texas crew. You need a Texas address and at least one paid, professional credit in each category you claim, up to eight. Rules · Apply (about 15 minutes).

Step 2

Get on your city’s list too

Then join the Texas crew list here, free. Local commissions keep their own directories: Austin, Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth, Corpus Christi and El Paso.

Step 3

Watch the calls

The state’s Job Hotline posts crew calls from productions, and every incentive-funded show has to post there. We collect public calls on Calls. San Antonio keeps its own cast and crew board.

Scam check: real productions never ask you to pay before you’re hired. The state’s guide.

Step 4

Start as a PA

Production assistants work set, office, art, wardrobe and locations, are usually hired locally on a flat day rate, and need a license and a reliable car. The state’s PA guide.

Step 5

Train up

AFS Creative Careers: paid internships and training with job placement. 2027 applications open December 2026.
Media for Texas: boot camps, on-set internships and veteran pathways, based in Dallas.
Fort Worth Film Collaborative at Tarrant County College: short certificates in grip and lighting, hair and makeup, and set construction.
Community college programs: ACC, Houston City College, Dallas College. Every school: film schools & programs.

Step 6

Take the safety courses

OSHA 10 is voluntary but widely expected. The IATSE Training Trust Fund offers the industry safety courses known in California as Safety Pass. The IATSE safety hotline, 844-422-9273, takes calls from anyone.

Step 7

Decide on the union

Texas is a right-to-work state. IATSE Local 484 covers studio mechanics across Texas and Oklahoma from Austin: to join you need 90 paid non-union days or 30 union days in one craft, plus four Training Trust courses. How to join. Camera crew join Local 600; editors, Local 700.

Step 8

Show up where crews are

Mixers, panels and workshops run statewide every month. They’re on the calendar, and you can subscribe once. Local crews also gather in film groups across Texas.

Step 9

Know the rates

Before you quote a day rate, check the union minimums by job: what a gaffer, key grip, sound mixer or 1st AC makes under each Texas agreement.