Second unit

Not to be confused with the second (SI unit).

Second unit is a discrete team of filmmakers tasked with filming shots or sequences of a production, separate from the main or "first" unit. The second unit will often shoot simultaneously with the other unit or units, allowing the filming stage of production to be completed faster.

Function

The functions of the second unit vary, but typically the first unit films the key face-to-face drama between the principal actors. Two frequent ways a second unit is used are:

• Action sequences: Action sequences are often filmed in discrete locations, using stunt performers, rather than the principal cast, and requiring significantly different filming arrangements than for ordinary scenes. Therefore, they are an opportunity for second unit shooting.
• "Pick-ups": After the main unit has finished on a set or location, there may be shots that require some or all of this setting as background but that do not require the principal actors. These shots may include things such as close-ups, inserts, cutaways, and establishing shots.

In both of these scenarios, the purpose of the second unit is to make the most efficient use of some of the resources that are expensive or scarce in film production: actors' and directors' shooting time, sound stage usage and the cost of sets that may have been built on stages.

The work of second units should not be confused with multiple-camera setups, where several cameras film the same scene simultaneously. Large productions may have multiple second units. Although filmmakers may refer to having "three or four units working", each unit would be called an "additional second unit"; usually none would be described as the third or fourth unit.

Directors

The second unit has its own director and cinematographer. A key skill for a second unit director is to be able to follow the style being set by the film's primary director. Peter MacDonald, a prolific second unit director on, among many others, Batman and Guardians of the Galaxy, has said, "The most important thing about any second unit is that you can't tell the difference between the second unit and the first unit. It must have the stamp of the first unit, both in photography and the style of direction. ... You try to copy what the first unit does as much as possible. You mustn't be on an ego trip and try to do your own style, because your material has to cut into theirs and it mustn't jar, it must fit in exactly so no-one can tell the difference." Brett Ratner, commenting about Conrad E. Palmisano, who directed second unit for him, said, "He has the understanding of what it takes to create a great action sequence and never deviate from the story or the tone of the film."

Occasionally, some second unit directors work with certain directors on several projects, such as Allan L. Graf, who directed second unit for Walter Hill on several of his films, as well as Eric Schwab working with Brian De Palma on his films. Certain films also may have more than one second unit director. Examples include The Departed, Superman Returns, The Expendables, Blade: Trinity, Transformers: The Last Knight, the Sam Raimi Spider-Man trilogy, and Bad Boys For Life.

Because second units often film scenes with stunts and special effects in action movies, the jobs of stunt coordinator and visual effects supervisor often get combined with that of the second unit director.

Examples of second unit directors include Vic Armstrong, Dan Bradley, Brian Smrz, Mike Gunther, Rick Avery, and Allan L. Graf.

Unlike an assistant director, who is second-in-command to the main director, a second unit director operates independently, and thus can be a stepping stone for aspiring directors to gain experience. Examples of second unit directors who made this step are David R. Ellis, Brian Henson, and John Glen.

Occasionally, actual film directors might serve as second unit directors on certain projects. Well known examples are Steven Spielberg, Peter Jackson, and Jerry Zucker.

Other times, directors may return to predominantly working as second unit directors for the remainder of their career. One example is Michael D. Moore, who returned to second unit directing after being a director between 1965 and 1968. He was second unit director on more than 60 films, including Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and Sometimes a Great Notion.

Additional functions

It is common for certain personnel involved with a production in another capacity to also function as a second unit director, benefiting from their understanding of the material and relationship with the production's director or producers. Examples include:

• Steve Starkey, who, in addition to serving as producer, directed second unit for Robert Zemeckis on Forrest Gump, Contact What Lies Beneath, Cast Away, The Polar Express, Beowulf, A Christmas Carol, Flight, and The Walk.
• Roman Coppola, who directed second unit on Bram Stoker's Dracula, Jack, The Rainmaker, Youth Without Youth, Tetro, and Megalopolis for his father Francis Ford Coppola, The Virgin Suicides, Lost in Translation, Marie Antoinette, and Priscilla for his sister Sofia Coppola, and The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, The Darjeeling Limited, and The Grand Budapest Hotel (alongside Scali) for best friend Wes Anderson.
• Luke Scott, who directed second unit on The Martian and Exodus: Gods and Kings for his father Ridley Scott.
• Matt Stone, who served as second unit director on Team America: World Police for Trey Parker, as well as co-writing the script and producing the film with Parker.
• Andrew Mason, in addition to serving as producer and visual effects supervisor, directed second unit for Alex Proyas on The Crow and Dark City.
• Daniel Dubiecki, who did Juno and Up in the Air for Jason Reitman, Jennifer's Body for Karyn Kusama, Money Monster for Jodie Foster, Three Months for Jared Frieder, and Please Stand By for Ben Lewin, additionally served as a producer for all projects.
• Robert K. Weiss, who did The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! and The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear for David Zucker, Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult and Tommy Boy for Peter Segal, Crazy People for Tony Bill, and the pilot of Sliders for Andy Tennant, additionally served as producer on all five films and the co-creator/executive producer on the show.
• Thomas Lennon, who directed second unit on Balls of Fury for Robert Ben Garant, in addition to co-writing and producing the film alongside Garant and playing the supporting role of Karl Wolfschtagg.
• Alexandra “Xan” Cassavetes, who served as second unit director for her brother Nick Cassavetes on Alpha Dog, also played the role of Jenna Keschner.
• John Dykstra, who directed second unit for Rob Minkoff on Stuart Little and Tobe Hooper on Invaders from Mars, also served as visual effects supervisor.
• Peter Lauritson, who did Star Trek: First Contact and Star Trek: Insurrection for Jonathan Frakes, also produced both projects.
• Ishana Night Shyamalan, who directed second unit on Old and Knock at the Cabin for her father M. Night Shyamalan.
• Marty Katz, who served as second unit director on Reindeer Games for John Frankenheimer, additionally served as producer.
• Steven “Spaz” Williams, who directed second unit on Spawn for Mark A.Z. Dippe, also served as visual effects supervisor.
• Robert Wilson, who directed second unit for Oliver Stone on Snowden, also served as producer.
• Peter Winther, who did The Patriot for Roland Emmerich and The Last Full Measure for Todd Robinson, in addition to producing both projects.
• Eli Richbourg, who did Phone Booth, Tigerland, Veronica Guerin, 8mm, Blood Creek, and The Number 23 for Joel Schumacher, in addition to serving as associate producer on the former three projects and executive producer on the latter two.
• Phil Dornfeld, who directed second unit on Scary Movie 4 for David Zucker and Scary Movie 5 for Malcolm D. Lee, also served as an executive producer on the former and a producer on the latter.
• Joe Ballarini, who directed second unit for Gregg Bishop on Dance of the Dead, also wrote the script.
• Dale Dye, in addition to playing a minor part of a disabled war veteran and serving as military advisor, served as second unit director on Alexander for Oliver Stone.
• Paul Harris Boardman, who, in addition to co-writing the script, served as second unit director on Hellraiser V: Inferno for Scott Derrickson.
• Peter Schink, who directed second unit on Detroit Rock City for Adam Rifkin, as well as editing the film.
• Glen Morgan, who served as second unit director on Final Destination 3 for James Wong, additionally co-wrote the film and served as producer
• Barry Alexander Brown, who did Malcolm X for Spike Lee and Cousin Bette for Des McAnuff, in addition to serving as editor.
• John August. who, in addition to writing the film, directed second unit on Go for Doug Liman.
• George Folsey Jr., who served as second unit director for John Landis on Trading Places, Into the Night, and Three Amigos, in addition to producing the films.
• Paul Schiff, who directed second unit on Maid in Manhattan for Wayne Wang and Mona Lisa Smile for Mike Newell, also served as executive producer on both films.
• Kenneth Kokin, who did The Usual Suspects for Bryan Singer and The Way of the Gun for Christopher McQuarrie, additionally produced both projects.
• Peter Schindler, who directed second unit for Mel Brooks on Robin Hood: Men in Tights and Dracula: Dead and Loving It, also served as executive producer.
• Stuart Baird, who served as second unit director for Richard Donner on The Omen and Ladyhawke, also edited the films.
• David B. Stephan, who directed second unit for Sam Raimi on For Love of the Game additionally served as storyboard artist on the film.
• Richard Chew, who directed second unit for Cameron Crowe on Singles, also served as editor, title supervisor, and co-producer.
• Peter Chiang, who served as second unit director on Johnny English for Peter Howitt, also served as visual effects supervisor.
• Dan Perri, who served as second unit director on A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors for Chuck Russell, also designed the opening title sequence.
• Michael Z. Hanan, who directed second unit for John Frankenheimer on The Island of Dr. Moreau, also served as visual effects supervisor.
• Eli Snyder, who directed second unit for his father Zack Snyder on Rebel Moon – Part 1: A Child of Fire and Rebel Moon – Part Two: The Scargiver.
• Randall William Cook, who played the role of a pilot, served as second unit director for Peter Jackson on King Kong.
• Tarik Karem, who directed second unit on The Reader and Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close for Stephen Daldry and the upcoming The Electric State for Anthony and Joe Russo, addit served as producer on all three projects.
• Stuart T. "Stu" Maschwitz, who directed second unit on The Spirit for Frank Miller and the two-part pilot episode of Defiance for Scott C. Stewart, as well as serving as visual effects supervisor.
• David Koepp, who, in addition to writing the script, directed second unit for Steven Spielberg on The Lost World: Jurassic Park.
• Bryan H. Carroll, who did Miami Vice, Collateral, and Public Enemies for Michael Mann, additionally produced all three projects.
• Gian-Carlo Coppola, who directed second unit for his father Francis Ford Coppola on The Cotton Club
• Charles Winkler, who directed second unit on Rocky Balboa for Sylvester Stallone (in additional to serving as producer) and Home of the Brave for his father Irwin Winkler.
• Todd Hallowell, who directed second unit on Apollo 13, The Paper, The Da Vinci Code, A Beautiful Mind, Frost/Nixon, Rush, EDtv, Backdraft, Ransom, The Missing, The Dilemma, Angels and Demons, and Far and Away for Ron Howard, X-Men: Days of Future Past and X-Men: Apocalypse for Bryan Singer, X-Men: Dark Phoenix for Simon Kinberg, Striking Distance for Rowdy Herrington, and Virus for John Bruno, additionally served as executive producer on all films.

Second unit directors of photography

Some second unit directors also occasionally serve as the second unit director of photography. Examples include:

• Alexander Witt, having done so for The Town for Ben Affleck, Hercules for Brett Ratner, Daredevil for Mark Steven Johnson, The Bourne Identity for Doug Liman, Gladiator, Hannibal, Black Hawk Down, and American Gangster for Ridley Scott, Cinderella for Kenneth Branagh, Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time for Mike Newell, XXX for Rob Cohen, Casino Royale for Martin Campbell, Skyfall and Spectre for Sam Mendes, No Time to Die for Cary Joji Fukunaga, Jungle Cruise for Jaume Collet-Serra, Twister, Speed, and Speed 2: Cruise Control for Jan De Bont, Inspector Gadget for David Kellogg, Remember the Titans for Boaz Yakin, The Taking of Pelham 123 for Tony Scott, Money Train for Joseph Ruben, Hollywood Homicide for Ron Shelton, and Ferrari for Michael Mann.
• Peter Lyons Collister, who did Bad Boys for Michael Bay, Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo for Mike Mitchell, The Rundown for Peter Berg, Bait for Antoine Fuqua, Sonic the Hedgehog, Sonic the Hedgehog 2, and Sonic the Hedgehog 3 for Jeff Fowler, and the mini-series Knuckles.
• Dean Cundey, who did Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties for Tim Hill.
• Gary Capo, who did The Last Samurai and Blood Diamond for Edward Zwick, Dragonball Evolution for James Wong, The Incredible Hulk for Louis Leterrier, Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian for Shawn Levy, White Fang for Randal Kleiser, RED for Robert Schwentke, Gone Fishin’ for Christopher Cain, Charlie St. Cloud for Burr Steers, North Shore for William Phelps, K-19: The Widowmaker for Kathryn Bigalow, and The Thin Red Line for Terrence Malick.
• Ernest R. Dickerson, who photographed and directed second unit on Miracle at St. Anna for Spike Lee.
• Thomas E. Ackerman, who did so for Hop and Alvin and the Chipmunks for Tim Hill, Furry Vengeance for Roger Kumble, and Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip for Walt Becker.
• John R. Leonetti, who did Fever Pitch for Peter and Bobby Farrelly.
• Harvey Harrison, who did Rambo for Sylvester Stallone, The Avengers for Jeremiah S. Chechik, Around the World in 80 Days for Frank Coraci, Equilibrium for Kurt Wimmer, The Nativity Story for Catherine Hardwicke, and V For Vendetta for James McTeigue.
• Robert Mattigetz, who did Riddick for David Twohy.
• Hugh T. Johnson, who did Kingdom of Heaven, 1492: Conquest of Paradise, White Squall, and G.I. Jane for Ridley Scott.
• Anna Foerster, who did The Day After Tomorrow and 10,000 BC for Roland Emmerich, Johnson Family Vacation for Christopher Erskin, and Æon Flux for Karyn Kusama.
• Robert M. Stevens, who did Scary Movie 3 for David Zucker.
• Steven Hall, who did Tom and Jerry for Tim Story.
• Julian Chojnaki, who did Friday After Next for Marcus Raboy.
• Ian Thorbun, who did Daybreakers for The Spierig Brothers, George of the Jungle 2 for David Grossman, Tomorrow, When the War Began for Stuart Beattie, Sanctum for Alister Grierson, Paperback Hero for Antony Bowman, Ghost Ship for Steve Beck, and Pitch Black for David Twohy.
• Arthur Wooster, who did First Knight for Jerry Zucker, Shakespeare in Love for John Madden, The Count of Monte Cristo for Kevin Reynolds, In Love and War for Richard Attenborough, Spilt Second for Tony Maylam, GoldenEye for Martin Campbell, and For Your Eyes Only, Octopussy, A View to a Kill, The Living Daylights, and Licence to Kill for John Glen.
• Josh Bleibtreu, who did Superhero Movie for Craig Mazin.
• Tim Maurice-Jones, who did Kick-Ass for Matthew Vaughn.
• Patrick Loungway, who did Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom for J. A. Bayona, King Richard for Reinaldo Marcus Green, and How to Train Your Dragon for Dean DeBlois.
• Shaun O'Dell, who photographed and directed second unit on The Raven and Survivor for James McTeigue, Fury for David Ayer, Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle for Andy Serkis, Serenity for Joss Whedon, Doom for Andrzej Bartkowiak,Alice Through the Looking Glass for James Bobin, Hannibal Rising for Peter Webber, Basic Instinct 2 for Michael Caton-Jones, Fred Claus for David Dobkin, Great Expectations for Mike Newell, Gulliver's Travels for Rob Letterman, The Phantom of the Opera for Joel Schumacher, Brotherhood of the Wolf for Christophe Gans, The Lovers for Roland Joffé, Overlord for Julius Avery, The Woman King for Gina Prince-Bythewood, Serena for Susanne Bier, and Thunderbirds for Jonathan Frakes.
• John Sorapure, who did Paddington, Paddington 2, and Wonka for Paul King, The Little Mermaid for Rob Marshall, and the television series The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance for Louis Leterrier.
• John O’Connor, who did Blade Runner for Ridley Scott.
• Philip C. Pfeiffer, who did Natural Born Killers, JFK, Nixon, and The Doors for Oliver Stone, Dances with Wolves for Kevin Costner, X-Men for Bryan Singer, Home Alone 3 for Raja Gosnell, Cliffhanger for Renny Harlin, Beerfest for Jay Chandrasekhar, Pushing Tin for Mike Newell, The Horse Whisperer for Robert Redford, and Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls for Steve Oedekerk.
• Martin Kenzie, who did Johnny English Reborn, St Trinian's, and Dorian Gray for Oliver Parker, Wimbledon for Richard Loncraine, Clash of the Titans for Louis Leterrier, Amazing Grace for Michael Apted, The Boat That Rocked for Richard Grey, Hanna for Joe Wright, Syriana for Stephen Gaghan, Alex Rider: Operation Stormbreaker for Geoffrey Sax, Shadowlands for Richard Attenborough, Creation for Jon Amiel, Wild Child for Nick Moore, The Iron Lady for Phyllida Lloyd, and The King's Speech for Tom Hooper.
• Robert Legato, who, in addition to serving as visual effects supervisor, photographed and directed second unit on The Departed (alongside Aguilar), The Aviator, Shutter Island, Hugo, and The Wolf of Wall Street for Martin Scorsese, The Jungle Book and The Lion King for Jon Favreau, The Good Shepherd for Robert De Niro, Emancipation and The Equalizer 3 for Antoine Fuqua, Air for Ben Affleck, Interview with the Vampire for Neil Jordan, A Nightmare on Elm Street for Samuel Bayer, and Horizon: An American Saga for Kevin Costner.