Production Glossary
Best Boy
The term best boy applies to two distinct positions in the production community; the best boy grip and the best boy electric.The Best Boy Grip is the chief assistant to the key grip. In other words, he assists the person in charge of making sure cameras, lights, and related equipment are where they are supposed to be. Grips work closely with the lighting crew and the camera crew.
The Best Boy Electric is is the counterpart of the best boy grip in the electric department, where he or she acts as the assistant to the gaffer. Responsibilities might include running lights, hiring and scheduling crew, ordering equipment, workplace safety, loading production trucks, and more.
In spite of the name, a best boy can be either a man or a woman. The origin of the term comes from the old fashioned apprentice system in which the "best boy" was the Master's most experiences apprentice and therefore given more responsibility and therefore the title of "best boy".
