Tokyo · Japan · a small crew for overseas clients
A 3-person crew. No fixers, no agencies. Direct from the people who'll be on set — best on documentary and nimble editorial shoots.
For specialty brands, indie filmmakers, and first-time Japan commissioners.
Direct from the crew
No fixers, no agencies. You talk to the same compact team from first email to final delivery.
No fixer markup.
The price you see goes to the crew that makes your film.
No agency timeline.
Replies in 24 hours JST, not weeks of internal Slack threads.
The director answers your first email.
Not a sales rep. Once the scope is clear, our Producer/PM takes over English conversations.
Same team from intake to delivery.
The 3 people on the call are the 3 people on set. No handoffs, no dropped context.
Pricing
Every plan runs on the same three-person compact crew — Director, Producer/PM (native English), and Cameraman — bundled by default. No fixer markup, no agency layer.
Prices below are starting anchors. You get a tailored quote by email within 24 hours of your intake chat.
You know who, where, and when
1 day on location with our 3-person crew — director, producer/PM, cameraman. No agency in between.
Multi-day (3+ consecutive): −20% on the day rate.
Start a chatYou have a theme, we build the story with you
Same 3 people, plus our sourcing network. We cast subjects, lock the story, and handle every Japanese-language conversation behind the scenes.
Multi-subject or multi-region stories quoted case-by-case from this anchor.
Start a chatTell us about it
Multi-week productions, complex scopes, campaigns, ad-scale work. We scope from the brief and quote individually.
Itemized on your quote: crew add-ons (audio, drone, art), regional travel, post (subtitles, colorgrade, HDR), and sourcing beyond the included 10 business days — full breakdown below.
Add-ons
The three-person core crew — Director, Producer/PM, Cameraman — is included in every project anchor. Everything below is itemized on your quote when the brief asks for it.
Audio engineer (F8n)
Interview-heavy, location sound, narration pickups.
+USD 600 / day
Drone operator (licensed)
Permits included. FPV +USD 300 / day.
+USD 600 / day
Additional cameraman (2nd cam)
Complex coverage or multi-cam shooting beyond the bundled Cameraman.
+USD 800 / day
Art / styling
Set dressing, styling, wardrobe — quoted by brief.
Case-by-case
EN / JP subtitles
Bilingual burn-in or .srt. In-house EN/JP translation. Up to 10 min / $200 · up to 30 min / $400 · longer on request.
+USD 200 / 10 min
Professional colorgrade (DaVinci)
Quoted by final edited runtime (not raw footage). 1–3 min from $300 · 3–5 min from $500 · 5–10 min from $800.
From USD 300
HDR grade modifier
Applied to the colorgrade fee when HDR (Rec.2020 / ST2084) delivery is required.
+50%
Tier 1
Kanto (Tokyo · Kanagawa · Chiba · Saitama)
Included
Tier 2
Chubu · Kansai (Nagoya · Kyoto · Osaka · Nagano, etc.)
+USD 300
+USD 150 / extra crew
Tier 3
Tohoku · Kyushu · Hokkaido · Okinawa
+USD 500 · lodging at cost
+USD 200 / extra crew
Other surcharges (itemized on quote): overtime +USD 300/hr · after-hours 22:00–5:00 +30% · rush delivery < 48h +50% · specialty gear rentals (cine lens, gimbal, Steadicam, probe lens).
FAQ
Not on the list? Send a note — we reply in English within 24 hours.
Most overseas clients budget in USD and get burned by JPY fluctuations during multi-month projects. We lock the USD number at quote and invoice in USD via Wise or PayPal. You see the final cost before you commit.
Yes. Kanto (Tokyo, Kanagawa, Chiba, Saitama) is included. Chubu and Kansai add USD 300 regional travel. Tohoku, Kyushu, Hokkaido, and Okinawa add USD 500 plus lodging at cost. Rural Japan is part of our strongest lane — artisans, regions, and culture.
Pick the Story Project plan. Our Producer/PM and director cast subjects, scout locations, and negotiate in Japanese on your behalf — 10 business days of outreach included, +USD 250/day beyond that. Rural artisan casting is slow by nature, so we flag realistic timelines up front and refund 50% of the sourcing fee if no viable shortlist emerges.
Our Producer/PM (native English) owns every English conversation once the scope is clear — email follow-ups, Zoom, contracting, and delivery. The director reads every intake personally and is on set, but the client-facing window in English is the Producer/PM. This is bundled into every plan by default — no extra fee, no agency layer.
Yes — this is a core strength. The director interviews in English or Japanese and handles on-set translation when the subject speaks Japanese. EN/JP subtitles are +USD 200 per 10 minutes of runtime.
Reply within 24 hours JST on intake chats. Typical lead time is 2–3 weeks from contract to shoot day, including crew confirmation and pre-production. Rush delivery under 48 hours is possible at +50%.
No. We work chat-first — a short intake note by email is enough to get a tailored USD budget back within 24 hours JST. Zoom calls happen once the shape of the project is clear, and our Producer/PM leads them in native English.
Wise or PayPal in USD — whichever your accounting prefers. Fees are covered by the sender. Standard terms are 50% on booking, 50% within 14 days of delivery. Sourcing work on the Story Project plan is paid in full at booking since research begins immediately.
Selected work
Artisans, regions, culture, color — three pieces that show the kind of work our compact crew is built for. Click to play, or see the full portfolio .
MARUNI COLLECTION — Tako & Fugu
Director / Edit
Maruni Wood Industry · 2020
BREATH TAKING KAGOSHIMA
Research / Director / DP / Edit
Kagoshima Prefectural Government · Regional documentary · 2022
YouTube Originals | Re:SET — KOM_I
Director / Edit
YouTube Originals / Wednesday Campanella · Artist documentary · 2019
Three ways to start
Start a chat
Tell us the shape of the project — you, the idea, the scope, the timing. We read every note ourselves, come back with a tailored budget in USD, and only schedule a Zoom once the shape is clear.
Typical reply
within 24 hours JST · EN / JP
Who replies
The director reads every intake note personally. Once the scope is clear, our Producer/PM takes over English conversations from there.