Filmmaking 101: What a DIT Does on a Movie Set

Welcome to The Queue — your daily distraction of curated video content sourced from across the web. Today, we’re watching a video essay that explores what a digital imaging technician — or DIT — does on a film set.

Look, a good chunk of us have doubtlessly had the experience of having to grossly oversimplify our jobs to explain to our relatives what we do for a living. It’s not the whole picture. But if it gets your great aunt Joanne off your back, so be it.

So, a moment of silence for all the Digital Imaging Technicians out there, who must have a doozy of a time detailing their line of work to anyone who still remembers the Kennedy presidency.

As the video essay below details, DITs are indispensable on modern industry-level film sets. Their job title may be somewhat ambiguous, but such is the way of data management. They are the folks responsible for making sure cameras don’t run out of recording space. They quality-check the footage. And they provide a direct connection between production and post-production.

To my strawman, Aunt Joanne, DITs are hard-drive babysitters. But you, a noble film fan, know better. Or you will, once you watch the following video essay, which breaks down what a Digital Imaging Technician does on a film set.

Watch “What A DIT Does On A Film Set”

Who made this?

This video essay on what a DIT does is by In Depth Cine, a YouTube account dedicated to providing its audience with practical rundowns and explainers on some of the more technical aspects of movie-making. Gray Kotzé, a documentary DP based in South Africa, is the man behind the channel. You can check out Kotzé’s portfolio on their website here. And you can check out In Depth Cine on YouTube here.

More videos like this

• Here’s another sample of In Depth Cine’s work: how Quentin Tarantino shoots a film at three different price levels.
  
• And here’s another about what distinguishes the cinematography of Linus Sandgren.
• And here’s In Depth Cine’s breakdown of a bunch of cinematography-related questions, including how they collaborate with colorists.
• And, finally here’s In Depth Cine with a video that explores what distinguishes the cinematography of Wally Pfister.

Related Topics: Filmmaking, The Queue

Meg has been writing professionally about all things film-related since 2016. She is a Senior Contributor at Film School Rejects as well as a Curator for One Perfect Shot. She has attended international film festivals such as TIFF, Hot Docs, and the Nitrate Picture Show as a member of the press. In her day job as an archivist and records manager, she regularly works with physical media and is committed to ensuring ongoing physical media accessibility in the digital age. You can find more of Meg's work at Cinema Scope, Dead Central, and Nonfics. She has also appeared on a number of film-related podcasts, including All the President's Minutes, Zodiac: Chronicle, Cannes I Kick It?, and Junk Filter. Her work has been shared on NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour, Business Insider, and CherryPicks. Meg has a B.A. from the University of King's College and a Master of Information degree from the University of Toronto.