Every large South African film set has the same silent problem: too many radios, too few coordinated channels, and nobody with a clear picture of which frequency belongs to which department. The result is stepped-on transmissions, security bleeding into camera, and an AD who can't reach the floor when it matters. Coordinating frequencies properly is not glamorous work — but it's what keeps a set running.
Step 1: Understand what you're actually allowed to transmit on
In South Africa, two-way radio frequencies are regulated by ICASA. Anything beyond low-power licence-free PMR446 handsets needs a proper radio frequency licence. For a professional production using Motorola, Kenwood or Hytera radios in VHF or UHF business bands, that means either:
Your rental supplier's licence: A professional supplier like A2Z Radio Systems programmes rental radios onto frequencies covered by their existing ICASA authorisations, so the production can operate legally without applying for anything itself.
A production-specific temporary licence: For long shoots or productions that need dedicated repeater channels in specific areas, a temporary ICASA licence can be arranged. Your supplier should handle the paperwork.
Step 2: Pick the right band — VHF or UHF
The single biggest coverage decision on any film set is VHF versus UHF. They behave very differently.
VHF (136–174 MHz): Longer wavelengths, better range across open ground. Ideal for wide exterior locations — farms, coastlines, veldt, motorsport, aerial units. VHF struggles inside dense structures and multi-storey buildings.
UHF (400–470 MHz): Shorter wavelengths, much better at penetrating walls, concrete, steel and vehicles. Ideal for studios, sound stages, warehouses, hospitals, hotels and city shoots. Loses range faster over open ground.
A rough rule of thumb for SA productions: exterior location work leans VHF; interior and mixed urban work leans UHF. Big productions frequently run both and bridge them with a repeater or console.
Step 3: Plan channels by department, not by handset
A well-run set uses one channel per department, plus a shared "all-call" channel for cross-department co-ordination. Typical allocation for a mid-to-large SA production:
Ch 1 — Production/AD: Director, 1st AD, 2nd AD, floor crew. Highest traffic, kept clean.
Ch 2 — Camera & G&E: DOP, camera assistants, gaffer, key grip.
Ch 3 — Sound & Video Village: Sound mixer, boom ops, video assist.
Ch 4 — Art & Wardrobe: Art department, standby props, wardrobe, hair and make-up.
Ch 5 — Locations & Security: Location manager, unit, security team, traffic control.
Ch 6 — Transport: Drivers, unit base, catering.
Ch 16 — All-call: Emergencies and cross-department calls only.
Step 4: Repeaters for wide or dense locations
If your set spans more than a few hundred metres, or you're shooting inside a large building complex, a repeater is not optional — it's what turns a bag of radios into an actual communication system. A single well-sited repeater can blanket a farm, a shopping mall or an entire studio backlot. For very large productions, two or three linked repeaters cover locations that no handset-to-handset system will ever reach.
Step 5: Programme once, label everything
Every rental radio should arrive on set already programmed with the production's channel plan, clearly labelled per handset, and handed to each department with a printed channel card. When crew know exactly which channel they belong on, chatter drops, transmissions land, and the AD stops shouting.
Frequency coordination is the difference between a set that runs and a set that hums. If you're producing in South Africa and want a channel plan built around your actual locations, departments and shoot length, talk to us — we'll spec it, licence it, programme it and support it for the run of your production.
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