Grip Equipment

Here is how this works in practice. Grip packages on Mexican shoots draw from Mole-Richardson Mexico's CDMX inventory — multi-decade heritage stock including Mole's signature combo stands, junior triple risers, and 12x12 frames — supplemented by cross-border Matthews and American Grip pulls from LA via Tijuana same-day delivery. Cine Equipos and Lemon Studios keep working inventories of Current Studio Gear Hi-Hi rollers and Filmtools century stands, with J.L. Fisher Model 10 and 11 dollies cross-rented from American Grip when shoots need the smoother boom action Mexican narrative work demands.

Here is the breakdown. On the ground, For the multi-position 360 wide setups traits of Day of the Dead procession coverage, we pre-position many C-stand and combo-stand quantities along the procession route with Sasha Cabrera-style rigging crews who know the CDMX permit choreography. Mole-Richardson Mexico's older inventory survived the 1985 and 2017 earthquakes and stays the industry's most trusted CDMX grip pool. Saúl Cabrera and other veteran key grips bring decades of Estudios Churubusco scene matching. Examples have the deep crew memory that powered Lubezki's long-take grip choreography on Roma.

Here is the short of it. Heritage location work imposes constraints that standard grip practice does not address. INAH (Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia) compliance at Teotihuacán, Chichén Itzá, Palenque, Monte Albán, and other federally covered zones forbids drilling, hammering, or any contact stress on heritage stone — grip teams use rubber-footed sandbag-counterweighted stands, pneumatic suction mounts on smooth surfaces, and freestanding 20x20 butterfly frames anchored only by ballast. Cathedral interior shoots through Mexico City's centro histórico (Catedral Metropolitana, Templo Mayor adjacent sites) need the same low-impact way plus advance permission from Arquidiócesis Primada de México.

Here is what that looks like on the ground. On the ground, Cross-border shoots following Spectre's Zócalo opening or Sicario's Sonora desert practice mostly bring their own preferred Bright Tangerine matte box and Mathew's rolling stand stock via LA carnet. We set up with Mole-Richardson Mexico for backfill on consumables — apple boxes, sandbags, mafer clamps, baby plates — that don't justify the customs forms. USMCA framework eases crew + gear movement. But ATA carnet through SAT stays the standard for high-value Bright Tangerine, Current Studio, and Filmtools inventory.