The cockpit is one of the most demanding places to shoot on any production. Two actors sit side by side, facing forward, surrounded by hundreds of switches, in a space built for pilots rather than cameras. A good cockpit scene still feels tense, believable and intimate. This guide walks directors, cinematographers, production designers and producers through planning a cockpit scene, from choosing the right flight deck to camera placement, lighting, the view out the window and technical accuracy.
Start With the Story: Era, Aircraft and Crew
Before you look at any set, answer three questions from the script.
When is the scene set?
The era decides the look of the flight deck. Modern airliners have glass cockpits, with flight information on screens. Older jets have rows of round analog gauges and switches. An audience may not know the difference by name, but they feel it instantly: screens read as today, needles and toggle switches read as the past.
What kind of aircraft is it?
An airline flight deck, a private jet cockpit and a small civilian aircraft each tell a different story. Match the cockpit to the cabin you are using in other scenes so the audience never questions which plane they are on.
How many people are in the cockpit?
Modern airliners fly with two pilots. Many older jets, such as the 727, also carried a flight engineer seated behind the pilots at a side panel. If your period story needs three crew members, choose a cockpit with an engineer’s station so the blocking makes sense.
Choose a Film-Friendly Cockpit Set
A cockpit set is only as useful as the angles it allows. When you scout, look for:
- Fly-away windows so the camera can shoot through the windscreen from the front
- Removable walls or a split design so you can get side angles and room for a dolly or slider
- Working or backlit instruments that give the panel life on camera without visual effects
- Real seats and yokes so performances and hand positions look right
- Transportability, if you need to shoot on your own stage or location
Cockpit options at Air Hollywood
- Wide-Body Glass Cockpit: modeled after the Boeing 757/767, with backlit panels that resemble a glass cockpit’s digital displays, fly-away walls and window panels, realistic instrumentation, seats and yokes. Best for present-day airline scenes.
- 727 Analog Cockpit: from a real aircraft, with all original switches and gauges, rewired so everything “works”. The windows fly away and the cockpit splits in half for more coverage and easier transport.
- Vintage Analog Cockpit: an actual Convair 880 cockpit with analog gauges, an engineering panel and an exterior shell that reads as a 1960s or 1970s flight deck. It is the cockpit mockup used in the classic comedy Airplane!, and it also has fly-away windows and a split design.
Compare them side by side on our cockpit set rental page.
Plan Your Coverage
Cockpit scenes repeat the same few setups, so plan them before the shoot day:
- The two-shot through the windscreen. With the windows flown out, the camera sits in front of the aircraft and sees both pilots framed by the window posts. This is the signature cockpit shot.
- Over-the-shoulder singles. Shooting from behind and beside each seat puts the panel and the window in the background of each close-up.
- Inserts. Hands on the throttles, a switch being flipped, a needle moving. Real instruments make these shots fast to capture.
- The doorway angle. A shot from the cockpit door looking forward connects the flight deck to the cabin and works well for entrances and reveals.
Split-design cockpits let you separate the two halves so the camera can sit where a real bulkhead would be. Ask the studio how long a wall or window takes to fly out, and build that into your schedule.
Light the Panel and the Faces
Cockpit lighting comes from two directions: the instrument panel below the actors’ faces, and the windows in front of them. Use the panel’s practical glow as motivation for soft, low fill, and treat the windscreen as your key source for day scenes. For night flights, keep the cockpit dark and let backlit instruments and small practicals do the work. Decide early whether daylight should feel like high-altitude sun or dawn and dusk, because that choice affects the color of everything else in the scene.
Decide What Is Outside the Window
Plan the view out the windscreen with your visual effects team before you lock the set. The common options are a green or blue screen for compositing, a projected or LED background for in-camera views, or an exterior that is simply blown out by bright light. Each one affects lighting, reflections in the glass and how much post-production work the scene needs.
Get the Details Right
Aviation fans notice mistakes, so a little preparation goes a long way:
- Bring in a pilot or technical advisor to check dialogue, checklists and hand positions.
- Match headsets, uniforms and flight bags to the era and type of operation.
- Keep the crew’s procedures consistent across takes, especially during an emergency sequence.
- Plan the sound: cockpit scenes are often recorded clean on stage, with engine and radio sound added later.
For dressing, Air Hollywood Props rents thousands of aviation-themed items, including wardrobe and accessories for flight crew.
Connect the Cockpit to the Rest of the Flight
Most cockpit scenes cut to the cabin, the galley or the terminal. Shooting them in one place keeps the look consistent and saves company moves. Pair your flight deck with a cabin such as the Narrow-Body 737 or the Wide-Body 747, and use the airport terminal set for crew walking to the gate. If you are still choosing the aircraft, read our guide to narrow-body vs wide-body airplane sets.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do filmmakers shoot inside a cockpit?
Most productions use a cockpit set rather than a real aircraft. Fly-away windows and removable walls let the camera shoot through the windscreen and from the side, which is not possible in a working aircraft.
What is the difference between a glass cockpit and an analog cockpit?
A glass cockpit shows flight information on screens, as in most modern airliners. An analog cockpit uses round gauges and mechanical instruments, which suits stories set in earlier decades.
Which cockpit set should I use for a period film?
For a 1960s or 1970s look, an analog flight deck such as our Vintage Analog Cockpit or 727 Analog Cockpit is the closer match. Both have analog instruments and fly-away windows.
Can a cockpit set be moved to my location?
Our analog cockpits split in half, which makes them easier to transport. Contact us with your dates and location to check what is possible.
Book a Cockpit Scout
The best way to plan your coverage is to sit in the seats with your director and cinematographer. Call 747-400-0747 or contact Air Hollywood to schedule a scout at our studio at 27615 Avenue Hopkins, Valencia, CA 91355.