Visual Captive Video Production

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Best G&E (Grip & Electric) Rental Houses in Minneapolis

If you are an out-of-town video production company in need of grip, electric, and lighting in Minneapolis or you are a local who is looking for more options, this list of G&E rental shops will have you sorted in no time. This list includes large rental houses with substantial inventories down to smaller shops providing supplemental lighting. These shops can provide everything from 1-ton to 5-ton grip trucks along with all the necessary power and grip you will need. 

Looking for a studio and stage to rent too? Check out our recommendations here. 

Fully Equipped G&E Shops

  1. Cinequipt 

  2. Tasty Lighting 

  3. Gear Up Media Rentals

Supplemental G&E Rental Houses

  1. Cinemechanics

  2. Visual Captive 

Fully Equipped G&E Shops:

You can’t go wrong with either Cinequipt or Tasty Lighting. They have very similar offerings so it will come down to which company you prefer. Cinequipt does offer camera, audio, and lens packages too so if you are looking to keep your rental to one shop, you might prefer them. Tasty Lighting is more of a traditional shop founded by a Gaffer with 20 years in the business. If you need expert guidance on what to rent, Tasty Lighting might be your preferred choice. 

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Cinequipt (owned by Redstar)

Cinequipt is located on the North side of Minneapolis and has an expansive facility filled with all your G&E needs. What is unique about Cinequipt is that they also offer camera, audio, and lens rentals. They can provide all of your audio and video needs from one location. 

You can rent single items from Cinequipt or entire grip trucks ranging from 1-ton to 4-ton. Cinequipt also has camera prep bays for testing equipment and rigging cameras. Cinequipt is owned by Redstar which means they can also source specialty equipment from their network of rental houses. 

Cinequipt rents the most common light sources in the industry including HMIs, tungsten, and LEDs. You’ll find ARRI Skypanels available to rent to tungsten 20Ks. They also have car mounting rigs, dollys, jibs, and every type of stand you could want. 

Cinequipt Summary:

  • One of the largest selections of G&E in Minneapolis 

  • 1-ton to 4-ton grip trucks are available 

  • Popular rental house with local crews

  • Camera, lens, and audio equipment are available too 

  • Popular brands including ARRI, Aputure, Kino Flo, Quasar, and Hudson Spider 

  • Friendly to both small rentals and large productions 

  • Online catalog is up to date 

Cinequipt Website: Click Here

Address: 2601 49th Ave N #500, Minneapolis, MN 55430

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Tasty Lighting Supply

Tasty Lighting Supply is located in South Minneapolis off highway 55. They also have a large facility offering everything you need for your G&E needs. You can rent individual items from Tasty Lighting or their grip vans ranging from sprinter vans to 5-tons. 

Tasty Lighting also offers HMI, Tungsten, and LED lights. Brands include ARRI, Aputure, Hudson Spider, Creamsource, Astera, Litemat, Intellytech, Nanlite, and more. 

Summary: 

  • 1-ton to 5-ton grip truck rentals

  • Popular brands offered including ARRI, Aputure, Hudson Spider, Creamsource, Astera, Litemat, Intellytech, Nanlite, and more. 

  • Popular rental house with local crews 

  • Pricing lists are available online 

  • Owned and operated by a Gaffer who can provide advice when needed

Tasty Lighting Supply & ACME Stages Website: Click Here

Address: 2635 28th Ave S, Minneapolis, MN 55406

Supplemental G&E Rental Houses

The following rental houses are smaller than Cinequipt and Tasty Lighting Supply. They mainly focus on providing supplemental equipment to productions vs. fully equipped grip vans. These shops are designed for you to pick up equipment in your own vehicle for smaller productions. 

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Gear Up Media Rentals

GearUp is a mobile Minnesota-based G&E rental company. Their unique offering is to deliver and pick up your rental equipment from your location. They also offer crafty packages and packing services for travel gear.

As a medium-sized rental house, GearUp’s equipment list is impressive. Their equipment list is on par with the bigger rental houses in the city. They have all the stands, flags, frames, and speed rail you need. They offer extended hours meaning they can deliver to your set late at night and on the weekends. If you are a production company that is coming into Minnesota for a shoot, these flexible hours can sometimes save you an extra day of travel by avoiding flying in early just to pickup gear during normal business hours.

GearUp Summary:

  • Delivery and pickup to your location

  • Sprinter Van grip truck called The WarPig

  • Extended business hours that are flexible around your production

  • Offer additional services like crafty and gear packing for travel

  • Camera, lens, and general production equipment (including coffee machines!) offered for rent too

  • Lighting brands including Velvet, Litemat, Litepanels, Aputure, and Kino

  • Friendly to both small rentals and large productions 

  • Online catalog is up to date 

Gear Up Rentals Website: Click Here

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Cinemechanics

Cinemechanics is located on the West side of Minneapolis. Cinemechanics has made a name for itself through its cinema glass rental business. They offer some of the rarest and most sought-after lenses for productions. They have impressive camera prep stations on-site and experienced staff. 

Cinemechanics is not shy to state that their grip and lighting rentals are specifically designed to be supplemental. Their founder, Steve Speers told me that their rental equipment is designed to fit in a car. However, they offer some of the best lighting equipment in the industry including ARRI Skypanels, Litepanels, Hudson Spider, Aputure, Litemat and Fillex. Their grip selection pairs nicely with their lighting selection and even includes frames, flags, speedrail, and clamps. 

Summary:

  • Supplemental lighting and grip packages. No grip vans or trucks are offered. 

  • Brands offered include ARRI Skypanels, Litepanels, Hudson Spider, Aperture, Litemat and Fillex.

  • Lens rental shop with experienced staff 

  • Grip selection is still impressive for a smaller shop primarily focused on lens rentals 

Cinemechanics Website: Click Here

Address: 6158 Olson Memorial Hwy, Golden Valley, MN 55422

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Visual Captive

Us! We are Visual Captive and we offer a ¾ ton G&E van with primarily Aputure LED lights. Our van includes c-stands, junior stands, frames, sand bags,  apple boxes, and more. We like to say our van is perfect for corporate on-location shoots, testimonials, and small event coverage. 

We are primarily a production company, but offer our grip van packaged with gaffing services. If you need a Gaffer and a ¾ ton G&E package, please reach out to us here. 

Our lighting kit includes:

  • Aputure 600D 

  • Aputure 300D

  • Aputure Amara 200X

  • 2x Aputure 60D 

  • Apture Spotlight for 60D

  • Aputure 60C

  • Intellytech LC-120 1X3 Flex LED

Visual Captive Website: Click Here