What's Your 20?
Radio shorthand used on film sets to ask a crew member's current location.
What's Your 20?
phrase | Production
A radio shorthand question used on film and television sets to ask a crew member where they are currently located. Derived from "10-20," the ten-code for "location" in police and CB radio communication, "What's your 20?" is a standard way of asking "Where are you?" when coordinating crew positions across a set, location, or base camp area. It is one of the most frequently used radio phrases on a professional production.
Quick Reference
| Full Form | "What is your 20?" or "What's your 20?" |
| Domain | Production |
| Origin | Ten-code "10-20" meaning "location," from the APCO ten-code system (1937) |
| Also Said | "What's your location?" or simply "20?" |
| Typical Answer | A specific location: "At base camp," "Camera truck," "On set by the monitor," "Heading to the grip truck" |
| Related Terms | 10-1, Copy That, Crossing, Striking, Production Assistant |
| See Also (Tools) | Shot List Generator |
| Difficulty | Foundational |
The Explanation: How & Why
Film productions spread across multiple physical areas simultaneously: the shooting set, the camera truck, the grip truck, the electric truck, base camp (where actors' trailers are parked), the production office, and sometimes multiple unit locations. A 1st AD who cannot locate the director between setups loses minutes. A PA who cannot find the talent delays the day. A key grip who needs a specific rigging stand and cannot reach the grip truck wastes time walking there only to find it empty.
"What's your 20?" solves this problem with three syllables over radio. The phrase is instantly recognizable, requires no preamble, and produces a location answer in one transmission. A standard exchange:
"[Name], what's your 20?"
"I am at the camera truck, be on set in two minutes."
"Copy that."
Three transmissions. Location confirmed. Communication loop closed. The entire exchange takes under five seconds.
The "20" comes from the APCO ten-code system, where 10-20 means "location" or "what is your location?" The informal contraction "What's your 20?" drops the "ten" for speed, following the same pattern as other ten-code adaptations on film sets: "10-4" becomes "copy" or "four"; "10-1" becomes "I need a 10-1" for a bathroom break. The contraction is so embedded in set culture that most crew members who use it daily do not know its police radio origin - they learned it from the crew members who trained them, and it functions as professional shorthand rather than borrowed terminology.
On a large production, the 1st AD uses "What's your 20?" constantly throughout the day: locating the director between setups, checking on talent position relative to set readiness, confirming department heads are where they need to be before calling the next setup. Production assistants field and ask "What's your 20?" more than any other crew position, because coordination is their primary function.
Historical Context & Origin
The ten-code system was developed in 1937 by Charles "Charlie" Hopper, a communications officer for the Illinois State Police, and was documented by the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO) in 1939. The syllable "ten" was originally chosen to give novice radio operators time to key up their transmitters - the dynamotor used to power 1930s and 1940s radio transmitters needed a moment to spin up to full power before the meaningful part of the code was transmitted. "10-20" was placed in a squad-car management bracket (codes 13-20) and meant "What is your location?"
CB radio enthusiasts adopted ten-codes extensively from the 1960s through the 1970s. C.W. McCall's hit song "Convoy" (1975) and films like Smokey and the Bandit (1977) popularized phrases like "10-4" and "What's your 20?" in mainstream American culture. Film productions adopted radio communication as standard infrastructure during the same period and brought the ten-code vocabulary with them. "What's your 20?" became standard set vocabulary and has remained so even as CB radio culture has receded and many law enforcement agencies have moved away from ten-codes in favor of plain language.
How It's Used in Practice
Scenario 1 - Talent Coordination (1st AD / PA): The set is ready for the next setup and the director asks where the lead actor is. The 1st AD radios the PA stationed at base camp: "What's your 20 on [actor name]?" The PA responds: "Talent is in hair and makeup. About ten minutes." The 1st AD adjusts the setup sequence to fill the time productively, returns to preparing the set, and calls the actor's PA back in eight minutes for a status update.
Scenario 2 - Equipment Location (Key Grip / Grip Department): A key grip needs a specific piece of rigging equipment for the next setup. They radio the grip department: "Where are the 1-ton combo stands? What's their 20?" A grip responds: "On the grip truck, second bay on the left, behind the overhead frames." The key grip dispatches a PA to retrieve them without leaving the set.
Scenario 3 - Director Communication (1st AD / Director): Between setups, the director has stepped away from the set to take a phone call. The lighting setup is complete and the 1st AD is ready to proceed. They radio: "Director, what's your 20? We are ready for you on set." The director responds: "Coming from the production trailer. Two minutes." The 1st AD holds the set and calls talent to stand by.
Usage Examples in Sentences
"Camera department, what's your 20? We need you on set for the next setup."
"PA 2, what's your 20 on the stunt coordinator? We need them for the safety meeting."
"What's your 20 is the most-used phrase on any radio on set. Everyone gets asked it and everyone asks it."
"If you do not answer 'What's your 20?' quickly, you are going to hold up the whole set."
Common Confusions & Misuse
"What's Your 20?" vs. "What's Your ETA?": "What's your 20?" asks for current location. "What's your ETA?" asks for estimated arrival time at a specific destination. Both are coordination questions but they request different information. The answer to "What's your 20?" is a place. The answer to "What's your ETA?" is a time. On set, both are used in combination: "What's your 20 and what's your ETA on set?"
"What's Your 20?" vs. "10-20": The full ten-code form is "10-20" or "What is your 10-20?" The informal "What's your 20?" drops the "ten" for speed. Both are understood on professional sets. "What's your 20?" is the more common conversational form. Some older crew members may still say "Give me your 10-20," but this is increasingly rare.
"20" as a noun vs. a question: On some sets, "20" is used as shorthand for "location" in statements rather than questions. A PA might say "I need a 20 on the first team" meaning "I need to know where the principal actors are." This usage is less common than the question form but is understood in context.
Variations by Context
| Context | How the Phrase Varies |
|---|---|
| Large Studio Production | Used constantly by 1st AD, PAs, and department heads over radio. The production area is large enough that physical searching is impractical. Walkie-talkie channels are department-specific. |
| Small / Independent Production | Used less frequently because the set is smaller and crew can see each other. When used, it is typically between the 1st AD and PAs managing talent and equipment. |
| Location / Exterior | Used heavily because the production footprint is spread across trucks, tents, and the shooting area. Location complexity makes the question more necessary. |
| UK / International | Less common on UK sets, where "Where are you?" or "What's your position?" is more typical. UK crews who have worked on US productions recognize the phrase but do not use it as default. |
Key People & Films
The phrase "What's your 20?" entered mainstream American culture through C.W. McCall's song "Convoy" (1975), which depicted CB radio conversation among truckers and put ten-code language into common use. Smokey and the Bandit (1977) further popularized CB radio culture. In film and television production, the phrase is not associated with any specific filmmaker or production - it is universal set vocabulary that predates any individual career. The APCO ten-code system, developed by Charles Hopper in 1937, is the documented origin. The contraction "What's your 20?" emerged from CB radio culture in the late 1940s and was adopted by film crews during the radio-equipment boom of the 1970s.
Equipment / Tools Reference
Film sets use UHF business-band walkie-talkies, most commonly Motorola CP200d and Kenwood ProTalk models. These radios operate on designated production frequencies and are distributed by the production office at the start of each shoot day. Earpieces (D-ring or acoustic tube) allow crew to monitor radio traffic without broadcasting to the set. Radio channels are assigned by department: Channel 1 for production/AD, Channel 2 for camera, Channel 3 for grip, Channel 4 for electric, and so on. The 1st AD and key PA monitor all channels.
Standards & Specifications
The APCO ten-code system was standardized in 1939 by the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials-International. The system was originally designed for law enforcement radio communication but was adopted by CB radio users, truckers, and film productions. In 2005, APCO recommended moving away from ten-codes in favor of plain language for emergency communications, citing interoperability concerns. However, film productions continue to use "What's your 20?" as established industry shorthand. The FCC regulates the UHF business-band frequencies used by production walkie-talkies. Productions must license their frequencies or use license-free channels.
Common Questions / FAQ
Q: Why do film crews say "What's your 20?" instead of "Where are you?"
A: The phrase is faster to say over radio, instantly recognizable, and functions as professional shorthand that marks the speaker as industry-literate. It also standardizes the question format, so the recipient knows immediately what information is being requested without parsing the sentence.
Q: Do all film sets use ten-codes?
A: No. "What's your 20?" and "10-1" (bathroom break) are the two ten-code survivals on most film sets. The rest of set radio communication uses plain language: "copy that," "striking," "crossing," "going again." Ten-codes have largely been replaced by plain language in law enforcement, but these two phrases persist in film production as cultural conventions.
Q: What radio channel does the 1st AD use?
A: Channel 1 is typically the production/AD channel on most film sets. The 1st AD monitors this channel throughout the day. Department-specific channels (camera on 2, grip on 3, electric on 4) allow department heads to communicate with their teams without cluttering the AD channel. The 1st AD and production coordinator monitor all channels.
Related Terms
- 10-1 - A related radio code from the same ten-code system; used for a bathroom break request on film sets
- Copy That - The standard acknowledgment that closes the communication loop opened by "What's your 20?" once the location is confirmed
- Crossing - Another on-set communication term used on radio; spatially oriented like "What's your 20?"
- Striking - A related on-set safety call that also uses radio communication for awareness of location and movement
- Production Assistant - The crew member most frequently asked and asking "What's your 20?" as part of their coordination role
- Call Sheet - The document that tells crew where they need to be and when; "What's your 20?" verifies actual positions against the plan
See Also / Tools
The Shot List Generator provides the framework that makes "What's your 20?" a necessary question. The coordinated movement of crew, equipment, and talent between setups requires knowing where everyone is at every stage of the shooting day. For more on-set communication terminology, see the 10-1 and Copy That glossary entries.
