Whether you work for a client or with a group of friends, a budget is vital to guarantee you’ll finish your product, to predict expenses, however small they may be, and to manage your risks. Going over-budget can cost you nerves, clients and crew. You may or may not like his films, but Tony Scott is famous for delivering on budget, something that must have had something to do with the amount of work he’s received over the years.
Before starting to draft your budget, ask yourself the following questions:
- Do you want to merely cover your costs or make a profit? – This will influence your budget as you will have to think about how to structure potential fees.
- Do you have a complete list of necessary items/crew and do you know the cost for each? Make sure you are aware of hidden fees, taxes, etc.
- Do you have a budget envelope (an amount of money you can work with)? What is it?
I’ve found the following structure useful when drafting my budgets (you can eliminate lines that do not apply to your production):
Pre-Production
- Pre-production coordination (hiring, renting, contracts, etc.)
- Casting (a casting director’s fee for example)
- Storyboard (hiring an illustrator)
- Location scouting (sending out y photographer and/or location scout to get pictures for the required locations)
- Voice Over Copy Writing
Production
- Crew
- Equipement
- Cast
- Wardrobe
- Decor & Props
- Transport, Communication & Catering
- Hotel Fees & Travel Expenses (clients and/or crew and/or cast)
Post-Production
Image
- Offline Editing
- Online Editing
- Motion Graphics
- Special Effects
Sound
- Music to Picture Soundtrack
- Voice Over Recording (Actor’s Fee)
- Recording Studio Fees
- Sound Mixing Fees
- Sound Effects (many times part of editing)
Fees
This depends entirely on your particular case. Many of them are calculated as a percentage of the overall budget. Here is a list of common fees you can apply.
- Creative Direction Fees (Director/Producer)
- Production Fee
- Administration
- Insurance
- Unknowns
I highly recommend managing your risk effectively. Every shoot has its special risk factors, and you should count them in in order to protect yourself from losses when a client is unwilling or unable to pay when it’s too late. This means raising certain costs to cover for possible problems. If you’re on a not-for-profit shoot or you’ve already charged your personal fees, you can always give back the extra cash left over. Clients/producers tend to prefer this to having to pay more than what they expected.
No Comments Yet
No comments yet.
Comments RSS TrackBack Identifier URI
Leave a comment
