Buy now!

Articles
Ten Things Every Producer and Director Should Know
Ten More Things Every Producer and Director Should Know
Making the Tin Man: How I Made My First Feature Film
It’s Just Some Extra Zeros...
All About Completion Bonding Companies
Money Savers!
The Strange Tale of Peter Borg
An honest look at film festivals
The Death of the Hollywood Dream Factory
Nice script. Where is the budget?
The TRUTH about the SAG Ultra Low Budget Agreement
Screenplay Structure the PROPPER Way (NEW!)

Money Savers

Everybody has their favorite tricks and tips to save your precious production dollars. Some of these are obvious, while others are devious but extremely practical. Here's a few you can use:

  1. Avoid Sales Taxes. Suppose you're planning on buying $100,000.00 in raw stock. If your local sales tax rate is 8%, that's $8,000.00! Buy your raw stock and have it shipped via a common carrier like UPS to your first intended location. You will be exempt from sales taxes if it's shipped out-of-state. Pay a hundred dollars in shipping, but save thousands. You might even ship the stock out-of-state, and back again! (I have)

  2. Beware Of The SAG Contract Trap. Generally, actors are signed to either weekly or daily contracts. Once an actor has been signed to a daily contract, they can't be "converted" to a less costly weekly contract. So, if you're going to use an actor for three days, sign them to a weekly contract (Easy Budget makes this calculation for you automatically!).

  3. Caps and T-shirts. A souvenir cap or T-shirt for your production might cost you five bucks each, but they are sometimes worth a hundred times that! An angry neighbor may object to all the trucks and noise, but a gift of one of your T-shirts might make him your friend instead. They're an excellent, low cost way to improve community relations. Never make a movie without 'em.

  4. Choose Your Start Date Carefully. Who says you've got to start on a Monday? Look at the calendar carefully. Suppose that two weeks into your shoot there's a national holiday on Monday. Start shooting on a Tuesday so Monday's a day off. This way YOU don't have to pay for it.

  5. Makeup and Hair Dressing "Spies." The first people actors see in the morning are the makeup and hair specialists. They naturally form very close bonds with these people. Before production starts, make sure these people are your confidants and willing to report anything important to you which might hurt the production. They can also be used to "plant" positive motivation and ideas. Be careful what you say so you don't reveal your special relationship with the makeup and hair people.

  6. Music Publishing. If you're the producer and your music score is termed "a work for hire," you're entitled to a piece of the music publishing royalties. The music people won't volunteer this information, but you should get at least 50%!

  7. Incorporate. No matter how small the production, NEVER, EVER make a movie any other way. You must protect yourself legally! Get a lawyer and make sure all the corporate documents are maintained properly.

  8. Avoid Deferments. Sometimes you have no choice, but it's always better to pay someone 75 cents today, rather than 50 cents now and 50 cents later. A deferment unnecessarily obligates you to someone. It breeds jealousy and eventually creates enemies.

  9. Learn To Use Film Commissioners. They can be a valuable asset on any location. But make sure you extract their promises of cooperation in writing before you agree to film there. Otherwise, a "free" location might not be so cheap after you arrive. Many of these folks have a reputation of being the governmental equivalent of used car salesmen.

  10. Financial Core. Did you know that you don't have to hire union members even if you're doing a full-on union film? Nothing less than the U. S. Supreme Court gives you this power! You still have to pay them the same wages of course, but you can hire anyone you want – not who they tell you to hire. You don't even have to return their phone calls! Check these links for more information:
    http://pirromount.com.customers.tigertech.net/sag.html
    http://www.performink.com/Archives/law/2000/9-15Law.html
Next Article:   "The Strange Tale of Peter Borg"
 
Copyright © 1984-2009, The Easy Budget Company.
Last Updated in May, 2009
For more information, contact webmaster1 at easy-budget.com