Crew

Sep 2026

Crew Deal Memos: What Goes in Them and How to Negotiate Terms

What a crew deal memo should cover, how the rate basis changes real pay, which terms are worth negotiating, and the clauses that start arguments at the first payroll.

Sep 2026

Extras Breakdown: How to Count Background Actors Scene by Scene

How to build an extras breakdown: turn vague action lines into counts, split featured from general background, track matching faces, and total person-days per shoot day.

Sep 2026

Film Crew Day Rates: Union Minimums and Setting Non-Union Pay

Union minimum day rates for film crew by position and region, converted to 12-hour days, plus how to set and budget non-union rates without getting the overtime wrong.

Sep 2026

Film Crew Per Diem: Rates, GSA Tables, and How to Budget It

How to set and budget film crew per diem: FY2027 GSA meal and lodging rates, travel-day math, meal deductions, SAG-AFTRA background per diem, and the tax line to watch.

Sep 2026

Film Crew Time Cards: How to Fill Them In and Get Paid Right

How film crew time cards work: what to record each day, who signs, how payroll turns hours into overtime and meal premiums, and a worked California week for a PA.

Sep 2026

How to Hire a Film Crew: A Line Producer's Order of Operations

Hire a film crew in the right order: department heads first, union status decided early, crew found through rosters and referrals, and paperwork signed before day one.

Sep 2026

IATSE Low Budget Theatrical Agreement: Tiers and Crew Rates

The IATSE Low Budget Theatrical Agreement sets crew rates by budget tier, from Ultra Low up to $3.3M to Tier 3 at $16.5M. See 2026 thresholds, rates, and budget math.

Sep 2026

Kit Rentals and Box Rentals: How to Budget and Pay Them

How kit and box rentals work on a film: typical departments, deal memo wording, inventories, why they stay off payroll, 1099 reporting, and a 5-week budget worked out.

Sep 2026

The Core Production Team: Who Runs a Film Set?

Who runs a film set: producers, the UPM, the 1st AD, the production office, accounting, and department heads, with the order they're hired and who reports to whom.