This summarizes the DGA's published 2026-27 rate cards. The DGA marks the Low Budget Sideletter rates, terms, and conditions as tentative and subject to change, so check the current card and the sideletter itself before you make an offer. None of this is legal advice.
How the sideletter is organized
The DGA's Low Budget Sideletter (LBSL) covers theatrical motion pictures with budgets up to $11 million. Instead of one reduced rate, it breaks that range into levels and sets pay as a percentage of Basic Agreement minimums. The director and the AD/UPM team have different percentages at the same level, and at the bottom levels some terms are simply negotiable.
| Level | Budget | Director salary | UPM, 1st AD, Key 2nd AD salary |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1A | $500,000 or less | Negotiable | Negotiable, not below minimum wage |
| 1B | Over $500,000 to $1.1M | Negotiable | 33% of BA minimum |
| 2 | Over $1.1M to $3M | Negotiable | 50% of BA minimum |
| 3 | Over $3M to $4M | 33% of BA minimum, 13-week guarantee | 60% of BA minimum |
| 4A | Over $4M to $5.5M | 75%, 13-week guarantee | 70% of salary and production fee |
| 4B | Over $5.5M to $8.5M | 75%, 13-week guarantee | 80% of salary and production fee |
| 4C | Over $8.5M to $11M | 90%, 13-week guarantee | 90% of salary and production fee |
On every level, the card says the salary for any hour can't fall below the applicable federal or state minimum wage.
Director rates for 2026-27
| Level 3 | Levels 4A and 4B | Level 4C | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weekly salary | $8,321 | $18,911 | $22,693 |
| Guaranteed prep | 2 weeks | 2 weeks | 2 weeks |
| Guaranteed employment | 10 weeks | 10 weeks | 10 weeks |
| Guaranteed cutting allowance | 1 week | 1 week | 1 week |
| Days worked beyond guarantee | $1,664 | $3,782 | $4,539 |
| Daily employment where permitted | $2,080 | $4,728 | $5,673 |
| Weekly "soft prep" amount | $1,650 | $3,750 | $4,500 |
Those three guarantees add up to the 13-week minimum. A Level 3 director at scale costs 13 x $8,321 = $108,173 in salary before fringes. On films up to $3 million, the director's initial compensation, daily rate, prep time, and any soft prep payments are all negotiable.
The cut is guaranteed differently by level. On Levels 1 and 2, the director gets as many days for the director's cut as were scheduled for principal photography, but never fewer than 20. Level 3 guarantees at least eight weeks, and Level 4 the full 10 weeks. A 22-day shoot on a $2 million film means at least 22 days for the director's cut, which the post schedule has to show.
Soft prep covers weeks the director works before official pre-production starts, once three of four weekly crew are on: a freelance UPM or line producer, the production designer, a location manager or scout, and a casting agent. On Levels 3 and 4, a director can get a maximum of five soft prep payments.
AD and UPM rates for 2026-27
Daily rates on Levels 1B, 2, and 3 are one quarter of the weekly rates below.
| Weekly salary | Level 1B | Level 2 | Level 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| UPM | $2,375 | $3,599 | $4,318 |
| 1st AD | $2,258 | $3,422 | $4,106 |
| Key 2nd AD | $1,513 | $2,293 | $2,751 |
| All other 2nd ADs | $1,058 | $1,318 | $1,581 |
| Production fee | Not required | UPM, 1st AD, Key 2nd AD: $100/week | UPM and 1st AD $200/week; Key 2nd AD $150/week |
Level 4 has separate studio and location scales:
| Weekly salary, studio / location | Level 4A (70%) | Level 4B (80%) | Level 4C (90%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| UPM | $5,038 / $7,053 | $5,758 / $8,061 | $6,477 / $9,068 |
| 1st AD | $4,790 / $6,700 | $5,474 / $7,657 | $6,159 / $8,614 |
| Key 2nd AD | $3,210 / $4,485 | $3,668 / $5,126 | $4,127 / $5,766 |
| 2nd 2nd AD | $3,030 / $4,237 | $3,463 / $4,842 | $3,896 / $5,448 |
| Additional 2nd AD | $2,055 / $2,587 | $2,108 / $2,957 | $2,372 / $3,326 |
For a sense of the discount, the full Basic Agreement minimum for a 1st AD is $6,843 a week in the studio. Level 2's $3,422 is half of that, which is the arithmetic the sideletter describes.
Terms that change by level
The rate is only part of the difference between levels. The DGA's summary of AD and UPM terms:
| Term | Levels 1A and 1B | Level 2 | Level 3 | Levels 4A and 4B | Level 4C |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6th and 7th day (studio) | Straight time (1/5 weekly) | 6th straight, 7th at 150% | 6th straight, 7th at 150% | BA 13-112(a) applies | BA 13-112(a) applies |
| Minimum prep | Negotiable, no less than needed | 1st AD 7 days, Key 2nd AD 3 days | 1st AD 15 days, Key 2nd AD 7 days | 1st AD 15 days, Key 2nd AD 7 days | 1st AD 15 days, Key 2nd AD 7 days |
| Completion of assignment pay | Not required | Yes, at a 50% rate | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Vacation (4%) and unworked holiday (4.583%) fringes | Not required | Not required | Not required | Not required | Required |
| 2nd AD wrap allowance | Not required | $31/day | $31/day | $31/day | $62/day |
| Holiday work | 200% of day rate | 200% of day rate | BA 13-113 applies | BA 13-113 applies | BA 13-113 applies |
Across all levels: a $33 dinner allowance unless the employer provides meals, first class or best available housing on distant location, per diem no lower than the higher of the SAG-AFTRA or IATSE rate (the card gives $75 a day as an example), the IRS mileage rate (with no mileage inside the Los Angeles 30-mile zone unless other cast and crew get it), and rest periods under Basic Agreement paragraph 13-116.
Completion of assignment pay is an extra week's salary for UPMs, 1st ADs, key 2nd ADs, and 2nd 2nd ADs employed two or more consecutive weeks, or two and a half days' salary for five days to under two weeks. At Level 2's 50% rate, a 1st AD finishing a seven-week run would get half of one week's $3,422, or $1,711.
Long days cost extra
The sideletter carries the Basic Agreement's extended workday payments. For a 1st AD, the day runs from general crew call to camera wrap (plus travel on distant location). Working more than 13 and up to 15 hours earns an additional half day's salary. More than 15 and up to 19 earns another half day. Beyond 19, another full day for each four hours or fraction.
For a key 2nd AD or 2nd 2nd AD, the day starts at the earliest of general crew call, makeup call, or hair call, and ends an hour after camera wrap. With one 2nd AD on the unit, more than 13 hours earns a half day and more than 15 earns another full day. That's one reason a 2nd AD's out time on the daily production report gets checked closely.
A Level 2 budget example
A $2.4 million feature with 25 shoot days (five weeks) and a 1st AD with seven days of prep, which is the Level 2 minimum. Round the prep to two weeks for a clean deal, so the 1st AD is on seven weeks. The key 2nd AD needs three days of prep, so book one week of prep and six weeks total.
| Line | Math | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| 1st AD salary | 7 x $3,422 | $23,954 |
| 1st AD production fee | 7 x $100 | $700 |
| Key 2nd AD salary | 6 x $2,293 | $13,758 |
| Key 2nd AD production fee | 6 x $100 | $600 |
| 1st AD completion of assignment (50%) | 0.5 x $3,422 | $1,711 |
| Key 2nd AD completion of assignment (50%) | 0.5 x $2,293 | $1,146.50 |
| 2nd AD wrap allowance | 25 x $31 | $775 |
| Subtotal before fringes | $42,644.50 |
Then add the employer's 8.75% pension, 13.5% health, and 0.25% paid parental leave contributions, plus 3/8% to the DGA-Producer Training Plan for AD and UPM hires and the contract administration contribution for the region (1/8% in Southern California, 1/4% in the New York area). Which lines those percentages apply to, such as production fees or completion pay, is spelled out in the sideletter, so confirm with the DGA before you lock the fringe line. As a rough planning figure, 22.5% on the $37,712 in base salary alone is $8,485.20. The AD's own 2.5% pension contribution is deducted from their pay and doesn't add to your budget.
Check your staffing plan against the terms before this becomes the budget. A production may need a UPM too, and the UPM role page covers what they cost at Basic Agreement scale.
Getting signed
The DGA asks producers who intend to employ members to contact the Guild at least four weeks before scheduled principal photography. The Signatories Department will ask for the producing company, project title and type, director, start date, location, budget, and intended initial release, and then send the right package, which for a feature under $11 million is the Low Budget Theatrical Film package. You return the signed application and forms, the Guild confirms the right signatory entity, and status is granted once the signatory and financial assurance documents are in and a payroll deposit has been arranged.
DGA members can only work for companies with current signatory status. The DGA's reports compliance department has a separate Low Budget Theatrical forms package for deal memos. For the director and AD deals, the Basic Agreement card notes that the initial workweek's start day must be designated in the deal memo.
Where producers go wrong
Reading the negotiable director deal on Levels 1 and 2 as "everything is negotiable." The AD and UPM percentages, production fees, and, from Level 2 up, prep minimums still apply to the DGA ADs and UPMs you hire. Ask the Signatories Department which staffing terms come with your level before you make crew offers.
Booking the 1st AD to start on day one of shooting. Level 3 requires 15 days of prep for the 1st AD, three full weeks before camera rolls.
Forgetting the director's cut in the post schedule. On a $3.5 million Level 3 film, eight weeks is the minimum.
Budgeting to the level line. A film budgeted at $2.95 million that grows to $3.2 million moves from 50% to 60% AD/UPM rates, and from a negotiable director deal to a 13-week guarantee. The DGA glossary entry covers the guild's broader rules, and the IATSE low budget guide shows how crew tiers use different budget lines.
Planning this in Storiara
Storiara's Budget module has a setup wizard for production type, union tier, shoot days, and prep and post weeks, and crew members in Cast & Crew can have a union and contract selected with a rate filled in. Enter the DGA figures from the current rate card yourself and confirm them before the budget goes to financiers.