# Exhibit G: Tracking Cast Time and SAG-AFTRA Compliance

Source: https://storiara.com/blog/exhibit-g-tracking-cast-time-and-sag-aftra-compliance
Last updated: 2026-09-14
Author: Nick Harty, Storiara

> Exhibit G is SAG-AFTRA's Performers Production Time Report. For each performer on each shoot day it records work status, makeup and set times, meals, travel, stunts, forced calls, meal period violations, outfits, and tutoring for minors, and each performer signs it. The production submits the signed reports by the Friday of the week after each work week.

## What the form looks like

SAG-AFTRA publishes Exhibit G as a fillable PDF titled "Performers Production Time Report." The header asks for the picture title, company, production number, date, a contact name and phone number, the shooting location, and the production type (theatrical, TV, MOW, industrial, or other). There's also a checkbox asking whether today is a designated day off. The form's footnote explains that a producer can designate two days (one day on an overnight location) as days off for which performers aren't paid continuous employment, so that box has real payroll consequences.

Below the header, each performer gets one row. The columns, in order:

| Group | Columns on the form |
|---|---|
| Who | Cast name, minor (yes or no), character |
| Status | The day's code: W, R, FT, TR, S, H, T, or F |
| Work time | Report makeup/wardrobe, report on set, dismiss on set, dismiss makeup/wardrobe |
| Meals | ND meal in and out, 1st meal start and finish, 2nd meal start and finish |
| Travel time | Leave for location, arrive on location, leave location, arrive at studio |
| Other | Stunt adjustment, minors' tutoring time, number of outfits provided, forced call, MPVs (meal period violations), performer's signature |

The status codes on the form are W (work), R (rehearsal), FT (fitting), TR (travel), S (start), H (hold), T (test), and F (finish). The [day out of days](https://storiara.com/glossary/day-out-of-days) uses its own shorthand (SW, W, WF, H), so a performer's first and last days read differently on the two documents. Pick one convention for the production report and make sure payroll knows which one they're reading.

## Filling out a real day

Here's Day 9 of a low-budget feature shooting at a diner on location. Crew call is 6:30 AM. Four performers work.

| Cast | Char. | Status | MU/WD in | On set | Dismiss set | Dismiss MU/WD | ND meal | 1st meal | Outfits | Stunt | Signed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dana Ruiz | MAYA | W | 6:00A | 7:15A | 7:40P | 8:05P | 6:15A to 6:30A | 12:45P to 1:15P | 0 | | Yes |
| Luis Ortega | JOE | S | 9:00A | 10:00A | 5:10P | 5:30P | | 12:45P to 1:15P | 0 | | Yes |
| Kim Park | MAYA (stunt dbl) | W | 1:30P | 2:15P | 4:50P | 5:05P | | | 0 | X | Yes |
| Ava Chen (minor) | LILY | S | 8:00A | 8:45A | 12:40P | 12:55P | | | 2 | | Yes, and parent |

Walk through what those times mean.

Dana had a 15-minute non-deductible breakfast from 6:15 to 6:30 AM. SAG-AFTRA's theatrical rule allows an NDB of 15 minutes free from all activity within two hours of call, and the first meal then becomes due six hours after the NDB ends. Her lunch was due at 12:30 PM. It started at 12:45 PM, which is 15 minutes late, or one half-hour unit. The MPV column gets a 1, and payroll owes $25.

Luis reported at 9:00 AM with no NDB. His meal wasn't due until 3:00 PM, so no violation.

Kim was called at 1:30 PM, after lunch had already broken. The meal times in his row should be blank. Copying the company lunch into every row is a common mistake, and it makes it look like a performer who wasn't there got fed. The stunt adjustment box is checked because he did the fall in scene 42A, and the amount owed goes on his contract and pay stub.

Ava is a minor who was released before lunch, so her meal columns are blank too. The minor box is checked, her tutoring time with the studio teacher goes in its column, and her parent or guardian signs with her. She brought two of her own outfits at the costume designer's request, so the outfit count is 2.

### Tomorrow's calls come from this form

SAG-AFTRA's daily rest in the studio zone is 12 hours from dismissal to first call the next day. Dana's last time on the form is 8:05 PM out of wardrobe, so her earliest call on Day 10 is 8:05 AM. If the draft call sheet has her in makeup at 7:00 AM, the 2nd AD has two choices: push her call and reorder the morning's scenes, or accept a forced call, which for a day performer costs the daily rate or $900, whichever is less. On location the rest can be shorter in specific cases, like 10 hours when exterior photography is required, so check which exception actually applies before relying on it.

The [turnaround calculator](https://storiara.com/tools/turnaround-calculator) runs this for a whole cast list, and the [meal penalty calculator](https://storiara.com/tools/meal-penalty-calculator) handles the escalating half-hour units: $25, then $35, then $50 per half hour under the theatrical FAQ, with a $75 tier from the fifth half hour for principal performers under the 2026 TV/Theatrical agreement.

## Who does what

The [2nd AD](https://storiara.com/roles/second-assistant-director) owns Exhibit G. On most sets the times come from whoever is closest to the actors: the 2nd 2nd AD on set, a PA at the makeup trailer for in and out times, and the 2nd AD at base camp for travel. The times get written down as they happen. Rebuilding them from the call sheet at wrap is how a production ends up with a form that says an actor was released at 7:00 PM when the camera report shows her in a shot at 7:20.

At wrap, each performer reviews and signs their row. If a performer disagrees with a time, sort it out then. Once they've left, you're relying on memory months later when a claim arrives.

The signed forms go to the production office with the day's paperwork. The [UPM](https://storiara.com/roles/unit-production-manager) or line producer reviews them alongside the production report before anything is sent out.

## Deadlines and where copies go

SAG-AFTRA's theatrical production checklist says the producer submits Production Time Reports signed by each performer no later than Friday of the week following each work week, completed legibly in ink or typed. It warns that liquidated damages can be assessed for substantial breaches. A shoot week ending Saturday, October 10, has its forms due by Friday, October 16.

Payroll gets a copy to calculate overtime, meal penalties, and forced calls. The production keeps the originals with the production reports for the life of the picture. The [daily production report](https://storiara.com/blog/daily-production-report-guide) carries the same cast times in its cast section, and the two have to match.

## Errors that turn into claims

Most Exhibit G problems come from a handful of habits:

- Times copied from the call sheet instead of recorded. The call sheet is the plan, and Exhibit G is supposed to be what happened.
- Dismissal recorded as camera wrap. An actor still in the makeup chair 25 minutes later hasn't been dismissed, and turnaround starts from the real time.
- Meal times entered for people who weren't there, or missing for people who were.
- The MPV column left at zero when the meal times on the same row show a violation. Payroll and the union can see the violation in the times whatever the total says.
- Hold days marked W. If a performer is on hold, record H so payroll pays the hold correctly.
- Unsigned rows with no explanation. If a performer leaves before signing, write that down on the form and get it signed the next day.
- The designated day off box checked on a day that doesn't qualify.

Every one of these is cheaper to fix the same night than to argue over later. A good 2nd AD compares Exhibit G with the draft production report before the UPM signs, line by line, and flags any time that differs by more than a minute or two.

## When it isn't a SAG-AFTRA show

Non-union productions don't file Exhibit G, but they still need to know when an actor was called, fed, and released. State wage-and-hour rules still apply, and an insurance claim or a dispute over pay will ask for the same information. Many non-union 2nd ADs use the same form as a cast time log because the columns already cover what matters. For a column-by-column reference with a blank form, see the [Exhibit G walkthrough](https://storiara.com/blog/exhibit-g-walkthrough) and the [Exhibit G glossary entry](https://storiara.com/glossary/exhibit-g).

## Where Storiara fits

Storiara doesn't generate Exhibit G. It builds the cast [day out of days](https://storiara.com/templates/day-out-of-days) from the stripboard and sends call sheets by email or shareable link, so the planned calls and work days a 2nd AD compares against the time report come from the same schedule. The actual in and out times are still written down on set.

## Frequently asked questions

### What do the codes on Exhibit G mean?

The current SAG-AFTRA form lists W for work, R for rehearsal, FT for fitting, TR for travel, S for start, H for hold, T for test, and F for finish. They describe the performer's status that day, and they should agree with the day out of days and the production report.

### When is Exhibit G due to SAG-AFTRA?

SAG-AFTRA's production checklist says signed Production Time Reports go to the union no later than the Friday of the week following each work week. They must be legible, in ink or typed, and liquidated damages can be assessed for substantial breaches.

### Which time on Exhibit G starts the turnaround clock?

The dismissal time. SAG-AFTRA's rest period runs from when the performer is dismissed to their first call the next day, so use the later of dismiss on set and dismiss from makeup and wardrobe when working out tomorrow's call.

### Who keeps Exhibit G on set?

The 2nd AD is responsible for it, usually with the 2nd 2nd AD or a set PA writing down times as they happen. The 2nd AD collects signatures at wrap and sends the forms to the production office with the production report.

## Sources

- [SAG-AFTRA Performers Production Time Report (Exhibit G), fillable PDF](https://www.sagaftra.org/sites/default/files/production_time_report_fillable.pdf)
- [SAG-AFTRA Theatrical/Television Production Checklist](https://www.sagaftra.org/sites/default/files/production_checklist_theatrical_television_4_7_2.pdf)
- [SAG-AFTRA: How do Theatrical meal periods work?](https://servicesagaftra.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/999/~/how-do-theatrical-meal-periods-work%3F)
- [SAG-AFTRA: How do rest periods work for a theatrical production?](https://servicesagaftra.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/1001/~/how-do-rest-periods-work-for-a-theatrical-production)
- [SAG-AFTRA 2026 TV/Theatrical Contracts Referendum Booklet](https://www.sagaftra.org/sites/default/files/2026-05/2026%20TV-Theatrical%20Contracts%20Tentative%20Agreement%20Referendum%20Booklet.pdf)