These figures come from union-published wage scales for 2026. They're here to help you budget, not to replace the agreement, and none of this is legal advice. The IATSE and the local where you shoot have the final word on your film's tier and terms.
Tiers are set by the budget
The IATSE Low Budget Theatrical Agreement (LBTA) is built around one number: what the production budgets for all production costs. That puts the film in a tier, and each tier has its own wage scale. The IATSE Local 600 (International Cinematographers Guild) wage scales for January 1 through December 31, 2026 define them this way:
| Tier | All production costs budgeted at |
|---|---|
| Ultra Low | Up to $3,300,000 |
| Tier 1A | $3,300,001 to $6,875,000 |
| Tier 1B | $6,875,001 to $9,900,000 |
| Tier 2 | $9,900,001 to $13,750,000 |
| Tier 3 | $13,750,001 to $16,500,000 |
The LBTA wage year runs on the calendar, unlike the Hollywood Basic Agreement's August schedules, so a shoot in November 2026 and one in February 2027 can be on different scales. Check the date on the card.
If you've read older guides, the dollar lines have moved. An earlier post on tier projects used 2024 thresholds, and a budget that sat in one tier then may land in a lower one now.
Ultra Low: negotiated, with a floor
Films up to $3.3 million pay rates "as negotiated" with each crew member, with a floor. The wage scale says Ultra Low rates can't be less than 125% of the applicable statutory minimum wage or $15 an hour, whichever is higher.
In California, where the state minimum wage is $16.90 an hour from January 1, 2026, that floor is $16.90 x 1.25 = $21.13 an hour. In a state at the federal minimum, the $15 figure governs. If your city or county has a higher local minimum wage, ask the local whether that's the applicable minimum for the calculation.
What camera crews earn by tier
The Local 600 card is useful because it shows how steeply rates climb. Hourly rates for 2026:
| Position | Tier 1A | Tier 1B | Tier 2 | Tier 3 | Tier 2, non-production city | Tier 3, non-production city |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Camera operator, DIT, still photographer | Subject to negotiation | $40.45 | $65.32 | $68.77 | $62.06 | $65.32 |
| 1st assistant camera | $34.42 | $36.09 | $56.67 | $59.66 | $53.85 | $56.67 |
| 2nd assistant camera | $31.11 | $32.77 | $43.43 | $45.71 | $41.26 | $43.43 |
| Film loader, digital utility | $27.75 | $29.41 | $39.09 | $41.18 | $37.15 | $39.09 |
| Camera utility, publicist | $34.42 | $36.09 | $45.28 | $47.65 | $43.01 | $45.28 |
The director of photography is subject to negotiation at every tier. The card defines "subject to negotiation" as a rate that must be higher than the straight-time hourly key rate unless otherwise provided.
Production cities on the card are Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, Orlando, San Francisco, St. Louis, New York, and Washington, D.C., plus Los Angeles. Those rates apply to crew working there, or hired or traveled from there. The card lists separate non-production city rates only for Tiers 2 and 3.
Compare Tier 3 with full scale. Local 600's Western Region card lists a 1st assistant photographer hired daily on Panel 1 (features and one-hour episodic) at $67.99 an hour from August 2, 2026. Tier 3's $59.66 is about 88% of that. Tier 1A's $34.42 is about 51%.
The expensive line is between 1B and 2
Moving from 1A to 1B barely changes rates. The 1st AC goes from $34.42 to $36.09, up 4.9%. Moving from 1B to Tier 2 is a different story: $36.09 to $56.67 is a 57% increase, and the camera operator goes from $40.45 to $65.32.
Here's what that means for a camera department of an operator, 1st AC, 2nd AC, and DIT over a 30-day shoot, counting 10 straight-time hours a day. Overtime is extra and depends on the agreement's work rules, so this shows only the straight-time base.
| Position | Hours | Tier 1B | Tier 2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Camera operator | 300 | 300 x $40.45 = $12,135.00 | 300 x $65.32 = $19,596.00 |
| DIT | 300 | 300 x $40.45 = $12,135.00 | 300 x $65.32 = $19,596.00 |
| 1st AC | 300 | 300 x $36.09 = $10,827.00 | 300 x $56.67 = $17,001.00 |
| 2nd AC | 300 | 300 x $32.77 = $9,831.00 | 300 x $43.43 = $13,029.00 |
| Total | $44,928.00 | $69,222.00 |
That's $24,294 more for four people in one department, before overtime, benefits, and prep days. Multiply across grip, electric, art, costume, hair and makeup, and sound, and a budget that grows from $9.8 million to $10.1 million can cost far more in crew wages than the $300,000 that pushed it over.
Line producers watch this in prep. A $9.85 million budget with an unbudgeted crane day is closer to a tier change than it looks.
How it compares with the Area Standards Agreement
Outside Los Angeles and New York, IATSE crews on bigger shows usually work under the Area Standards Agreement, which uses Key, Second, Third, and Utility rate groups. For theatrical motion pictures in "non-Maryland" states (including Georgia, Louisiana, New Mexico, Texas, and North Carolina), the rates from August 2, 2026 to July 31, 2027 are $50.26 (Key), $45.85 (Second), $41.47 (Third), and $37.12 (Utility). In "Maryland rate" areas, which the agreement defines as California (outside San Diego, outside Local 16's jurisdiction, and outside the Hollywood Basic Agreement's scope), Florida, Maryland, and Southeastern Michigan, they're $54.55, $49.45, $46.30, and $40.15.
Grips give a sense of which group a classification falls into. In the agreement's classification schedule, the key grip is paid at the Key rate, dolly grips and second company grips at the Second rate, and grips at the Third rate. The film crew day rates post has more of those mappings and turns them into day rates.
The Basic Agreement that covers the Hollywood locals also has a short article on low budget features. It says the IATSE will give good faith consideration, case by case, to requests for special conditions for low budget features produced in Los Angeles or with an LA-based crew.
Work rules that change
Rates are the headline, but the LBTA also changes some working conditions. IATSE Local 80's FAQ notes one of them: the Low Budget Theatrical Agreement has a 52-hour weekend turnaround, where the Basic Agreement gives 54 hours after a five-day week. That two hours can decide whether a Friday night exterior wraps in time for a Monday 6:00A call. Plug your Friday wrap into the turnaround calculator to see where Monday's earliest call lands.
Local 600's Western Region card also has a separate Panel 8 for mid and low budget features made for streaming, at a 12.5% reduction from Panel 1. That panel is part of Local 600's Western Region terms, so a feature intended for a streamer rather than theatrical release may not be an LBTA film at all. Ask the local which applies before you budget.
Other rules, including overtime thresholds, meal penalties, benefits, and the budget definition used to set the tier, are in the agreement itself. The meal penalty calculator and overtime calculator let you plug in the numbers once you have them.
Before you pick a tier
- Build the budget the way the agreement defines production costs, and ask the local or IATSE which costs are excluded.
- Find out whether your shoot city is a production city, and whether any crew are hired or traveled from one.
- Price every department at the tier you're in and the one above. If you're within 5% of a line, show the financiers both.
- Check the wage year. A shoot that crosses January 1 changes scales.
- Get the full rate card from each local you'll hire from. Local 600 posts camera rates, but grip, electric, sound, and art each have their own.
Crew rates in Storiara
Storiara's Cast & Crew module lets you select a union and contract for each crew member and fills in a rate, and the Budget module uses those rates when it syncs crew lines. Check the rates against the current tier card before the budget goes out, because the union decides your film's tier and wage year.