Box versus a real equipment rental
A box rental works for tools and small gear. When a crew member owns a significant package, like a sound mixer's recorder, wireless, and boom kit, or a gaffer's truck, production usually signs a separate equipment rental agreement with a rate, insurance requirements, and a certificate of insurance. The dividing line is value and risk. A $150-a-week tool box goes on the deal memo; a $3,500-a-week sound package gets its own paperwork and often a purchase order.
Example: an electric department
| Crew | Box rental | Weeks | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gaffer | $200 | 5 | $1,000 |
| Best boy electric | $125 | 5 | $625 |
| Electrician (2) | $75 each | 4 | $600 |
| Account total | $2,225 |
The electricians' line is 2 x $75 x 4 = $600. These amounts are illustrative; the actual numbers come from each deal memo. If they were run through payroll by mistake at a 16% fringe load, production would pay another $2,225 x 0.16 = $356 in employer taxes for nothing.
Paperwork that goes with it
- Deal memo line: amount, per day or per week, which weeks.
- Signed inventory with serial numbers for anything worth insuring.
- A W-9 so the payment can be reported correctly.
- Any rental agreement and insurance certificate for larger packages.
The production accountant will usually refuse to cut a box rental check without the inventory on file.
Where box rentals go wrong
The common problems are paying box rental for weeks the gear wasn't used, letting the rate creep because "that's what the last show paid", paying box through payroll, and treating consumables as part of the box. Tape, gels, and batteries are expendables and belong in the department's purchase account, not in a crew member's rental. See kit rental for the same concept applied to supplies, and kit rentals and box rentals for how different departments use each.