Check request: Meaning in Film Production

Check request

Definition

A check request is a production accounting form used to ask for a payment by check or transfer when there's no purchase order or when payment is due before an invoice arrives. It names the payee, amount, what the payment is for, the budget account to charge, and has the department head's and UPM's approvals, with backup like a quote or W-9 attached.

A filled check request

Here's a location department request for a deposit due at signing:

Field	Entry
Date	3/2
Payee	Rosie's Food LLC
Address	1140 Alvarado St, Los Angeles, CA
Amount	$3,500.00
Description	50% location fee deposit, Rosie's Diner, prep 3/8, shoot 3/9 to 3/10, strike 3/11
Account	Location fees line from the production's chart of accounts
Episode / set	Set 12, Rosie's Diner
Needed by	3/5 (agreement requires payment 3 days before prep)
Delivery	Location manager to hand deliver at walkthrough
Backup attached	Signed location agreement, W-9
Requested by	Location manager
Approved by	UPM

The $3,500 is half of the $7,000 total fee, with the balance due after strike under the location agreement.

How it moves through accounting

The department head fills it out and signs, the UPM approves, and it goes to the production accountant. Accounting checks the budget line, codes it, confirms a W-9 is on file (the form that lets the production report the payment at year end), and issues the check in the next run. The check stub or payment record is filed with the backup, and the amount shows up in the next cost report as spent against that account.

Why requests bounce back from accounting

Vague descriptions cause most delays. "Diner" doesn't tell accounting whether this is a location fee, a meal, or a set dressing purchase, and those go to different accounts. Other problems: no W-9 for a first-time payee, a request that duplicates a purchase order already issued for the same expense, missing approval signatures, and requests submitted the afternoon a payment is due.

Coding to the wrong account is quieter but costly. A location deposit charged to set dressing makes one line look overspent and the other under, and nobody notices until the hot costs and cost report stop matching reality.

For small cash purchases, departments use petty cash and log receipts on a petty cash log. Ongoing vendor spending goes on purchase orders. How accounts are numbered and grouped is covered in the film chart of accounts guide.

Frequently asked questions

When do you use a check request instead of a purchase order?

A purchase order commits money before goods or services are delivered and gets matched to an invoice later. A check request is for a payment that needs to go out now, such as a location deposit, a permit fee, or a one-time vendor who doesn't invoice.

How long does a check request take?

It depends on the accounting office's check run schedule. Many productions run checks on set days of the week, so submit requests with enough lead time and mark genuinely urgent ones.

What backup does accounting need with a check request?

Something that shows what's being paid for and how much: an invoice, a quote, a signed location agreement, or a permit fee notice. New payees also need a W-9 on file.