What the guarantor looks at before the bond is issued
Before committing, a guarantor such as Film Finances puts the production through an assessment. Its production executive reads the script, checks the budget against the schedule, asks how many pages a day the shooting schedule assumes, and interviews the director, producer, and line producer. It wants to see a contingency line and a realistic cash flow. If the numbers don't hold up, it asks for changes before it signs.
On THE LONG DRIVE, the review might produce notes like these:
| Item | Guarantor note | Producer fix |
|---|---|---|
| Schedule | 22 days for 104 pages, 4 3/4 pages a day with two night exteriors | Add 2 days, cut a location |
| Contingency | $100,000 (5%) | Raise to $180,000 (10% of below-the-line plus post) |
| Stunts | No stunt coordinator budgeted for the car scene | Add coordinator and a rehearsal day |
| Post | No delivery costs for foreign sales | Add $45,000 deliverables line |
During production
Once the bond is in place, the guarantor receives the call sheets, daily production reports, and weekly cost reports. If the film falls behind, it calls the producer. If the production is heading for an overage larger than the contingency, the guarantor can require a recovery plan, send someone to set, and as a last resort take over the production.
The strike price matters here. It is the total the financiers commit to fund, normally the full budget including contingency and the bond fee. On THE LONG DRIVE that is $2,000,000. If costs to finish and deliver come to $2,150,000, the guarantor funds the $150,000 overage, and the bond agreement usually lets it recover that money from the film's receipts after the financiers are repaid.
Mistakes producers make
Treating the bond review as paperwork is the big one. Guarantors see many productions, and their schedule notes are often right. A producer who argues away the extra days usually spends them anyway.
Another is forgetting what the bond excludes. Bonds generally don't cover the film's commercial success, changes the producer or financiers request, or costs arising from events the production insurance should pay. Read the exclusions with your attorney.
For how bonds are structured and priced, see completion bonds explained and the budgeting entry for completion bond. The guarantor's approval is often the last condition before pre-sales loans and gap financing can fund.