The log above is the prop master's first petty cash envelope on SALT FLATS, a 12-day feature shooting around Bakersfield. It runs from the week before Day 1 through Day 4, and most of the receipts match items on the SALT FLATS prop list, with the prop number in the description. The account codes are the line numbers from the indie film budget: 2802 is props, purchases, rentals, and picture food, and 2204 is set dressing.
For what petty cash is and how it fits into production accounting, see the petty cash glossary entry. This page is about keeping the log so the envelope reconciles on the first try.
What each part of the log does
The float block records who is responsible for the money, how much they signed for, and the limit on a single purchase. That last line keeps petty cash for small things. A $300 rental goes on a purchase order.
The log is one line per receipt, in date order. The receipt number is written on the receipt itself (envelope 1, receipt 1 is "1-01"), so the accountant can match paper to line without guessing. The description says what the item is and what it's for. "Grocery store, $61.37" is useless three weeks later. "Eggs, potatoes, bread, coffee for Sc. 16, 17 (F1)" tells the accountant it's picture food for the diner scenes and belongs in props.
The balance column is the float minus everything spent so far. If the custodian counts the cash at any point, it should match the last balance.
The summary by account is what the accountant posts. Luis spent $211.80 against props and $31.96 against set dressing, which adds up to the $243.76 on the log.
The reconciliation checks the envelope. The $500 float less $243.76 in receipts should leave $256.24 in cash. The count at turn-in was $256.24, so it's neither over nor short, and the replenishment check is $243.76, which brings the float back to $500.
Who carries a float
On SALT FLATS four people hold petty cash, each with their own log and envelope numbers. The prop master has $500 for props and picture food. The location manager has $500 for parking, small site fees, and the cleaning supplies that go into returning a location in the shape it was found. The production coordinator has $300 for office supplies and last-minute craft service runs. The set costumer has $200 for dry cleaning and repairs. That's $1,500 in cash out at once, which the accountant tracks on a single advance ledger so nobody gets a second float before the first is reconciled.
Keeping the log during prep and the shoot
- Sign for the float when it's issued and write the amount and date in the float block.
- Get a receipt for every purchase, write the receipt number on it right away, and put it in the envelope.
- Enter the line the same day with the date, vendor, description, account code, and amount. Include the prop number or scene when there is one.
- Update the balance after every line.
- If a receipt is lost, fill out a missing receipt form that day and attach it. The Day 4 grocery run on this log has one.
- Turn the envelope in before the cash runs out, usually when about half the float is spent. That keeps the department from running out on a weekend.
- Total the log, fill in the summary by account, count the cash, and sign.
- Get the UPM's approval, then hand everything to accounting, who count the cash again, check the codes, and cut the replenishment.
What holds up a replenishment
Missing account codes are the most common. If the log leaves the code column blank, the accountant has to guess, or has to track down the prop master between setups to ask.
Receipts that don't match lines come next. Two receipts from the same store on the same day get swapped unless each receipt has its number written on it.
Personal and production purchases on the same receipt make the accountant split the total by hand. Buy them separately.
Relying on a tax rule to skip receipts is another. IRS Publication 463 has an exception to receipt requirements for certain expenses under $75, but it never applies to lodging, and production accounting wants a receipt for every purchase regardless. Save the missing receipt form for receipts that were actually lost.
A float that's never counted is the last one. Count it at every hand-off, including when the prop master's assistant takes the envelope for a store run.
Where petty cash goes after turn-in
The accountant posts the summary by account into the ledger, and those amounts show up as actuals against 2802 and 2204 on the next cost report. On SALT FLATS, the prop list estimated $1,026 for props and the budget line is $1,500. Checking the envelopes against the list each week is how the prop master sees whether picture food and dupes are eating into the rest. When a department needs a larger payment to a vendor, the accountant issues a check request instead of increasing the float. The production accountant role page covers how that office handles advances, replenishments, and wrap.
Petty cash and Storiara
Storiara doesn't track petty cash or other actual spending. Its Assets module has cost fields for props, wardrobe, vehicles, and makeup items, which gives the prop master an estimate to check receipts against.