l7 Budgeting and Scipt Breakdown

L7: Budgeting and script breakdown
- To learn and understand the process of breaking down a script.

- To learn and understand what to consider when budgeting your script.
How to approach budgeting:
- The process of creating a budget for a film requires a producer who is detail oriented
and knowledgeable about the fine elements as well as the broad elements of a
production that requires money.
- On larger film sets it is the line producer or unit production manager who prepares
the film’s budget, and to do this they may use film budgeting software such as Movie
Magic.
- Before you begin thinking about numbers you need to think about:
- What kind of film you are making?
- How much money you have?
- How much money you can raise?
- How long you are planning to film for?
A comprehensive look into what will affect your films budget:
The shooting schedule:
- In order to estimate your films budget, you need to decide how many days you aim
to be in production.
- Studio films get by on shooting only one page of script a day.
- Independent films average about five pages.
- Low-budget DIY films can plan to shoot as many as ten.
- The more days of filming the more your film will cost.
Above the line crew:
- Screenwriter – screenwriters get 2% of the film’s production budget, their payment

will need to be negotiated before you start work on the film. Depending on the
project, story rights may also need to be obtained.
- Producer – they can receive up to 5% of the production budget. In short, the more
experienced the producer, the more they will charge.
- Director – you will need to decide how many prep days you will be paying them for
and what their rate will be during production and post-production.
Below the line crew:
- The size of your budget will determine how big a “below the line” crew you can
afford to have.
- The larger your crew, the slower the shooting days.
- Film crew members might have their own daily working rates and guidelines can be
found on union websites.
- You also will need to consider what you will pay if you shoot overtime.
- A typical film production day is 12 hours long, for overtime you will need to pay
additional wages.
Pre-production costs:
- Production department costs – such as hiring out an office, internet, general paper
and printer costs, you will also need to ideally print out script copies and call sheets.
- Reconnaissance and prep – likely several key crew members you will be attending
recon/tech scout meetings. You will also need to consider paying for any prep days
for key crew members.
- Rehearsals – The director will need several rehearsal days with the actors. The more
rehearsal time your actors and director have, the better the performances and the
left takes they will most likely do on set.
- Production design – depending on your shoot type you may need to book extra time
during pre-production for the visuals in your film to be sourced and gathered.
Production costs:
Equipment/insurance – film equipment is expensive as such make sure you get the proper
insurance needed to cover you if anything breaks.
You might be renting, buying or hiring crew with their own equipment. You will need to find
camera, lighting and grip equipment. You will also need to make sure you have high-quality
sound equipment.
Locations – You will need permission to film on certain locations and areas. Low budget
films get away with it more, especially if you have a small crew. Seek in advance what
permission you need for filming in each location.
Production design – Set design is often overlooked on indies but can make all the difference
on screen. Put money aside and know how much money you are dedicating to set design.
Costume – Every actor appearing in your film will need costumes bought or made for them.
The cost of costume will once again depend on the genre of the film. For lead actors, several
identical copies of the same costume may need to be bought. On low-budget films, you can
ask actors to bring their own clothes, but it would be ideal to have copies for lead roles.
Hair and make-up – Depending on your genre you might have a large budget towards make-
up. You will need to reimburse make-up artists for the cost of any specialist make-up (such
as fake blood). Even on low-budget contemporary film, you will need a make-up artist for
applying basic cover-up and for keeping the actor’s continuity.
Catering – How many people are you feeding, how many days are you filming for, what is
the budget for each day? On low budgets, this can be done cheaply by having friends help
out. On larger sets hire a professional catering service.
Transport and accommodation – You will need to pay for any transport costs of cast and
crew. This includes fuel if crew members make long trips back and forth during production.
On larger film sets all expenses will be covered, on low budgets, you will need to discuss fuel
expenses with crew before production. Accommodation might need to be paid for several
cast and crew. For low budgets hire locally to avoid these additional expenses.
Post-production costs:
Editor – Your editors wage will likely be the largest cost during post-production. The editor
might work independently or as part of a company. Editors are paid union rates, they may
also have own desired daily working rates. The editing process will likely take several
months even for a low budget – you will have to discuss the turnover with your editor to
have a more clear idea of how long this process will take.
Assistants – Depending on the scale of your production assistant editors and other post-
production personal such as visual effects editors and colourists may be needed.
Hard drives/office – You will likely need to purchase several hard drives for your film. You
may also need to hire out an office space for your post-production team.
Music composer/music rights/sound design – Even if your film is low budget you will need
to have permission for all music used. Music composers can be hired as well as sound
designers.
Distribution costs:
Film festivals have fees to enter, you might also wish to have key crew and cast attend film
premieres.
For larger budgets hire a PR team, major festivals recommended that even smaller
productions hire a sales agent. Then there is self-distribution, you may wish to organize your
own cinema screenings or DVD sales.

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L7: Budgeting and script breakdown

- To learn and understand the process of breaking down a script.

How to approach budgeting:

A comprehensive look into what will affect your films budget:

The shooting schedule:

Above the line crew:

- Screenwriter – screenwriters get 2% of the film’s production budget, their payment

Below the line crew:

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