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Student Outlook Editor & Publisher Exploring the Career of Steven N. Polydoris Production Entertainment Production Debbie Maier Graphic Design Michael Thomas Accounting Editorial Assistant Kari Polydoris Contact Us Advertising [email protected] Editorial Alicia Washington [email protected] CPA Subscriptions [email protected] Editorial Advisors Douglas K. Barney Chairman - Editorial Board & Peer Review Process - Indiana University SE Barry C. Broden Barney School of Business, University of Hartford Mike Bitter Stetson University Tom Buttross Penn State Harrisburg Lynn Clements Florida Southern College D. Larry Crumbley Louisiana State University Tonya Flesher University of Mississippi ost Americans devote a then wonder what it is like to be a pro- Frank M. Messina great amount of time to en- duction accountant. I reached out to the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) tertainment. There always production accountant on one of my fa- Kent Swift Mseems to be a new “must see” vorite television shows to provide insight University of Montana series on Netflix about which someone is into the field of entertainment produc- Dan Swenson raving. Each season, we wait to see the tion accounting. Arizona State University new episodes in the primetime lineups Vicki Rocco (accountingchick.com) Dan Tschopp on our favorite networks. Every sum- has been an accountant in the entertain- St. Leo University mer, we look forward to the new action ment industry since the late 1980s. Prior Alicia Washington blockbuster films. Behind the scenes of to beginning a career in production ac- Steve Wells each movie, online series, and television counting, she worked at a business man- Western Kentucky University show is a team of accountants who play agement firm where she handled the fi- vital roles in the projects from start to nances of actors, producers, writers, and www.NewAccountantUSA.com finish. These accountants are known as musicians. Rocco has been involved with Issue #774 production accountants. I often watch the financials for several productions Copyright © 2017 by Real Estate News Corp. the credits at the end of a show or movie Continued on Page 21 All rights reserved. 3525 W. Peterson Ave. Chicago, Illinois 60659 4 NEW ACCOUNTANT Phone (773) 866-9900 • Fax (773) 866-9881 Student Outlook Exploring the Career of Entertainment Production Accounting Continued from Page 4 including: Arrested Development, Britney Spears Live: The an accounting clerk, you may file or organize invoices. A back- Femme Fatale Tour, the cult-classic Heathers, and Buffalo Bill. ground in accounts payable and payroll are helpful for the pay- Rocco has been the production accountant on ABC’s Mod- roll and assistant accountant roles. Fast typing is also important ern Family since the beginning of its 5th season in 2013. She as there is a lot of data entry associated with invoice payment, graciously allowed me to garner input from her during a quiet 1099s for hundreds of contractors, and payroll. Payroll is typi- moment on the set while filming the 9th season of Modern cally run through software provided by a payroll company, but Family. gaining knowledge of union labor laws is a must. Recalling the script is necessary when paying invoices. Payments are need- Roles & Responsibilities ed for venues, catering, vendors, animal trainers, actors, and Possible accounting team members are accounting clerk, other various crew, cast, and specialists. Most payments are by payroll accountant, 1st assistant accountant, 2nd assistant check. The accounting team is responsible for paying per di- accountant, and production accountant. Basic accounting ems, or daily allowances, to members of the crew. Per diems for knowledge is required for all roles. The accountants use soft- filming one episode of a show can be in the neighborhood of ware specifically designed for the film industry. The important $100,000. Rocco prefers to pay the daily allowances in cash as characteristics in production accounting are being personable, a convenience to the payees, so going through the airport with reliable, accurate, and organized. Having a good memory is large amounts of cash in her luggage is normal for her. Cash another valuable trait to possess as you may encounter new handling and cash management skills are necessary for a career people very often and there is a new script for each episode. As in production accounting. C M Y CM MY CY CMY K NewAccountantUSA.com 21 Student Outlook Budget Development adjusted accordingly for actor cameos, accountants have the opportunity to The entire accounting team is re- the cast in the actual episode, special film on location in different countries. sponsible for developing and enforcing items, and filming locations. For ex- Rocco’s work has taken her to Germa- adherence to the pattern budget at the ample, the script for several episodes of ny, United Kingdom, Australia, India, beginning of every project. The pattern a show called for ducks to be a part of and Japan among many other destina- budget is derived from the salaries of ac- the story line. The ducks were written tions. The hours are flexible which al- tors, the costs of cameras, and the cost into the script to age over the episodes. lows time to create unique experiences. of actually filming and posting the proj- The cost of the ducks and duck wran- When working on a freelance basis, ect. For TV, the pattern is per episode. glers were included in an amortization there can be downtime between recur- Producers, unit production managers, account and allocated over five episodes. ring projects. This time can be used to and accountants meet to settle on the At the end of the season, the goal is for handle the financials for the produc- pattern budget. For each episode, the the average episode cost to be less than tion of a pilot episode for a new series, accountant receives a copy of the script or equal to the pattern budget. servicing clients in a private practice, and reads it thoroughly looking for po- finding new projects, or just enjoying tential expenses. Departments submit Work-Life Balance the lull. their projected expenses for the episode. If desired, production accounting From there, the pattern budget will be can open a world of travel. Production Finding Opportunities Rocco provided advice on finding opportunities within the entertainment industry. She recommends contacting the film commission in your desired work area. Every state has a film com- mission and most major cities have their own websites. Areas with very active production markets include Los Angeles, New York City, and Atlanta. If you have a primary job, Rocco also recommends volunteering to help on a Saturday stating that volunteering can lead to a paying opportunity. She also adds, “Once you’re in, you’re in.” If you continue to work hard, you will receive several referrals via word-of-mouth. After filming completes on one proj- ect, you may be extended an invitation to work on another project with the producer or unit production manager. Others have found success in reaching out to accountants in the film indus- try via LinkedIn. Use your network in general. Referrals from other crew members are a method that Rocco uses to hire new accountants. Aside from freelance accounting, all major net- works and studios employ accountants. Whichever method of communication you choose, I look forward to seeing your name in the credits at the end of the film. 22 NEW ACCOUNTANT.

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