HOW TO PRODUCE A MOVIE IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE WITH NO MONEY

A thesis presented To the Honors Tutorial College Ohio University

in partial fulfillment of the requirements for graduation from the Honors Tutorial College with a Bachelor in Fine Arts in Film

by Patrick Local August 2018

Contents

Introduction - What Is a Creative Producer 1 Chapter 1 Getting Started 6 Finding the Right Project 6 Building a Timeline 8 Chapter 2 Show Me the Money 12 Where to Find Grants 12 The Anatomy of a Grant Proposal 12 Chapter 3 Casting 21 Know the Difference: Agents, Managers, and Casting Directors 21 Union or Non-Union 21 Talent Agencies 22 Social Media 29 Casting Websites and Other Methods 31 The Audition 32 Callbacks 33 Making an Offer 34 Chapter 4 SAG-AFTRA 36 Contract Overviews 36 The Basic Agreement Summarized 38 The Ultra-Low Budget Agreement Explained 47 Becoming a Signatory 52 The Exhibit G 53 Chapter 5 Locations 57 Finding the Right Location 57 The Scout 61 Location Management 63 Chapter 6 Building a Team 65 A Breakdown of Roles 65 Selecting Crew 72 Chapter 7 The Schedule 73 Breakdowns 73 The Stripboard 77 Day out of Days 81 Chapter 8 The Budget 82 An Example Budget 82 Reducing Costs 90 Chapter 9 Principal Photography 91 Preparing to Shoot 91 Set Operations 93 Putting out Fires 98 The Wrap 100

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It’s a fine line between the real producers and those who grab a producer credit because they can…. Which is a pity when you look at the real independent producers out there putting together their projects with ingenuity, patience and resourcefulness. -Mike Goodridge, “Producers Who Actually Produce”

Introduction: What is a Creative Producer?

Films exist simultaneously as works of art and products to be sold, and a successful one is precariously balanced between the two. Development and production can easily turn into a tug-of-war match between the creatives (the director, writer, cinematographer, and so forth) and the executives, and rightly so. A film needs to make money to survive and for its authors to be able to continue making work in the future, but a film whose only consideration is its selling value is kitsch and quickly forgotten. The creative producer is a bridge between these two camps. An effective creative producer fights for the director to achieve as much of their vision as possible but is also the voice of reason when a director demands too much from a production (Lee 193).

The advantage, and perhaps also the difficulty, of being a creative producer is the ability to be involved in every area of the production. This is truest for feature films with no budget to ultra-low budgets where crews are reduced, especially in the producing department. Ordinarily, a creative producer might supervise a line producer and a production manager who would fulfill many of the roles outlined in this paper, but ultra- low budget films rarely have this luxury.

A creative producer is responsible for making sure the film gets completed and that cast and crew have a safe work environment, maintaining good community relations, and seeing that legal issues and paperwork handled (Lyons 3). You will likely make the schedule and the budget, have a hand in securing funding, and oversee hiring the crew. At Local 2 the same time, you will give input on all creative aspects of the film from story to casting to the shot list. To be a creative producer is to wear many hats and to be expected to wear them well.

There are many guides on how to produce films, but I have not found one yet that discusses what it takes to be a producer. The process of producing an ultra-low budget feature from start to finish is absolutely grueling. It consumes all of your free time. The pay is nonexistent until you finish, when and if you manage to sell the film. If you are not the right person for the job, you will not make it to the finish line. So what does it take to be a producer?

Good Communication

The art of persuasion is crucial to the independent producer. On big budget movies, producers have money, which is all the persuasion that most people need, but if you are producing an ultra-low budget film, you are going to be asking for favors- for people to work at a lower rate than usual or for free, for discounts on rentals, to borrow locations and big set items, and so forth. At any level, a producer has to be able to negotiate, but this is especially important when you have very little to with which to negotiate. A producer needs to be able to speak publicly as well because there will be times when you need to hold production meetings and pitch to investors.

Good communication, and subsequently your ability to persuade, means being able to read nonverbal cues and project your own nonverbal cues that are in line with the idea you are trying to present. You have to be able to listen in such a way that the other party feels heard. Producing can easily turn into a popularity contest. You are competing with other people for projects, for crew, for locations, and for actors, and sometimes the Local 3 deciding factor on whether or not someone will help is simply how much they like you.

Ask yourself, “How easily do I make friends?”

Critical Thinking

A creative producer has to be able to troubleshoot and problem solve under pressure. On a low-budget film, there is going to be very little money set aside for emergencies, so you need to be resourceful and innovative. I was producing a short film a couple years ago where we arranged to have someone bring his car to set for one of the scenes because the director had a very specific model and color in mind. We were ahead of schedule, so I called him to make sure he would be on time, and I learned that he had left town the night before. I wanted to be angry, but there was no time. I got in my car and drove around town until I found a similar car, and then I convinced the owner to trade cars for the day with me, a perfect stranger (there is your communication skills).

You have to be flexible and tolerant of change and uncertainty, so that when problems do arise, you can act quickly and decisively.

Leadership

A good producer knows how to manage other people. You need to be able to collaborate with writers, directors, cinematographers and editors, but you will also have to delegate tasks the other members of your production. A leader does not bully people into doing for them, but knows how to build relationships and motivate people to want to do for them. Some people might consider themselves a good leader because they get people to give them what they want, but the true test is how people feel after working with you. Are people left feeling satisfied and happy that they have helped you? If not, Local 4 you need to reevaluate your methods. If you burn people out, you will soon find yourself empty-handed on your next project.

Conflict management is essential on a feature length film. When working on shorts, people are more forgiving and will usually hold their grievances until after the film is shot. With a feature, you will be working long hours for somewhere between ten and forty days depending on the scale of your film and the speed of your crew. People get tired and hungry and spend too much time with one another, making crew more susceptible to conflicts and hurt feelings. Superficial arguments fester quickly and destroy morale. An effective producer can see these tensions building and defuse them before they disrupt the production. Mediation skills are a must. Directors and crew can sometimes become too distracted by the production and do and say things that erode their relationships with actors and location owners. A producer must be able to quickly repair these relationships to avoid losing critical resources during the shoot.

Professionalism

A producer is not a creative and will not be afforded any of the forgiveness for eccentricities that artists can be. You are the liaison between your production and the community. A successful producer has emotional intelligence and self-awareness that allows him to build relationships and network with other professionals. A producer should have intercultural competence and can navigate politics present in the crew, in the industry, and in the community. You should know how to accept criticism and engage with difficult personalities without getting upset and presenting yourself in an embarrassing light. You have to be a team-player that shares accolades and accepts Local 5 responsibility when necessary. A producer needs to be able to manage time effectively, stay organized and mindful of details, and always be punctual.

Capital

To be a producer, you need capital. If you are independently wealthy, congratulations! Fortunately for the rest of us, money is not the only type of capital in this industry. Ideas are capital, relationships are capital, and time and energy are capital.

If you do not have money, make sure you have the others.

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Chapter 1 Getting Started

So you have what it takes to be a producer. Now what? You need a producible script. A good creative producer is always looking for opportunities. Sometimes you will find a project, and sometimes a project finds you.

Finding the Right Project

At this level, your community is the best place to begin the search for projects. If you are in film school, make it known to your cohort that you are interested in producing someone else’s script. This will be very appealing to many, especially in a program where there are more directors than producers. The same is true for your local film community. Ask people what they are working on, and offer to read scripts and give notes. When you go to film festivals, do not neglect the screenwriting events. A lot of festivals will have pitch contests. If you hear one you like, introduce yourself during a break. Some festivals are geared towards writers, such as the Austin Film Festival, and that is a great opportunity to find someone who has a script that needs produced (Turman

62). Get your eyes on as many scripts as possible, and you will find one to produce eventually.

The writer is almost as important as the script itself. Every penny you can save for the production makes a difference at this level, so the ideal writer is one who just wants to see their script produced well and will accept deferred payment and/or points on the backend (Battista 18). This also needs to be someone who is flexible and wants to collaborate. If nothing else, compromises will most likely need to be made due to budget and time constraints, but the writer should also be open to hearing your creative notes. If Local 7 the writer expects to also be the director, whether or not you enjoy working with them becomes even more crucial.

The script needs to be something relatively original. You should look for a script where you know who the audience is. Will it play well in festivals, and if so, what kind?

Is it a horror movies? Is it an LGBT movie? With an original story and a potential audience, the rest can be worked out in the following drafts, but a strong protagonist and good world building significantly reduce the workload during development (Turman 68).

Whether or not the narrative is working structurally and has all of the elements necessary in place is important because fixing these problems can require a complete overhaul of the script.

So you have found a good script and a good writer. Now that you know you want to produce it, the question is, can you? The first issue is world building. A period piece or anything that requires extensive set design and wardrobe outside of the actual world where you will be shooting is usually cost prohibitive. A small cast and accessible locations are essential for a low budget film (Goodell 96). Scripts with stunts are not only a liability, but are often unaffordable because of the increased cost of production insurance as well as the need to hire stunt doubles who must always be professionals who are paid a normal day rate. Scripts with children should be avoided as well at this level as they are required to work fewer hours per day, often require more takes, and must be provided a tutor on set if you are shooting during the school day. Animals also add a level of difficulty at this stage when you consider the need to feed and stable them as well as pay their handlers.

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Building a Timeline

The difference between a goal and a dream is a plan and a deadline. Building a timeline for your film is the first step in taking this production out of your head and into the real world. This schedule is assuming the script is very close to being ready for production. The less developed the script is, the more time you will need to add on the front end.

Development

Month 1: Screenplay

1. Make an agreement with the writer, whether an option or ownership in the LLC

2. Attach a director (if not the writer)

3. Make script changes related to producibility

4. Arrange a table reading

Month 2: Business

1. Open an LLC

2. Research applicable grants and potential investors and create a timeline for

submission and pitches

3. Create a package of information that can be used to apply for grants and show to

potential investors or partners

4. Create a preliminary budget and schedule

Month 3: Funding

1. Apply for funding

2. Set up meetings with potential investors

3. Organize fundraisers Local 9

Pre-production

Month 1

1. Create a new budget and schedule

2. Open a bank account for the LLC

3. Interview and hire key crew members

4. Post casting calls for the ten most significant roles

5. Hold auditions and make offers

6. Begin scouting possible locations

7. Create social media pages

Month 2

1. Apply to be a SAG Signatory

2. Cast remaining speaking roles

3. Secure locations

4. Ensure the director and cinematographer have begun the shot list

5. Hold a table reading with the actors

6. Hire remaining crew

Month 3

1. Cast extras and background

2. Book travel and lodging

3. Hold tech scouts with the DP, sound recordist, and director

4. Hold rehearsals

5. Have the shot lists completed

6. Revise the budget and schedule Local 10

7. Acquire all wardrobe, props, set decorations, and vehicles

8. Arrange gear and transportation rentals

9. Find a caterer for some or all of the shoot

The Week Before:

1. Sign all cast and crew deal memos

2. Get emergency contact information, allergies, and food restrictions from everyone

who will be on set

3. Sign location releases

4. Check in with everyone involved and make sure they are clear about their dates

5. Restock your set box

6. Make sure meals and crafty are handled for the shoot

7. Make sure rentals are picked up

8. Hold a production meeting with the entire crew

The Production:

1. Be on set at all times to put out fires

2. Keep accurate production and cost reports

3. File weekly exhibit G’s with SAG

The Wrap:

1. Make sure all rentals and borrowed items are returned immediately

2. Pay any outstanding bills or invoices

3. Send SAG and your payroll company the rest of the required paperwork

4. Make sure you have scanned any and all paper documents and receipts

5. Make a credits and special thanks list Local 11

Post-production is the most fluid stage of production as far as creating a timeline goes. Work with the director to create a wish list of festival premieres and work backwards from their submission dates (Lyons 13). You will need time for the rough assembly, color correction, and sound mixing. How long those stages will take depends on whether your team is able to work part-time or fulltime on the film.

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Chapter 2 Show me the Money

Where to Find Grants

If you are in film school, check with your college or university to see what kind of funding they offer for research and creative projects. Ohio University offers the Graduate

Student Senate Award, the Student Enhancement Awards, The Honors Tutorial College

Dean’s Fund, The Provost’s Undergraduate Research Fund, and the Ann Hollis and Perry

Billman Award, which can all be applied towards film projects. Most grants have relatively low caps on the amount that can be awarded to one person, so consider working with other students from your university to maximize potential grant winnings.

Grants outside of universities are few unless you are making a short or a documentary because of the for-profit nature of feature narratives. No Film School, and several other sites, keep an up to date list of grants available for feature narratives. Screen writing and producing fellowships often held by film festivals can be another source of funding as well as give you access to industry professionals who can help prepare your script for production (Dickerson, and Gould 54).

The Anatomy of a Grant Proposal

Grant proposal structures will vary based on the amount of funding being requested and the organization awarding it. In general, a grant proposal will require an abstract, a project narrative, the plan for the presentation of results, a mentor’s endorsement, your biographical information, and the budget. There may also be an opportunity to submit a glossary, bibliography, and appendices.

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The Abstract

The length of the abstract will be dictated by the requirements of each individual grant proposal, but it is usually relative to the length of the entire proposal. A four page proposal might require an abstract which is a paragraph long, whereas a 10 page proposal may require a one page abstract, and so on. In general, an abstract should restate the important portions of the grant proposal without completely rewriting it word for word.

You should include a brief description of your film and how much funding you are requesting and what the funding will be used for should you win it. Generally, writing the abstract last will result in a more concise and clear abstract. Figure 1 shows the abstract I wrote for the Student Enhancement Awards grant application.

Abstract

I am requesting funding from the Student Enhancement Awards in the amount of $6,000 to support my thesis project, a feature length narrative film. The successful completion of this project will allow me to meet the final requirement of the production track in the Ohio University Film Division and is necessary for my graduation. This project will be completed in collaboration with MFA film student Brian MacNeel.

Jack’s is a gripping film noir about a gay man living in a Marisol, small, rural town where he owns a gay bar. After his boyfriend Toothpaste goes missing, Jack must go on journey through the dark underbelly of Marisol to confront Toothpaste’s capture, a mysterious and dangerous man named White Tiger, but in the process, Jack is forced to face difficult truths about himself which threaten his identity.

Brian and I will be collaborating on this film for our respective thesis projects, mine as the producer, and his as the writer and director. With SEA funds combined with our personal contributions, we will be able to fund this project entirely. I am seeking $6,000 to cover the costs of feeding a crew of 20 people for the duration of our shoot, which will begin in May 2018 and last for 18 days.

Fig. 1

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The Project Narrative

The project narrative is arguably the most interesting part of your proposal. Here is an advantage for film projects because you have the opportunity to tell a story. This is the time to sell your film, so be visual and engaging. The project narrative should include a short synopsis of your film. You also need to communicate the films significance and cultural context, and you should dedicate a portion of the project narrative to describing your methods, in other words, how will you produce the film. If you are applying for other crew members, such as the director or cinematographer, it would be appropriate to use references and inspiration for their creative styles. Make sure you are clear about your role in the context of the film as a producer. It would also be appropriate to include a truncated timeline. Figure 2 shows how I formatted my timeline for a grant proposal.

Timeline

This project began in July of 2016 when I submitted a treatment to my professor for approval. Since then, I have completed five drafts and am nearly ready to finalize my script. I have already submitted a casting call to talent agencies, and September 26 is the deadline for actors to reach out to me, at which time, I will give them a week to send an audition video. Casting offers will be made by October 3 at which time I will be able to finalize my shooting dates for the end of November. By November 7, my locations will be set, and I will have a working

shot list and storyboard. By February 15, I will have a solid, working cut of my film. Current presentations that I expect are April 6 at the Student Expo and November 11 at the Athena in a screening of the Second Year MFA films, but I will also be submitting to film festivals.

Fig. 2

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Presentation of Results

Depending on the proposal requirements, this may or may not be included in the project narrative. It is important to show how the work will be shared with the public if it receives funding. For this, include a modest but ambitious plan for festival submissions as well as any pre-planned screenings set by your film program or organization.

The Mentor’s Endorsement

Most grant proposals will require some kind of letter or reference. A good letter of recommendation should include a few kind words about you and emphasize your ability to see quality projects to completion as well as mention any successful relevant work you have done in the field. The letter should also endorse the film and speak of its significance and impact as well as its feasibility. Lastly, if a mentorship relationship is required, the letter should outline how the mentor expects to support you throughout your production.

Biographical Information

In some instances, biographical information may include an artist statement or an opportunity to talk about how your life experiences qualify you to produce this film. In most scenarios, the biographical information should simply be your curriculum vitea as well as the CV’s of any key players in your film, such as the director, writer, or cinematographer. Your CV for a grant proposal should include relevant coursework or training as well as your filmography. Work experience or volunteer experience that reflects your ability to complete this film or demonstrates a desire to give back to the community can also be added. Past grants should also be included in your CV.

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Budget

The budget should be simple and easy to read, as opposed to the usual format for film budgets. Ask for reasonable amounts and have a collection of sources for the prices, even if you do not include them. For instance, look up actual airfare prices and hotel rentals for your area. The mileage reimbursement rate should be the standard one set up by the Internal Revenue Service. Often there is a justification section required where you can outline where you found your prices and why you need to purchase those items.

If you have received other funding or are applying for other funding, include that information in your budget. It is always wise to include a small amount covered by your own personal contributions to show that you are also financially invested in this film. In- kind contributions can be shown, especially for large-scale projects where the panel may wonder how you can afford to complete the project with the amount awarded. Be sure to be clear about what you are requesting and what is coming from other sources. Figure 3 is a budget from my Student Enhancement Awards application.

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Fig. 3

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Fig. 3

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Fig. 3

Other Materials

On a case by case basis, you may include a glossary if you are using terms a lay person would be unfamiliar with as well as a bibliography. I find that in most cases, bibliographies make sense for directors or cinematographers who are referencing other works to describe their aesthetic. An appendix is incredibly useful as a way to include most information without increasing the page count. Letters of support from department heads in your film, such as the director, writer, and cinematographer can be added in this Local 20 section. In the past, I have also commissioned a short storyboard from an artist to help sell the look of the film (figure 4).

Fig. 4 Local 21

Chapter 3 Casting

Human labor is arguably the most difficult resource to find in a rural area, but it can be done. Time and money are indirectly related in this instance. Anyone can be hired and flown out to a rural location, but without money, you will have send a wide call and spend a significant amount of time finding the right actor. Your casting options are talent agencies, social media, casting websites, and non-actors.

Know the Difference: Agents, Managers, and Casting Directors

A casting director is someone who works for you. They will know the local talent and agencies and help you set up auditions with people who would be a good fit for your roles (Lee 149). They do not have actors that they manage, they simply know actors and have relationships with managers and agents. An agent works for a state licensed agency and often has a large roster of actors for whom they set up auditions and negotiate contracts (Lee 149). When an agency charges a fee for actors upfront rather than a percentage of pay, this is a red flag that the agency may not be legitimate. Mangers may or may not work with an agency and often have a smaller roster of actors. Technically they are supposed to offer guidance and not be involved in setting up auditions or contracts, but in the real world, a manager might be indirectly involved in the contract negotiation and will work for their actor to ensure that you uphold your obligations laid out in the contract. Managers can also work as producers on producer's on projects where they have talent attached unlike talent agents (Lee 149).

Union or Non-Union

When you open up your auditions for actors, you need to be prepared to decide who you will accept submissions from, Screen Actor’s Guild (SAG) actors, non-union Local 22 actors, or both. If you have the funding to accept SAG actors, it is worth seeing submissions from both. Under the Ultra-Low contract, you can accept both SAG and non-union actors for your film, but you need to meet union requirements for the professional non-union actors, paying them $125 per day plus fringes and putting them through a payroll house (Clevé 69). If you cannot afford this, then focus on finding non- union actors for your film. This does not have to be a bad thing though. Just because an actor is SAG, does not necessarily mean they are better, and there are a variety of reasons why an experienced actor would avoid joining the union.

Talent Agencies

Talent agencies are the first place to submit your casting call. Start by searching for all of the reputable agencies in a two hour radius or so. Actors from these agencies can attend your in-person auditions. If you are prepared to pay for travel for select roles, you can submit your call to agencies in other cities and allow those actors to submit a video audition. Some agents are happy to forward your casting call onto their talent in case anyone is interested, but some will respond less than favorably to low paying or unpaid roles. Do not take this personally, simply move down the list to the next agency.

A reputable agency makes a profit by collecting a percentage of their actor’s income from films and does not collect fees from their actors up front. So why would an agency even send out an unpaid call? New actors or actors who are looking to break into a different type of role will take unpaid work to bolster their portfolio which can lead to paid roles. It also keeps actors happy by presenting them with options for auditions. For this to work, the producer must present himself as highly competent, professional and worth doing unpaid work for. So how does a professional approach a talent agency? Local 23

Whenever possible, address your email to a specific person. Usually agent contacts can be found on a talent agency’s website, but if this is not the case, an introductory phone call can be the best way to get an email address for an individual agent. Sending calls to generic emails, such as [email protected], is not ideal and will provide a lower response rate. In the email body, begin by introducing yourself and your production company or the school you are making the film through. You should only include the log line for your film. This is not the time to get a detailed description of your film because that will be included in the attached materials and would only distract from the other information in your email body.

Despite the fact that this information will be included in the attached materials, you should include audition dates and location, shooting dates and location, whether or not you are accepting SAG or nonunion actors, the SAG contract you will be operating under, and whether or not you will accept video submissions in your email body.

If you are able to provide compensation, travel, and lodging, say so in the first email. If you have not set a day rate yet or want to negotiate on an individual basis, simply leave that information out of the email. Always end the email by thanking the talent agent for their time, and include a signature with at least your phone number in case they need to reach you. It is important to answer any follow up emails in less than 24 hours, especially in cases where the roles are unpaid or the day rate is below SAG minimum. If you have a finished film that you reflects the highest quality of your work, feel free to include a link at the end of your email. It is important to be realistic about the quality of your work though. Linking a video that reflects poor craftsmanship will hurt your chances of receiving a response from the talent agent. Local 24

Hello Kathy,

I am the Ohio University film student that you spoke with on the phone earlier today. I am currently casting my thesis project, a feature film called Jack's, and I would love to consider talent from Hayman Talent.

Jack's is about a blue-collar gay bar owner who falls in love with Toothpaste, an old friend turned performer, and is swept up into the dark underbelly of Marisol, Ohio.

Right now we are accepting submissions for three principals,- Jack, Toothpaste, and Lucky. Sides, a synopsis, and character breakdowns are attached. Auditions will be held on November 12, 2017 in Athens, Ohio. I realize Louisville is a long drive for an audition, so we are happy to accept video submissions until November 18th for actors unable to travel. We are accepting both SAG and non- union performers. If we cast a SAG actor, we will be operating under the ULB agreement.

The film goes into production in May 2018. I realize that it may be a bit unusual to cast this far in advance, but due to our rural location and the scale of the project, I would like to begin casting early to ensure that we have enough time to find the right actor for each part.

I have had some very good luck in the past year casting with your office in Cincinnati, so we would like to cast a wider net for this production and see auditions from your Louisville office.

Thank you so much for any assistance you can give me! I hope to be able to work with some of your talent in the very near future!

Best, Patrick

Patrick Local Producer - Ugly Lizard Productions 740.970.0945

Fig. 5. An example casting email.

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You should list your attachments in the body of the email. You need to send a copy of the sides for each character with the file clearly labeled. Sides are a short scene that an actor will read from for the audition. You will also need to attach a breakdown of characters

(Figure 6) that includes a synopsis of your film and some information about the producer, director, and writer.

Title: Jack’s Production Company: Ugly Lizard Productions Director: Brian MacNeel Shoot Date: May 2018 Submission Deadline (Headshots/CV) November 9, 2017

Video Submission Send to [email protected] Video Submissions Deadline November 12, 2017 Audition Date November 12, 2017 Call Back (Skype Interviews) November 19, 2017 Casting Contact Patrick Local

Format: Feature Film Union Status: Non-Union Also accepting SAG-AFTRA for consideration

Shooting Location: Athens, OHIO

When Jack, a blue-collar gay bar owner, falls in love with Toothpaste, an old friend turned performer, he is swept up by the dark underbelly he never knew existed in the small town of Marisol, Ohio.

Synopsis

Jack Toby is a legend in the fictional town of Marisol, Ohio. He owns the most popular gay whiskey -bar in town, Jack’s Bar, and spends every night drinking with his loyal patrons and friends. He is so popular that even straight men drink at his bar, claiming they love the “masculine atmosphere.” If the bar made any real money, Jack would be living his version of the American dream, but of course, like the rest of the residents in Marisol, Jack struggles to make ends meet.

After a few nights together, Jack falls in love with Toothpaste and one night works up the courage to tell him so. Toothpaste Fig.reacts 6 less than favorably, and the next morning Jack is surprised to find him missing.

Jack eventually hears rumors of Toothpaste’s running away with a group of dancers who are led by the mysterious and supposedly abusive club-owner, White Tiger. Jack believes that White Tiger has lulled Toothpaste with drugs and promises of fame. Saving Toothpaste would mean finding White Tiger, but White Tiger’s parties are illegal, private, and controlled by a Local 26

Things change, however, when Jack gets a visit from an old friend and lover, Howard, who now goes by his stage name Toothpaste. Toothpaste -who gets his nickname from his bleached hair and eyebrows – has returned to Marisol after years of absence. His arrival is somewhat mysterious, and he claims that he’s here for a short period of time for some performances. After a few nights together, Jack falls in love with Toothpaste and one night works up the courage to tell him so. Toothpaste reacts less than favorably, and the next morning Jack is surprised to find him missing.

Jack eventually hears rumors of Toothpaste’s running away with a group of dancers who are led by the mysterious and supposedly abusive club-owner, White Tiger. Jack believes that White Tiger has lulled Toothpaste with drugs and promises of fame. Saving Toothpaste would mean finding White Tiger, but White Tiger’s parties are illegal, private, and controlled by a mob-like security. To get to Toothpaste, Jack must go on a long, dark journey, revealing the hedonistic underbelly of Marisol, Ohio along the way and learning things about himself he never dreamed he would.

Jack’s is a quirky and at times surreal film that could be described as a Big Lebowski meets David Lynch. This would only begin to describe the project since the tone and world are unlike anything we’ve ever seen in a film. The seriousness of certain moments is offset by comedic situations, oddball characters, and the eccentric nature of Marisol in general. In this slightly unrealistic world, we ask viewers to consider big topics like community, identity, and what it means to be a “good” person.

The Director Brian MacNeel is a thesis MFA candidate at Ohio University. He has been making short films since 2013, and writing for as long as he can remember. His goal is to film people that are normally underrepresented in mainstream cinema and create an authentic portrayal of their lives for the viewer. For this reason, he works closely with actors, using thorough rehearsals and character research as tools for success. In doing this, he gives viewers a unique glimpse into character’s lives.

The Producer Patrick Local is a senior BFA film student in the Honors Fig.Tutorial 6 College at Ohio University. Local began pursuing filmmaking because of the impact that a lack of media representation had on his life as a transgender man. His goal is to produce films that normalize queer experiences. Local has produced several shorts as well as the feature film Departure, which is currently in post-production.

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ROLE DESCRIPTION

Toothpaste Toothpaste has seen more of the world (Principal) than most other people in Marisol, and it shows. He has come to the Male conclusion that in this world, you Late 30’s either take or get taken. However, Open to any race seeing Jack again has ignited some Slender nostalgia and a desire to solve some Background is musical of his issues from the past. theatre is preferred Toothpaste is sweet, flamboyant, and not afraid to get a little freaky; however, he is worldly, street smart, and knows how to turn a buck. The

person playing Toothpaste should be prepared to be someone who’s a little in-your-face, but finds joy in simple things like getting ice cream with Jack or playing an innocent prank on a bar patron. We should also believe that this person could have a minor career in singing and dancing, hence the preference for a background in musical theater.

Lucky Lucky is Jack’s bartender and (Principal) confidant, and he is suave. His wisdom is a silent, almost shy one, and for Male that reason Jack comes to him in his Late 30’s darkest moments. In general Open to any race interactions, Lucky comes off as shy, so when he speaks we know it’s meaningful. Nothing ever seems to affect him, since he sees even- temperedness as a sign of being a gentleman. The actor playing Lucky should be able to play someone well- groomed and well-mannered, but with a touch of naivete and cuteness that one finds only in a small town.

Fig. 6 Local 28

The breakdown begins with the contact information for casting as well as any relevant production information. This information is followed by a log line and a short synopsis. Biographies should be included for any key personnel including the director, writer, producer, and cinematographer if you have already hired someone.

Arguably the most important piece of the breakdown is the character description. This should be an easy to read table that describes the role as well as any requirements for actors. It is a good idea to have a separate email account set up for casting to avoid losing emails.

Sides are a short excerpt from the script that the actors will read for their auditions. Each character should have at least one set of sides attached to the email to the talent agent. Choosing sides can be daunting. How can one or two pages encompass everything you need from an actor? If the character displays a ride range of emotions in your film, consider sending two sets of sides displaying both sides of the character (Ryan, and Marsh 144). Remember that the actors are not reading the entire script, so the sides need to show your best work to grab the attention of more experienced actors. Make sure to name your sides appropriately so it is clear who should be reading what. Often directors will write sides specifically for an audition rather than pulling something from the script. This is especially important for characters with less dialogue who may only have a few lines on any given page. It also allows you to condense the emotional beats of the script into one audition, rather than having the actor do two or three different readings.

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Social Media

Social media is an amazing tool for connecting with actors in your area who either may not be affiliated with a talent agency or who simply missed the call. In general, you will reach a lot of these actors who are less experienced than the actors from the talent agencies, but plenty of experienced actors frequent these forums as well. One thing these actors will have is a hunger for work because in this scenario, they are actively pursuing your call, rather than seeing it on their agent’s board. As of writing, the social media of choice for casting calls is Facebook because it allows for long text posts. Images can be posted to Twitter or Instagram, but I am not aware of any dedicated pages for posting calls on those sites. Facebook also tends to have a larger and older user base than Twitter and Instagram. Every region will have their own series of Facebook pages.

List of Facebook Pages for Southern Ohio Area:

• Networking and Professional Contacts (Admin Tyler Mason) • Ohio Film • Ohio University Film Casting Calls • Western PA & Eastern Ohio Film Industry • Little Hollywood Ohio • Ohio Motion Picture Association (OMPA)

Often these Facebook pages require approval to join as well as approval for each post, so plan accordingly for your casting calls. Some producers choose to post images for their casting calls, but this is most successful for individuals with a background in design. Many of these casting calls do not work. I recommend posting a clean and easy to read text post. Another benefit of the text post is that Facebook pages are searchable and some actors will use this feature to filter for casting calls. It is difficult to keep up with comments on the Facebook posts when you have so many of them, and missing Local 30 comments is easy because of the way the notifications stack, so in your post, request that interested actors email you or send you a private message.

Fig, 7. An example of a Facebook casting call. Local 31

Casting Websites and Other Methods

There are a handful of websites where you can post your casting call, but websites like Backstage allow you browse headshots and video submissions of actors filtered by location. Occasionally an actor will list their contact information or their agent’s name, and you can approach them directly to offer an audition. For a monthly fee, you can become a member of Backstage and message actors directly through their message portal.

This can extremely helpful if you are struggling to cast your film locally. I have found that the response rate is fairly high as actors are usually flattered that you reached out to them directly. When an actor responds on backstage, move the conversation to email to allow you to respond more quickly and avoid missing messages.

You can also post your call on IMDB, Actor’s Access, and other sites. In the past some people have used Craigslist, but outside of large cities with a lot of film projects, you are unlikely to get a significant response from this. Sending your call to local theatre groups can be a great way to widen your casting net as well as garner community support. You can be creative with your casting process by posting flyers, and I have even heard of people using dating apps such as Tinder to advertise for background characters.

If you are open to non-actors, go to places where your character would be. If you need children, reach out to local schools and set up an audition through their theatre department. If your character is a middle-aged man who hangs out at the bar a lot, spend some time at the local pubs and make friends. I once cast a role in a film by going down to the local skate park with the director and making friends with one of the parents who brought his kids to skate. Even if you are not successful in casting this way, at least you are getting the community familiar with your project. Local 32

The Audition

Some people like to hold open auditions where they set aside a block of time for actors to show up and audition, but I have found more success with scheduling actors for specific times. I usually give each audition about 20 minutes so that the director has time to chat with each actor and give notes on their performances. This is especially helpful when the talent interested in your film has less experience. If I have a response to my casting call that is too great to schedule in a way that allows enough time for each actor, I schedule two actors at once with complementary roles (Lyons 89). This is also great for inexperienced actors who might not perform well with a reader.

Auditions are not just for you to see potential actors, but it is also the talent’s the first impression of your project, so professionalism is very important at this stage. It is considered very inappropriate to hold auditions at a private residence or a hotel room

(Ryan, and Marsh 144). Local universities may be able to provide you with a suitable space, and other appropriate places could be a room in a community center or YMCA, hotel conference rooms, or a private room in a local library. In larger cities, casting directors and agencies often have rooms you can rent to hold auditions. You may even be able to work out a deal with a smaller agency to hold your auditions there in exchange for allowing a block of time to audition their talent (Dickerson, and Gould 85). Suitable locations have a small sitting area for those waiting, access to bathrooms, available parking, and a private room for the audition itself.

You should post signs to direct actors to the area where you are auditioning and have a sign-in sheet to help you track who auditioned and when. If you are able to have coffee and water in the waiting area, that would be ideal but is not required. At minimum, Local 33 you and the director should be present for the auditions, but it is helpful to have someone greeting people, someone recording the audition, and an experienced reader to give lines.

Recording the audition proves extremely helpful when making callback decisions, and even cellphone video is better than nothing.

I usually start auditions by introducing everyone in the room and getting to the know the actor a bit. Small talk can actually yield quite a bit of crucial information.

Asking about what they do lets me know how hard their schedule will be to work with and whether or not they will want compensated for missing work. Asking about their film work gives me an idea about their experience level as well as whether or not I will have to compete with other productions for their time and interest. Then I allow them to read once or twice for the part. From there, the director gives notes. This is not only to try to achieve a better performance but to also see how well the actor responds to direction.

I end each audition by talking a bit about the project. This gets the actor excited about the work and gives me a chance to feel out how successful negotiations would be with this actor.

Callbacks

Callbacks are a second audition that you hold for the actors you are most interested in. Usually, I try to give them another set of sides to work with, callbacks are a great time to introduce more challenging scenes. Occasionally, someone very promising will have to miss the first audition, in which case, I go ahead and schedule them with the callbacks.

This is where you reap the benefits if you have been organized during the casting process. I make a folder in the drive that the director and I share for each person Local 34 auditioning. It contains the video of their audition, their resume, headshots, and any notes

I made about them. I also have a document listing each person who auditioned and for what role along with their contact information. Everyone is divided up into three groups: people who do not get callbacks, people who get callbacks, and people who we really like that get callbacks.

For the people we will not be calling back, I go ahead and email them to thank them for their time. With the rest, I schedule and hold callbacks the same way I did auditions, except this time, I do the callbacks as a chemistry read, meaning two actors will read complimentary roles at once. I try to pair the strongest actors for each part together to see how well they work together.

The Offer

Now you have seen all of your options, and it is time to make a decision.

Ultimately, the director will be the one working with them, and it is the director’s vision that you are trying to execute, so while I offer feedback and perspective that may sway the director, I only overtly involve myself in the process if I feel casting decisions are being made that would affect the success of the production. At this stage, you should not send any rejections until offers have been accepted by the actors we selected for roles

(Lee 156). From my conversation with the actors in auditions and callbacks, I should have some idea about what kind of offer they will accept. Depending on the actor, you may have to go through their manager, but at a low budget, you will probably be negotiating directly with the actors. Local 35

What the offer email contains depends on your situation, but you should include the dates of the shoot as well as any rehearsals, what accommodations you can provide for travel and lodging, and what they pay will be, if there is any.

Occasionally, you may choose to offer an actor a role for which they did not audition. Handle this the same way you handled the other offers, but provide enough information about the new character for them to make a decision. If they are not familiar with that character from previous audition experience with you, consider sending them a breakdown or simply including that information in the body of your email.

After all of your offers have been accepted, you are free to send rejection emails to the remainder of the actors loose. Rejection emails are best kept brief and very polite as you never know when someone you previously rejected for a role else may be right for a another project.

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Chapter 4 SAG-AFTRA

SAG-AFTRA is the largest labor union for actors in the United States. It was formed in 2012 when the Screen Actors Guild merged with the American Federation of

Television and Radio Artists, though both separate unions had been formed in the early

1930’s (SAG-AFTRA). For actors to remain in good standing with SAG-AFTRA, they are expected to only work on union projects. In order to work with a SAG-AFTRA actor, you must follow all of the requirements listed in their contracts.

Contract Overviews

All films must be shot in the United States and cleared before rehearsal or travel.

Student Film Agreement

To qualify for this contract, the production must be shot in the United States for less than $35,000 and have a total running time of 35 minutes or less. The signatory producer must also be enrolled in an accredited university to qualify. Principal performer rates for this agreement are deferred (meaning you pay later, when and if the film is distributed) for up to twelve hours a day. If any actor works more than 12 hours in a day, the production must pay overtime which is not deferred. Wardrobe, mileage and penalties are not deferred. Stunt coordinator pay is not deferred an occurs at the rate of $980 per day or $3655 per week. If the film receives distribution, the performers must agree and the producer is responsible for paying the deferred fees before distribution at a rate of

$125 per day plus a pension and health contribution equivalent to 18.5% of total gross salary. This contract only covers professional performers with no exclusivity (meaning you can hire non-union actors as well)

and waives consecutive employment except on overnight locations (SAG-AFTRA). Local 37

Short Film Agreement

To qualify for this contract, the total budget must be less than $50,000 and the film must have a total running time of 40 minutes or less and be shot in 30 days or less of principal photography. Principal performer rates for this agreement are not immediately deferred, but they are negotiable for up to 12 hours a day. After 12 hours, overtime is immediately payable. Wardrobe, mileage and penalties are not deferred. Stunt coordinator pay is not deferred and occurs at the rate of $980 per day or $3655 per week.

Distribution is included in this contract and does not need to be approved by the performer, and the producer is responsible for paying any deferred fees before distribution at a rate of $125 per day plus a pension and health contribution equivalent to

18.5% of total gross salary for principal performers and $96 per day as well as 18% P&H for background performers. The types of initial distribution covered in this contract are film festivals, free-to-consumer new media, public access television (not including PBS), and academy award consideration. This contract covers

all principal performers and 10 background performers per day with no exclusivity and waives consecutive employment except on overnight locations (SAG-AFTRA).

Ultra-Low Budget Film Agreement

To qualify for this contract, the total budget must be less than $250,000 with no limit on running time or production days. Performer rates are set at a minimum of $125 per day with a P&H contribution of 18.5% of total salary. Stunt coordinator minimum pay occurs at the rate of $980 per day or $3655 per week. Overtime occurs at time and a Local 38 half for hours worked over 8 hours and double time past twelve hours. Any hours worked over twelve requires performer’s consent. Distribution is included in this

contract and does not need to be approved by the performer, and includes an initial theatrical release. This contract covers all professional performers with no exclusivity and waives consecutive employment except on overnight locations (SAG-AFTRA).

Other Contracts

In the theatrical department alone, there are three other contracts available to productions with a higher budget- Modified Low Budget, Low Budget, and Theatrical.

Other departments have contracts which include new media projects, television, animations, commercials, educational videos, and more. All of these contracts use the basic agreement to outline the general provisions.

The Basic Agreement

The theatrical agreements have different provisions as outlined above based on a film’s budget, running time, and distribution, but all agreements abide by the provisions laid out in the basic agreement (Clevé 70). SAG-AFTRA's Basic Agreement is dense document of over 800 pages, and as such many filmmakers are not aware of the all of the regulations that they are agreeing to abide by when becoming a SAG signatory. The follow section of this chapter is a summary of the SAG-AFTRA Basic Agreement which can be accessed at sagaftra.org.

Recognition and Scope of Agreement

The producer recognizes SAG AFTRA as the exclusive collective bargaining unit for performers in the production of motion pictures in the United States and its territories.

A performer is an actor, singer, dancer, stunt performer, stunt coordinator, airplane or helicopter pilot, puppeteer, or body double. The term “performer” does not include Local 39 background actors. The term motion pictures includes any motion picture recorded by any means. This agreement covers productions in the United States as well as any production which is based in the United States and goes on location outside of the country.

Union Security

The producer must not hire any performer who is not in good standing with the union unless the performer is suspended or expelled during an active contract with the

Producer. In areas where the producer is legally allowed to hire non-union or expelled or suspended members, the producer must meet all provisions laid out in this agreement for those performers. If the producer hires a non-union performer, he must submit this information in writing during the first 15 days of that performer’s employment. This does not apply to performers below the age of four. The Union may investigate to ensure that the producer is holding up this agreement.

Strikes

The Union will not engage in any strike affecting the production of the Producer.

If after this agreement is terminate, the performers are engaged in a strike, they will still be obligated to report to the producer and finish any tasks associated with the production at the end of the strike.

Free Television Exhibition

If a theatrical production is released to television anywhere in the world, the

Producer must pay 6% of total gross receipts from the distribution of the picture on free television after 40% has been deducted to cover distribution costs and fees. P&H must be paid on the 6% at the normal rate. These rates are payable on any advances received by Local 40 the producer from the distributer. If the producer sells the rights for television exhibition, the performers are entitled to the same percentages after the producer has deducted 10% from the gross receipt to cover the expenses of the sale. The 6% is then divided between the performers based on units of salary and time worked. These provisions only apply to a motion picture that was initially theatrically released. Pictures which have not been theatrically released will fall under the Television Agreement. If the producer and the performer made an agreement regarding a percentage of profits, those may be credited against that performer’s residuals. Deferred payments may not be credited against the residuals.

Supplemental Markets Exhibition

Supplemental markets include for pay television (such as cable or satellite, where the consumer pays to receive the channel or the picture) as well as the rental or selling of

DVD’s and other means of distribution. Residuals for pay television are to be paid out at

3.6% of distributer’s gross receipts, and for DVD’s and other means at 4.5% of the first million dollars and 5.4% on receipts above one million dollars. Producer’s must also pay

P&H on the residuals, and as with the free television exhibition, agreements with the performer regarding a percentage of profits may be credited against the residuals owed.

Better Terms and Conditions

The performer may negotiate for a contract with the producer with better terms than the ones outlined in the basic agreement.

Undirected Scenes

Producers can record undirected scenes which add production value, such as a car race or event if the participants are not professional entertainers. If professional Local 41 entertainers are participating in the event being recorded, prior permission must be procured from the Union. To qualify for these provisions, the event must be open to the public, with or without an admission fee, with an audience of over 1,000 people, and the event must be publicized and not staged or directed by the producer.

Preference of Employment

If a professional performer is available, the producer should give them preference.

A qualified professional performer is any performer who has been in a motion picture production once in the past three years. Eligible nonprofessional performers are members of a public specialty group, persons playing themselves, background actors, military or government personnel, persons with unique physical appearances or skills, persons with sufficient training who wishes to pursue a career in performing, children under 18, owners or operators of unique vehicles, stunt coordinators and body doubles.

Trailer and Promotional Materials

Producers may use footage and behind the scenes photography in a trailer or other promotional materials without paying any additional fees. Additional footage shot expressly for a trailer must be paid at the regular day rate. A trailer exhibited on television must be less than 10 minutes.

For promotional behind-the-scenes films, the producer can negotiate with the performer for them to appear at no extra cost. Any clips from the picture may be used in the behind the scenes film at no extra cost.

Furnishing Reports

The producer should furnish all performers contracts, production reports, call sheets, and payroll reports to the Union if requested. Local 42

Prohibition Against Crediting

If the producer agrees to pay a performer in excess of the minimum, this pay cannot be credited against overtime or penalties.

Dressing Rooms and Other Facilities

The performers must have access to clean dressing rooms and toilets as well as seating on location. On location, you should have one dressing room for each performer if you have less than 10 performers, and one room for two performers if there are more than 10 performers. Dressing rooms should be able to lock and provide safe space for the performers personal belongings. If a performer must make a wardrobe change on set, they should have a private area to do so. For on location shoots, the union will waive reasonable requests.

Reuse of Photography and Sound Track

No photography or sound form the motion picture can be reused in other pictures unless the performer has agreed to it prior to the reuse but after the production.

Air Travel and Flight Insurance

If the producer requires a performer to travel by plane or by helicopter, the producer must provide accidental death and dismemberment insurance in a principal sum of $100,000 and $250,000 respectively. If the producer cannot obtain this insurance, the producer should reimburse the premium paid by the performer to obtain coverage. Flights should always be commercial when feasible, and the performer has the right to refuse to fly on a charter flight.

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Screen Credits

The producer must place easily readable credits at the end of the picture listing performers and their roles in the same style and size, with the number, arraignment, and selection of performers at the discretion of the producer. The producer must send a completed version of the credits to the union.

Injuries and Safety

If any cast or crew member is injured during production, the performer cannot be held responsible and must be defended by the producer unless the injury occurs outside the scope of the performer’s employment. The producer must hold liability insurance protecting the performer from liability in the event of injury or death or destruction of property. Accident reports must be sent to SAGAFTRA.

The producer cannot require a performer to perform any stunt without a qualified individual trained in the stunt activity present on sent and available for consultation with the performer. Performers cannot be required to work with dangerous animals unless a qualified animal trainer or handler is present. A performer who is to be rigged with any kind of explosive including squibs should be allowed to consult with the stunt coordinator or special effects person. Performers must consent to stunts or dangerous activities as well as flying in a helicopter. During dangerous activities, the producer must have a person qualified to offer medical assistance on set as well as available transportation to the closest hospital. The Producer should obtain copies of all safety guidelines issued by the Industry-wide Labor/Management Safety Committee. Local 44

When any of the following conditions are met during a planned driving sequence, the performer is considered a Schedule H stunt performer and should be doubled if not qualified to safely perform the stunt:

1. When any wheels leave the driving surface

2. When tire traction is broken

3. When the driver’s vision is impaired by dust, water, mud, lights,

smoke or anything else

4. When the speed of the vehicle is greater than is normally safe

5. When any aircraft is flown near the vehicle

6. Whenever high speed or close proximity with another vehicle

creates dangerous driving conditions

Loan-outs

If the producer borrows a performer from a loan-out company, the performer is entitled to the same working conditions as the SAG-AFTRA performers.

Production Staff

No member of the producer’s casting or production staff may perform in the picture without the prior consent of the union, except for animal handlers, performer/writers, performer/directors, or in an on location emergency where a member of the cast is unavailable.

Reports and Payroll

A time report, or Exhibit G, must be filled out daily and delivered to the union by the end of the following week. Day performers should be paid every five days. Fees apply to delinquent payments. The producer must carry unemployment insurance. Local 45

Additional Provisions

1. Producers must notify performers the location and duration of overnight

location work.

2. Performers are entitled to a minimum meal per diem on overnight

locations of $60 per day ($12 for breakfast, $18 for lunch, and $30 for

dinner). The producer can deduct from the per diem any meals furnished

to the performer. For daily performers, the per diem must be given at the

beginning of each day, and at the beginning of the week for weekly

performers.

3. Friday should be the regular payday on overnight locations

4. Business class should be provided on commercial airlines except for non-

stop domestic flights of less than 1,000 airline miles, certain flights to

Vancouver, flights where six or more performers are traveling, or for

auditions and interviews. Producer’s must reimburse meal and baggage

fees for economy flights. Performers cannot fly economy if another

member of the production is flying in a higher class on the same flight.

Nudity

The producer must notify performers of any nudity or sex acts expected in the role prior to the first audition. Total nudity cannot be required at auditions and the performer has the right to have someone present during such auditions. The set should be closed during scenes involving nudity or sex, and no still photography is allowed without the consent of the performer.

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Minors

The environment must be proper for a minor, and the employment must not harm the minors health, morals, or safety or hamper his education.

If a minor is required on set for three consecutive days, the producer must employ a teacher ln the days when the minor would normally be in school. For post-production work, no teacher is needed as long as the minor is scheduled after regular school hours.

The teacher must have proper credentials and be paid by the producer. A teach may not serve more than one production in a day or more than 10 minors at a time. The minor must be taught an average of three hours a day in increments of 20 minutes or more. The teacher must provide a written report for each minor to provide to the parents.

A parent or guardian must be present at all times that a minor is working, including wardrobe, make-up, and hairdressing. If a minor is younger than 14, one individual on set must be responsible for coordinating matters of the minors welfare.

Parents may not bring other children to the set without permission from the producer.

Minors under six years old may work for six hours, excluding meals but including school time. Minors between six and nine may work for eight hours, excluding meals but including school. Minors between nine and sixteen may work nine hours, excluding meals but including school time. Minors over the age of sixteen may work for ten hours, excluding meal time but including school time. A minors workday cannot begin earlier than 5:00AM or end later than 10:00PM on school nights. On non-school nights, work must end by 12:30AM. Interviews and fittings should be held outside school hours, and at least two adults should be present for a fitting. Minors cannot work more than six Local 47 consecutive days. Minors should have twelve hours rest between being required on set or attending school.

Adult performers and minors of the opposite sex cannot share a dressing room.

Producers must provide a safe area for minors to play and rest. The minor’s parent or guardian must provide a certificate from a physician that the minor was examined at least six months prior to production and is fit to perform. Prior to the performer arriving on set, the parent or guardian must provide written permission for emergency medical care. The minor may not work in any situation that poses a present danger. The producer must cover the costs of travel for a parent or guardian on overnight locations.

Exhibition of motion pictures transmitted via new media

This contract covers the distribution of motion pictures through new media such as through subscription services at a residual rate of 3.6% of the distributer’s gross. For paid permanent downloads, the residual rate is 5.4% of 20% of the distributer’s gross for the first 50,000 units and 9.75% on units sold after.

The Ultra-Low Budget Agreement Explained

The Ultra-Low Budget Agreement (ULB) outlines the terms governing SAG productions under $250,000. Any terms not specifically mentioned in the ULB contract are subject to the guidelines laid out in the Basic Agreement, which you are also signing when you sign the ULB.

This contract allows for theatrical exhibition without paying residuals; however, you may distribute the film through other mediums without being reclassified as a television motion picture, though you will have to pay residuals to the actors from the gross distribution profits. Local 48

Professional performers are all covered under the same terms except for stunt coordinators who are covered under schedule K and background actors who are not covered at all. The ULB agreement is not exclusive and allows for the casting of nonprofessional actors who are not covered by this agreement. This means if you hire a

SAG actor, a non-union woman from the local talent agency who has been in two other films, and friend who has never acted before. You would have to meet all of the SAG guidelines for the SAG actor and the woman, as she is considered a professional actor and as such is covered by this agreement. Your friend would be considered a nonprofessional actor, and you do not need to adhere to SAG’s rules regarding him.

Whether or not theatre students can be considered non-professional remains a gray area.

It could be argued that the employment is for training and education; however, many theatre students have worked as actors and would be considered professional in that regard.

Salary and Consecutive Employment

A performer is considered engaged in a project when given written notice of acceptance, when they sign a contract given to them by the producer, when they receive a script except for the purpose of auditions, or when given a verbal call. Performers cannot sign contracts on set and all tax forms must be given to the performer before the first day on set. If the performer is engaged on your project and you decide not to use them, they are entitled to one day’s pay or the entirety of their guaranteed rate for the shoot, whichever is greater. Basically, once you sign a contract with a SAG performer, you owe them their salary whether they work or not unless they become ill, incapacitated, or default on the contract. Local 49

There is no consecutive employment for performers under the ULB Agreement, meaning that you only need to pay them for days actually worked unless you ask them not to take other work on their days off. This does not apply to overnight locations, which is any location where the actor cannot return home, so for a rural indie feature, consecutive employment will probably apply to your production unless your actors are local. The days between shooting when the performer is not on set are called hold days and must be paid as usual.

Table 1

Example Shooting Schedule of SAG ULB Performer

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Number of Days Paid Shooting SW W H W WF 5 Days

As shown in Table 1, a performer works the entire week except for Wednesday, but they receive five days’ pay instead of four to meet the requirements regarding consecutive employment. The performer’s agreed upon salary is for an eight hour day, and overtime must be paid for hours over eight, however, if an actor is not used for a full eight hours, they are still entitled to a full day’s salary which is $125 per day for performer’s under the ULB Agreement. ULB overtime is paid at time and a half up to 12 hours and double time past twelve hours. Not only is the overtime less expensive under the ULB agreement, but this contract waives the premium rates usually associated with

6th day, 7th day, and holiday calls.

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Table 2

Example Scenario of Hours Worked for SAG ULB Performer

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday

Hours 8 H 10.4 13 4 Worked Pay $125 $125 $181.26 $250.01 $125

$125 / 8 HRS X 1.5 = overtime rate of $23.44 per hour

$125 / 8 HRS X 2 = double overtime rate of $31.25 per hour

Payroll checks must be delivered through a payroll house to SAG on the Thursday after the payroll week. A payroll house is an added expense, but well worth it. I did one

SAG production myself with the help of an accountant, and I would not recommend trying to do your own payroll, which usually is not allowed anyway. With the check, the payroll house should deliver a paystub outline the dates worked, overtime, adjustments, reimbursements, tax deductions and name and address of the performer's "employer of record". You will also need to purchase unemployment insurance for the covered performers.

Pension and Health

You have to make contributions to SAG’s pension and health plan at a rate of

18% of gross salary. Unfortunately, this is in addition to regular payroll taxes of Social

Security and Medicare which collectively come to 7.65% of the performers gross salary.

Rest Periods and Meals

The eight hour work day does not include the time taken for meals, which must occur at least six hours after call, and if you are still shooting, six hours after that meal is finished. Meal periods must be at least 30 minutes long but less than an hour, and the Local 51 performer cannot work during the meal period. The penalties for meal infractions are $25 per performer per each half hour. The exception to this is if you are currently in the middle of a take when the six hours are reached as long as lunch is called after you cut.

Performers are also allowed to offer you a 12 minute period of grace for a late lunch.

After that grace period, penalties begin to accrue.

No work can be scheduled for more than twelve hours, but the performer can elect to continue work at a rate of double overtime or the day performer scale rate under the

Letter Agreement for Modified Low-Budget Theatrical Pictures, which ever rate is higher. The performer must be given a 12 hour rest period between work, and the penalty for a violation of this is a full day’s pay, and the performer cannot be obligated to come to set after less than ten hours of rest.

Travel

Regardless of where you and the rest of your cast and crew are based, a location is considered to be an overnight location if the performer has to stay overnight, away from their home. In this case, you must pay for their travel time as you would if they were on set as well as their transportation costs and per diem. During the shoot, actors on an overnight location must be provided housing as well as a per diem as outlined in the basic agreement. All other travel guidelines listed in the basic agreement apply to the ULB agreement.

Wardrobe

Any wardrobe provided by the performer is reimbursed at the rate of $12 per outfit and $18 per formal outfit per day. This is to cover the cost of cleaning.

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Financial Security

To ensure that their performers will be paid for their work, SAG may require you to post a security deposit before beginning production. For some, this may be a bond of a certain amount. In the past, for films will a small professional cast and few shooting days,

I was able to send SAG payroll checks in advance for the performers base pay. After the performers have been paid, the security deposit will be returned to you.

Clips

After principal photography, performers must have access to clips of their work to use for reels and such.

Acknowledgment

Your end credits must contain the phrase “Special Thanks to SAG-AFTRA” as well as the SAG logo which can be acquired through your rep.

Becoming a SAG Signatory

Becoming a SAG signatory is much easier than it has been in recent years as you are now able to file online through their website. You must begin the process at least three weeks before the performer is scheduled to work in any way, including travel and rehearsals. At the online SAG-AFTRA Production Center, you can fill out a preliminary information form which is then assigned to a SAG rep who will typically contact you within the next week. When the rep contacts you, they will send a package of information to fill out and documents to sign. You will need to be prepared to submit a shooting script, a line item budget, your day out of days report, a pre-production cast list, as well as information about your production company. You will also be asked to provide the

Articles of Organization and the Operating Agreement of your LLC. Once your Local 53 information has been reviewed, your rep will let you know how much they will require as a security deposit.

As the signatory, you will need to make sure to send the time sheets to the payroll house after each work week so that by the following Thursday, SAG receives the payroll checks. You will also need to submit all of the performers’ contracts as well as the exhibit G’s which are due weekly with the paychecks. Once the production is over, you will submit a final cast list and a detailed final budget, and if everything is in order, you will receive your deposit back.

SAG can be quite helpful, and in my experience, have been happy to answer questions and guide me through the process. On lower budget projects, they seem to pay less attention, and you are unlikely to ever receive a visit on set from a SAG rep at this stage, but be aware, if you do try to skirt the rules are caught, SAG can easily shut down the production or prevent distribution, so it’s better to err on the side of caution.

The Exhibit G

The Exhibit G is the form used by SAG to track the hours worked by their performers. You will need to fill one out each day, have it signed by any performers listed on the form, and submit it SAG at the end of each week. Filling one out can be a bit tricky though.

There are three main sections of the exhibit G: the production information, the cast list, and the time report (The ABC's of SAG Exhibit G: A Complete Step-by-Step

Guide). You will start by filling in the top of the sheet with some basic information about the production and the particular shooting day. Have the production number assigned to you by SAG ready because that information will go in this section. Local 54

Next, you will fill in the cast list in the columns on the left. List the full name of each performer, mark the box if they are a minor, and list their character names. In the small box to the right of the character names, you will denote what they are doing on set that day using the following characters:

• S - Start, or the first paid day for the performer

• R - Rehearsal

• FT - Wardrobe fitting

• T - Camera, makeup, wardrobe tests, and so one

• TR – Travel days

• H – Hold days, which are used when an actor is not working but is asked not to

accept other work. On an overnight location, days not worked in the middle of

working days are automatically considered hold days.

• F – Finish, or the last day on set

Characters can be combined in some instances. For example, an actor who is only on set for one day would have SWF beside their character name to denote that this is their first day, they worked, and it is also their last day (The ABC's of SAG Exhibit G: A Complete

Step-by-Step Guide). Other common combinations are SW and FW for first and last days on set.

Next, fill out the actual time sheet. You can use either military or regular time for this as long as it is clearly legible. Under work time, there are four times you will have to mark: when the performer arrived for makeup, went to set, left set, and left makeup.

Sometimes on small productions, the lines can be blurry between makeup and arriving on set, especially if there is very little makeup to speak of. In these instances, I usually give Local 55

15 minutes to get into makeup and 15 minutes to get out. Overall, the important thing to get right is what time they began work and what time they left for the day. If an actor arrives early by choice, there is no need to make this on their timesheet (Filling out "The

Exhibit G"). You should adjust the time if they arrive later than their call though.

Next, you will fill out the meals section. There are three types of meals, ND (or nondeductible meals), first meal, and second meal, and you will need to enter a start and finish time for each meal. Nondeductible meals are a 15 minute meal allowed in the first two hours of the day. During this time, the actor may not work, but the time cannot be deducted from their day. Not all actors will elect to take this meal. The first meal is the only meal which you will always have on a full production day. The start time but be within six hours from the ND meal or from the beginning of the day if there is no ND meal. The second meal only occurs if the actor works six hours longer after the end of the first meal. Typically the out times for first and second meals are 30 minutes after lunch began, and lunch begins only when the last person has received their meal. In most instances, you will only be filling out the times for the first meal.

The travel section is only used if the actors are not local to your shooting area, even if you are housing them nearby. You need to mark when they left their residence, when they arrived on set, when they left set, and when they arrived at their residence

(listed as arrived at studio).

The remaining sections detail what happened during the day. The first section is for stunt performers and the next section is where you mark the number of hours a minor spent in tutoring on set if necessary. Under wardrobe, mark the number of outfits provided by the actor as this will require reimbursement from you. A forced call is when Local 56 you called an actor after less than 12 hours of rest, except in a few situations outlined in the Basic Agreement, usually the penalty for this is a full day’s pay. The Meals

Violations and Penalties, MVP, section is where you mark the number of violations that occurred during lunch or the second meal if they were late or nonexistent (Filling out

"The Exhibit G").

Last, each performer must sign at the end of their row. Personally, I like to fill out the exhibit G’s in a PDF and send it through a document signing service online so that actors can quickly sign on their phones. This makes the process smoother as sometimes actors leave set without signing out with me.

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Chapter 5 Locations

Locations are one of the most important elements of an independent film, and they also happen to be one of the most widely available resources in rural areas. Whereas actors and crew might be in short supply and need to be brought in from larger cities, rural areas are rich with interesting homes, businesses, and restaurants that have never been used for filming before. Often these locations can be rented for relatively cheaply as they are not in demand from other filmmakers, and the owners can be very friendly and willing to help as they have never been involved with filmmaking before.

Finding the Right Location

The difficulty of finding a proper location in a rural area lies in the lack of location managers and experts. There is no master list of filming locations as there might be in a larger city, so this will require more scouting time, and it is wise to begin the process earlier than you might for a big budget film.

When looking for a home to shoot in, start with your own home and the homes of your friends and family (Clevé 45). What aspects work and what do not? Often you can reach out to local realters or look for homes for rent or sale in the area. Usually people will want to work with you if you can pay because the home is not generating any income at the moment anyway, but this comes with a hidden cost- the labor and materials to dress a completely empty home. If you have access to a local theatre program at a university, they may have furniture that you can borrow which would lighten the burden, but it is still a significant undertaking.

Craigslist is another good option where you might find someone renting a room in their house who would be open to letting you use it as a location. Most towns have a Local 58

“Buy, Sale, Trade” page on Facebook where you can post a request for a filming location.

People selling or renting properties may post on those pages and see your request. Best case scenario, you find someone who needs extra income who will let you film in their furnished home.

To find homes which are already furnished and partially dressed, vacation rental sites such as VRBO and AIRBNB can be good, affordable options. You will need to contact the owner prior to renting to make sure it is okay to film there and to allow you to scout prior to shooting. It is not wise to try to rent a home and secretly film there as film crews are larger than the usual accepted amount of people for a rental and you risk neighbors reporting you to the owner who might then shut down your film.

For specialty locations, narrow down what you are looking for and then visit those places. If you want to shoot in a diner, make a list of all the diners in the area and sit down to eat at each one, tip well, and ask to speak with the manager or get his contact information. If you want to shoot in a hospital, you will find it difficult to get permission because of privacy laws, but you may be able to find a small nursing home which meets your requirements but has less strict rules about privacy. Local universities with medical programs often have labs which simulate hospital rooms and operating rooms, so that is a viable option as well. If you need a farm location, visit the farmers market and the local agriculture department. If someone there does not have a farm for you to use, it is likely that they know someone who does.

For all specialty locations, I advise going to them in person and becoming friendly with the managers or owners. Chains can be hard to get into, but family owned businesses do not have any rules preventing them from allowing you to film there, so all Local 59 you need is to get them to trust and like you and assure them you will not harm their property or impede their business, and of course, offer them a sum of money to make the deal worth their while. Sometimes someone will let you film for free, but always have a sum of money set aside to offer if necessary. You might even be able to trade video services in some locations.

If a lot of your locations are in the same general area, it helps to get support from prominent individuals. I once shot a film in Glouster, Ohio. The directors and I made friends with the mayor of the small town, and it proved invaluable. Local businesses trusted us because we had the mayor behind us, the police force allowed us to use uniforms and an old cruiser, he allowed us to use his flower shop as a production office, and we were able to direct traffic when needed.

When you do gain the trust of the local community, remember not to ever abuse it. Several of the businesses in Glouster gave us keys to come and go as we pleased, which made our filming much more accessible, but also was a lot of responsibility. You are likely the first person to ever shoot there, and your behavior affects whether or not the area will ever be open to filming again, not to mention the costs associated with losing a location in the middle of a shoot. In small towns, the mayors and town commissioners can usually be contacted relatively easily and are an invaluable resource.

It is important not to impede business while shooting or scouting, so with most locations you will have to work around their schedule and shoot when the business is closed. For scouting, be polite to costumers and always allow them ahead of you if they need the person you are talking to about the location.

It is important to spend time in the area you want to shoot. Aside from giving Local 60 insight into your script, this is an opportunity to uncover new locations. You can even take a drive out into the country and approach people directly. Be careful scouting in rural areas though. People tend to be very friendly to visitors, but hostile to trespassers, especially in areas where the population is armed. In Athens, specifically, I have had the best luck looking at surrounding areas, as in town, the locals have had too many bad experiences with students.

With a lot of these online resources, people may be wary of scammers, so it is important to have a professional introduction email. VRBO and AIRBNB will block email addresses and phone numbers, but they do not recognize Unicode, so use an online converter to convert that portion of the text into Unicode.

Hello Mr. Davis,

I am a film producer with Ohio University, and I am interested in renting your property as a location for my thesis film. I love the look of the brick on the exterior of your home and the way you have the bedrooms decorated, and I believe it would look excellent on film.

If this is something you would be open to, I’d love to see the property in person and give you more information about my project. If you have any concerns, I would be happy to connect you with one of my professors or provide references from other property owners who I have rented from in the past for filming. I run a very professional crew and have always taken very good care of any property I’ve been entrusted with.

Thank you so much for your time, and I look forward to hearing from you. I have included my email address and phone number, so if you prefer those methods of communication, please feel free to contact me at any time.

Best, Patrick Local [email protected] 777-777-7777

Fig. 8. An example introductory email for locations. Local 61

The Scout

For a property to work well as a location, the owner needs to be open to allowing you at least two scouts prior to shooting. One is a preliminary scout to see if the location works logistically for you and aesthetically for the director. The second scout is a tech scout. The cinematographer should be there and make any blueprints and measurements they need for the shot list. This is the time to see if lighting will be an issue and if there is enough space to get the shots they need. The sound recordist should also come and record some test audio to make sure you will be able to record clean dialogue in the location. If possible, a tech scout that allows enough time for the director and cinematographer to work on their shot list in the location is ideal, especially for an inexperienced director of cinematography, and will allow you to work more quickly on the day of the shoot (Ryan, and Marsh 210).

I have a checklist that I go over when visiting a new location to determine if it would work logistically. Looking over the checklist with the location owner can be a good way to work out what you are and are not allowed to do on the property. For instance, taking trash offsite is an inconvenience but can be done, but if you leave trash onsite, and the location owner sees this and is bothered by it, you risk losing the location in the middle of the shoot or ruining it for other film crews (Ryan, and Marsh 211).

Another good example is electricity usage. If the owner is not comfortable with it intially, you can usually offer to pay a portion of their electricity bill in exchange for running your lights, but it is best to work that out ahead of time. Parking falls into the same category.

Sitting down with them in advance shows respect and that you work in a professional Local 62 manner. It is also a good time to chat and become friendly with the owner which prevents conflict later on. Figure 10 is the checklist that I use to evaluate locations.

Location Checklist

Are there restrooms on location? If there are no restrooms, is there a business nearby with usable restrooms

or is it feasible to have a Portajohn delivered?

Do we have a sufficient source of power? If there is no power, is it feasible to use a generator?

Is there a private area where cast can change costumes? Is there sufficient parking on location?

If there is no parking, is there somewhere nearby where crew can park

and be transported to set? Is there a comfortable area where cast and crew can eat meals and crafty?

In the event of a winter shoot, is there a warm area where people can rest?

In the event of bad weather, is the location still accessible to vehicles? Can trash be disposed on onsite? Will we have access to the location for enough hours at a time to shoot? Will anyone be present when we are using the location? Are there any safety risks associated with the location?

IE unfriendly dogs, nearby hunters, buildings in poor repair, etc. Is there any reason why sound quality would be poor? IE noisy animals, airplanes, traffic, etc. Is there space to safely stage gear?

Fig. 10

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If you have decided to use a location, the tech scout is a good time for you to sit down with the location owner and sign a release allowing you to film on their property.

With the release, you should sign a rider which outlines what you are and are not allowed to do at the location, such as smoking, throwing away trash, or using electricity (Clevé

57). This is not about forcing them to sign each element of the rider, but about defining boundaries so that you do not run afoul of the location owner later during the shoot. At this time, ask them if you need to speak with any of the neighbors to let them know you will be filming.

Location Management

Getting access to a location is only half the battle. The real challenge is keeping a location. Make sure your crew is aware of the rules and boundaries that you worked out with the property owner, and speak with each department head so that they can manage their teams accordingly. Be respectful at all times, and if you have visitors on your set, offer them coffee and spend some time chatting with them to make them comfortable with your crew. If someone feels friendly with you, they are less likely to cause issues.

Keep petty cash with you in case you need to pay someone off. Suppose you are shooting a scene at night that has some loud dialogue. An annoyed neighbor (who should know ahead of time that you will be there) will usually calm down if you can offer them some money for their trouble. Even if you have permission, a neighbor calling the police about your production would at minimum cause you to run behind schedule if not cost you the whole day. Make sure your crew knows not to post anything on social media that does not reflect well on the property. I once had a hairdresser leave a bad review on a vacation Local 64 home we were renting for a shoot while we still in the home and had additional shooting days scheduled there. The owner saw it before I did and was rightfully upset.

Have a production assistant set aside to handle keeping the property clean and ensuring no one is smoking where they should not be. At the end of the night, have the production assistants clean as much as possible, wiping down counters and even vacuuming where possible. I always try to leave a location looking better than when I arrived. Communicate regularly with location owners. Speak with them the day before to remind them you will be there, and respect the times when you are supposed to wrap. If any damage is caused, take pictures and contact the location owner right away to work out a way to pay for the damage so that you do not risk the owner seeing the damage before you have brought it to them yourself.

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Chapter 6 Building a Team

The crew can make or break any film production, and with an ultra-low budget independent film, it can be difficult to fill the roster with experienced individuals.

Fortunately, the needs of your production are also less so you can work with a truncated crew. For instance, you will have grips drive moving trucks rather than hiring teamsters, the grip and electric teams will be smaller and without a best boy, and most likely you as the producer will be fulfilling the role of line producer, production manager, location manager, and so forth (Clevé 48).

A Breakdown of Roles

I’ll outline a limited crew that works for most small productions, but the list has to be tailored to meet your production needs. For instance, a film with a lot of exteriors utilizing natural light might require fewer grips than a film being shot mostly interior with stylized lighting, and a period piece would require more labor in costume and set design (Honthaner 419).

The Director of Photography

The director of photography (DP) is responsible for working with the director to create the visual style of the film. This position requires a significant amount of pre- production in terms of going on tech scouts and working with the director to create the shot list, and as such, a good DP is someone who is invested in the project and shares the director’s visual style (Clevé 102). Usually this is the highest paid role on a low-budget film unless the DP is extremely invested in your script or needs experience and footage for their reel (Clevé 102). Offering backend points may help secure a DP with a little Local 66 more experience than you could normally afford. The person for this role should have as much experience as possible unless time is not a factor for your production.

First Assistant Camera

The first assistant camera (AC) is responsible for pulling focus and assembling camera equipment (1st Assistant Camera). The camera department is usually very popular and easy enough to fill positions even with no budget, but the first AC needs to have as much experience as possible because focus pulling can be difficult to master, and it is easy for soft images to go unnoticed until it is too late to do another take.

Second Assistant Camera

The second assistant camera is responsible for using the clapper board, making camera reports, changing lenses, batteries and memory cards, setting up video village, as well as helping reposition the camera and other equipment (2nd Assistant Camera). In a pinch, a small production can operate without a second AC, but the extra help will allow the camera team to operate more quickly and efficiently. This position can be inexperienced but should be familiar with the camera and gear being used.

Gaffer

The gaffer is responsible for working with the director and the DP to create the lighting design. Often on small productions, they may also have to set up some of the lights themselves. Ideally, this position is filled by someone who is as experienced as possible, so that when the DP describes the lighting needed for a shot, the gaffer knows right away what needs to go where and can work independently. Extremely inexperienced gaffers may lose valuable time repositioning lights to achieve a certain affect or may require too much attention from the DP. Local 67

Key Grip

The key grip is supervises the other grips, but on a small production, will do the same work as the other grips. At minimum, they need to be familiar with the equipment being used. An experienced key grip will make your production more efficient as they will be able to troubleshoot on their own and are more knowledgeable about the different ways to configure stands and lights.

Grips

Grips are responsible for setting up, tearing down, and moving all lights, stands, flags, electrical cords, and so forth. Depending on the production two to three grips should be enough to operate smoothly. With an experienced key grip and gaffer, it is okay to have new grips, but they should know the basic equipment and how to safely set up stands. A tutorial from the key grip may be enough, but this level of inexperience may occasionally slow down production. This person should be physically fit.

Sound Recordist

The sound recordist is arguably the most difficult position to fill on a low-budget film, as the position requires a significant amount of experience and offers little creative investment, which is further complicated by the fact that there seems to always be more than enough paying work for sound recordists. It is worth it to set aside money to pay a sound recordist, even if you cannot match usual day rates. Bad audio is expensive and time consuming to fix, if it is possible at all.

Boom Operator

The boom operator holds the boom pole and may assist the sound recordist in attaching lavalier microphones and other tasks. This position does not need any Local 68 experience as long as the sound recordist gives them a proper tutorial and listens carefully to make sure the mic is in the correct position at all times.

Hair, Make-up, and Wardrobe

These positions depend on the production and can often be combined into two or one position. A shoot with natural make-up, regular hairstyles, and few wardrobe changes may only need one person. If you have a large cast, this may not be possible, and if the wardrobe is complicated or needs dirtying or altering in any way, a separate person is needed. This person also needs to ensure that the wardrobe is clean and wrinkle-free each day. It is best to have a separate wardrobe person who is able to design as well and work in the pre-production phase to acquire the wardrobe. A bad make-up person is worse than no make-up person, and if someone is not available for you, you should consider having actors do their own make-up.

Set Design, Set Decoration, and Properties Master

The set designer selects and helps acquire furniture and decorations for the production, the set decorator arranges these items on set, and the properties master selects, acquires, and manages on set the items that are interreacted with by actors, for instance a knife (Clevé 104). Like hair, make-up, and wardrobe, these positions may be three separate roles or combined into one depending on the needs of the production. It is important that these roles are filled by people who share the directors artistic visual and will follow through on their work. Showing up to set only to find that you are missing important set items or props can significantly hinder the production speed as well as morale.

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Production Assistants

Bigger crews have production assistants for different departments, such as office production assistants (PA’s), decoration production assistants, runners, etc. For small crews, the PA’s are there to help you and the production manager if you have one. One to two PA’s are usually enough for a small production. In this instance, they are responsible for helping keep the location clean, taking out the trash, managing crafty, and setting up and tearing down meals. They will set up and tear down the base camp and goes on runs for extra water, crafty, batteries, and so forth, as well as occasionally picking up and dropping off talent. No experience is needed, but a production assistant needs to have a driver’s license.

First Assistant Director

The first assistant director (AD) is responsible for tracking the progress of the production, managing the schedule, communicating with cast and crew to ensure everyone knows their calls, arranges daily pickups, directs extras, and maintains order and safety on set (Clevé 95). The first AD has to be an advocate for the crew while also pushing the crew to work quickly and efficiently. Experience and trouble-shooting ability is essential for this role as it requires a significant amount of tact to keep the schedule without hurting morale, and if a production is behind, a first AD must be able to present the options for the director and help him reach a decision. For example, getting one shot might cause you to forfeit another due to time. In this case, the AD must be able to convince the director to simplify the shot list by cutting or combining shots to keep the schedule. Pre-production duties include creating the final schedule based on the preliminary schedule created by the producer. Local 70

Second Assistant Director

A second assistant director is not always necessary on a small production but can lighten both your and the first AD’s workload and cover as a PA. A second AD is responsible for sending out the daily call sheets, communicating with actors to confirm time and arrange transportation if needed, managing walkie talkies, and putting talent through hair, make-up, and wardrobe (Clevé 96). Occasionally, I will assign DIT to a second AD if I can’t fill that position otherwise, which works well as they are already using a computer for call sheets, can call actors while files are downloading, and can set up the walkie talkies near their DIT station. This person needs little to no experience but will need to be supervised on the call sheets and DIT if that is the case.

Line Producer/ Production Manager

The line producer and production manager share many of the same roles. Due to the lack of pay, it is likely that you will also be acting as both. Sometimes for low-budget productions, you may be able to find a production manager for principal photography while you handle the pre-production responsibilities. The line producer is responsible for creating a preliminary schedule and below-the-line budget, hiring crew, sourcing equipment, monitoring the progress of each department, and ensuring complication with regulations and best practices. Production managers also work to create the preliminary schedule and budget, but they handle the day to day during principal photography but tracking expenses, creating production reports, signing off on call sheets, and managing set operations (Clevé 3).

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Selecting Crew

Finding crew in a rural location can be difficult. If there is a university nearby with a graduate film school, you may be able to find crew there in the students or even professors. Depending on the location, there are some websites to post crew calls as well as job boards through the local film commission. Typically, selecting department heads is the most difficult as they will often bring their own crew. For instance, the DP might request specific people for the camera assistants and the gaffer, and then the gaffer will likely have suggestions for a key grip and other grips. They are more likely to know people willing to work for experience since the pay will be low. The same Facebook groups mentioned in the casting chapter can be used to find crew as well. If the position is strictly unpaid, be sure to mention that in the call. If you can offer pay but not at the usual rates, be honest in the call, saying that the pay for the position is negotiable but lower than a normal day rate.

Once you have some options for the department heads, you should conduct interviews. The amount of work required is significantly greater than the pay, so finding someone who can be invested in the work for other reasons is critical, and you should evaluate this during the interview. Department heads also need to be able to align themselves with the director’s creative process and artistic vision. Department heads should be able to argue for certain artistic differences, but they should never fight with the director, especially on set. The director should spend some time in the interview discussing the project casually with potential crew to assess communication and make sure they speak the same creative language. Local 72

Hopefully after interviews, you have some idea what each applicant will accept for pay because now is time for offers and negotiation. It is important to be tactful when making offers or sending rejections, not only for future projects, but potentially for this very film in the case when someone drops out shortly before production. When offering little to no pay for a film, it is a very real possibility that someone on your crew could get another offer and leave before, sometimes even during, production, so it is a good idea to have backups in mind to protect your production.

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Chapter 7 The Schedule

The production’s budget and schedule are married to one another. Imagine a string with the budget occurring at one point and the schedule occurring at another. As one point is pulled in a particular direction, so is the other. If the budget shrinks, the schedule has to shrink as well (Landry 2). Once I have an idea of how much money I can work with, I have found that the most efficient way to work is to create a preliminary schedule and use the day out of days, or DOODs, to build my budget. I also like to do a preliminary schedule as soon as possible because it gives me better insight into whether or not the script is actually producible. It is easy to forget how many locations and characters a script has until you have seen the DOODs, and longer scripts sometimes seem producible until you actually measure out the days.

Usually, a line producer will do a preliminary budget and schedule, and then the

AD will work on the schedule and the line producer or production manager might take over the budget as the project nears production. For a ultra-low budget film, you will likely be doing these tasks yourself.

Breakdowns

Before starting the schedule, you need to create breakdowns of each scene. Start by measuring each page into eight sections (Clevé 23). This is will help you create the schedule by showing how long each scene is. At the bottom of each scene, mark how long it was. Next you underline script elements with colored pencils or markers (Clevé

23). Figure 11 outlines what color to use for each element, Figure 12 shows a lined script and Figure 13 is an example of a completed breakdown sheet.

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Element Color Description Example

All main characters in a scene, Cast Red Characters including non-speaking roles

Background (BG) Extras- Party-goers, School Children, Green Extras grouped Atmosphere together Restaurant Patrons, Etc.

Extras- Individual Extras Janitor, Waitress, Cyclist, Yellow Silent with no dialogue Man Walking Dog, Etc.

All make-up special A character is punched in the face. Hair effects (wounds, Asterisk Remember to carry the bruising Makeup prosthetics, aging, etc.) over into future scenes. Any information that Characters will be submerged in Production Underline would be useful water. Note that a lifeguard will Notes for pre-production need to be on set. "Johnny grabs his car keys and Any props mentioned Props Purple the dog's leash and heads in the script out the door."

Sound All sound that actors Two characters dance to music Effects Brown respond to, even if it's at a bar that is interrupted by Music added in post a fire alarm.

Special Fire, explosions, wind, fog, Blue Any practical effects Effects rain, gunfire, etc.

Any special Special Jib, drone, underwater housing, Box equipment needed for Equipment a particular shot steadicam, specifc lenses, etc.

Jumping off of a rope into water, Stunts Orange All stunts jumping out of a car, etc.

All animals and Include vehicles that are unlisted, Vehicle Pink vehicles listed in the for example, a car in the driveway. Animals script Dog, cat, etc.

Wardrobe listed in the script. Note if "The buzzer rings, and Dave doubles will be Wardrobe Circle throws his hat onto the ground needed, for instance in scenes in a fit of rage." involving water.

Fig. 11

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Fig. 12

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POTTER'S FIELD Breakdown Sheet: 20 Page Count: 5/8 Date: March 15, 2018

Ugly Lizard Productions Patrick Local - Producer

Scene 20 Witching Scene Page 16-17 Tall Grass (Clearing EXT D Near Hideout)

Scene Description: Maria takes Nick to a clearing in the woods where she cuts her finger and draws a symbol in a notebook with her blood. She then cuts Nick's finger and adds it to a jar of items.

Extras/Atmostphere Cast (Red) Stunts (Orange) (Green) Nick Maria

Extras/Silent (Yellow)

Vehicles and Animals Special Effects (Blue) Props (Purple) (Pink) Maria cuts her finger Jar, pocket knife, blood, Maria cuts Nick's finger notebook, Branches blowing in the wind gravel, grass, rusty nails

Hair and Makeup Sound Effects and Wardrobe (Circle) (Asterisk*) Music (Brown) Cut on Nick's finger Cut on Maria's finger

Special Equipment (Box) Production Notes (Underlined) Jib

Fig. 13 Local 77

Lining and breaking down a 90 page script by hand can be a time-consuming and tedious process. And the end result? If you scan them, then you have a 90 page document that you cannot search or export to any scheduling software. There is software out there that can drastically improve this process. The industry standard used to be Movie Magic, but more and more people are viewing Movie Magic as outdated and overpriced. Celtx and StudioBinder are just two platforms that offer exceedingly user-friendly and affordable subscription packages for that include script breakdowns, schedules, and budgets along with other features. Running a script through Final Draft’s Tagger first saves time as it tags characters and scene descriptions very quickly and these tags can be recognized by other scheduling programs. After importing this tagged script into Celtx, I then tag the other elements which populate into breakdown sheets and the stripboard.

However you choose to breakdown your script, the process is crucial to scheduling effectively.

The Stripboard

Using the breakdown sheets, you now create a schedule or stripboard. In traditionally styled stripboards, characters, locations, and important elements such as animals, special equipment, or props are listed in the left column and assigned a number

(Clevé 145). Each scene is given a column or “strip” that is placed vertically. At the top of the script, you can mark day or night, interior or exterior, page numbers, and scene numbers. This is followed by a brief scene description, the page count, duration, and number of setups. Below this, you mark the number of any of the elements used in this scene. At the very bottom, I like to mark the time I expect to start each scene during the shoot. Figure 14 shows an example of a partial stripboard.

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Fig. 14

Alternatively, people are starting to use a more modern type of stripboard that can be a bit easier to read, though it is able to carry less information. Figure 15 shows an example of a modern stripboard. Local 79

SETTING Script SCENE I/E TIME Location 8ths Duration CHARACTERS Day Description Pages

TOMMY'S HOUSE Ketty's AirBNB NICK, TOMMY'S MOM 7 EXT DAY Nick goes to LaShawn's house to Upper Darby, 8 1/8 1.00 2 look for him. PA COMPANY MOVE FROM EXT to INT 1.00 NICK'S HOUSE - DINING ROOM Ketty's AirBNB NICK, DAD 5 INT NIGHT Nick and his dad eat dinner and Upper Darby, 6-8 1 6/8 3.00 1 talk. PA LUNCH BREAK AT THE AIRBNB 0.75 NICK'S HOUSE - KITCHEN Ketty's AirBNB NICK, DAD 16 INT NIGHT Nick and his dad argue about Nick Upper Darby, 14 6/8 2.75 2 coming home late. PA COMPANY MOVE FROM KITCHEN TO BEDROOM 1.00 NICK'S BEDROOM Ketty's AirBNB NICK 6 INT NIGHT Nick hears strange sounds coming Upper Darby, 8 1/8 1.50 1 form Maria's house. PA End of Day 1 TUESDAY - July 3, 2018 Totals 2 6/8 11 hours THE HIDEOUT Woods Behind NICK, MARIA 1 EXT DAY Maria sees Nick find evidence of her Aston Housing 1 2/8 1.00 1 presense at the hideout. Development

Woods Behind NICK, MARIA THE HIDEOUT 10 EXT DAY Aston Housing 8-10 1 6/8 3.25 2 Nick catches Maria burning stuff. Development LUNCH BREAK AT THE HIDEOUT 0.75 COMPANY MOVE 5 MINUTE WALK 1.00 FOREST Woods Behind NICK, MARIA 11 EXT DAY Nick and Maria run through the Aston Housing 10 1/8 1.50 2 forest. Development COMPANY MOVE Travel Time - 5 minute walk 1.00

Fig. 15

Once each scene is made into a strip with the relevant information inputted, it is time to order the scripts into a shooting schedule. The first question is how many pages a day can you shoot? Three to five pages a day is a very average pace for a production, but depending on the crew, you may need to shoot fewer pages (Clevé 146). An director who gets a lot of takes combined with an experienced cinematographer and gaffer who have to experiment with lighting setups, may only be able to shoot two pages a day.

To begin, I separate the scenes by location and character. Any out of town actors need to have their days scheduled back to back, otherwise, I simply try to reduce the number of days per actor as much as possible. SAG cis an important consideration for scheduling as a SAG actor is only contracted for an eight hour day at the regular rate, and Local 80 partial days are paid in full (Clevé 38). Obviously, a priority is scheduling paid actors for as few days as possible.

Next, I consider locations. A company move is anytime the production moves from one place to another. Small company moves might be from the bedroom to the kitchen, whereas a big company move might be across town. I do not worry much about small company moves which occur at the same address, but I do my best to schedule in such a way that there are no big company moves. Generally, you should set aside thirty minutes for tear down, normal travel time, and thirty minutes to unload and set-up for a company move that is big enough to involve loading the gear into the truck. Company moves from one room to another, should be generally given 30 minutes just to act as a buffer. Exterior locations should be shot first whenever possible to allow you to reschedule them for later in the production if bad weather creates a poor shooting environment (Clevé 38).

It is important to remember scheduling restrictions when creating the stripboard.

For instance, a diner might only be available to you as a location on Sundays or during nights, and an actor might only be able to work Monday through Wednesday. Any other big items such as vehicles, should be scheduled together whenever possible to reduce effort and cost (Landry 78). Lunch should be scheduled six hours after call and lasts for thirty minutes, but because the period does not begin until the last person receives their food, always schedule at least 45 minutes (Honthaner 84). I like to consider each strip as the beginning of the first take for that scene, so I leave a little extra room during lunch to allow us to set-up for the next shot. Local 81

It is important to analyze the scenes beyond the typical elements when building the schedule. If the first scene after a company move is really difficult, you should leave a little extra time as a buffer in the company move to allow your production to catch up if you are behind. If animals or children are being used, the set-up times will be as usual, but the director will likely have to get more takes which will cost extra time.

Day out of Days

The day out of days report, or the DOODs, is a report that tells you how many days you need each character, location, equipment, prop, and so forth, in an easy to ready calendar based format (Clevé 33). If you used a software to schedule your film, it will likely have an option to generate DOODs for you, but it is easy enough to do by hand. It is crucial to double-check the accuracy of your DOODs because you and your production team will reference this report more than the actual schedule (Goodell 126). Figure 16 is an example DOODs report for a short film.

Fig 16 Local 82

Chapter 8 The Budget

The budget is comprised of four basic sections. The top sheet is the first page of the document that summarizes all of the accounts and calculates the contingency (Simon

28). The next page is the detailed breakdown of the above-the-line costs, which includes development, producers, writers, directors, and cast (Simon 28). The below-the-line section details all other expenses but is occasionally broken up into further sections, such as Below-the Line, Post-Production, and General Expenses.

An Example Budget

The example budget in Figure 17 is for $60,000, which is extremely low for a feature film. For a 20 day shoot at this budget, a producer would need to be able to secure free labor and gear from friends or colleagues. This budget allows for five actors at SAG ultra-low rates with a some money set aside to pay a few nonprofessional actors as well.

Because the day rate would be offensively low, flat rates for the whole production are set aside for key individuals, namely the director of cinematography, the gaffer, the assistant director, and the sound recordist. Some money is set aside for special rentals, such as a dolly or jib or extra lights and grip. The rest of the gear, especially the camera package, will have to be sourced for free somewhere, such as a university or the director of cinematography.

Aside from that, this budget covers all the basics of production: meals, crafty, insurance, hard drives, and truck rentals. Some is left for the design elements: wardrobe, props, set dressing and so forth, but not much. No money is left over for post unless the contingency is not used during production, and capital will have to be raised in a second fundraising round after principal photography. Local 83

Fig. 17

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Fig. 17

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Fig. 17 Local 86

Fig. 17

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Fig. 17

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Fig. 17

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Fig. 17

The post-production section of the budget in Figure 17 has been omitted as well as a few subsections that were not relevant to this scale of production.

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Reducing Costs

Figure 17 illustrates how a $60,000 production is feasible. Budgets above that range can afford to start paying crew other actors as well as investing in equipment, design elements, and post-production. At extremely low-budgets, all of the funds except for a 10% contingency fund should be used for the production with post-production funds raised after principal photography. The reason for this that reshooting scenes is drastically more expensive than shooting them correctly the first time. For productions budgeted below $60,000, there are ways to save money beyond reducing the script.

Meals are budgeted in Figure 17 at $300 per day for 20 days. Utilizing friends and family members who are willing to cook a few days each can bring the cost down to $150 or less per day, saving the production at least $3,000. This is already built into the budget, but renting passenger vans and U-hauls is much cheaper than the typical production vehicles (Honthaner 419). Finding non-union actors willing to work for experience only would also save a significant amount of money (Clevé 44). The trade off with nonactors or inexperienced actors is that you will usually need a substantial amount of rehearsal time to achieve a meaningful performance.

Any ultra-low budget film is basically funded by the goodwill and generosity of others, and in rural locations, these characteristics are in good supply. In small towns, you can often find people willing to let you borrow vehicles and locations for free, and some even are excited to act as background. Finding these resources is very time consuming, but on an ultra-low budget, you have to put in an equivalent amount of time to the money missing from the budget (Koster 116).

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Chapter 9 - Principal Photography

How smoothly principal photography goes is a reflection of how thoroughly you and your team have prepared during development and pre-production.

Preparing to Shoot

The day before each production day, the assistant director or second assistant director should speak with each performer that is being called the next day to confirm when they will arrive on set and whether or not they need transportation (Ryan, and

Marsh 266). You or the production manager, if you have one, should call the locations for the following day to remind them of the times you will be there, as well as anyone bring picture vehicles, animals, or big set items. If you have a caterer or are placing a large order at a restaurant, you need to contact them the day before to confirm the menu and meal times. Not only is this respectful and shows people that they are valued, but if there is an issue, this gives you enough time to take actions to resolve it.

Call sheets and sides, small scripts containing just the scenes for that day’s shoot, should also be sent out each afternoon by the second assistant director after being approved by you are the AD (Lyons 124). The top of the call sheet should contain a list of contact information for producers, production managers and the director, the general call time for tomorrow, meal times, and tomorrow’s weather forecast, including sunrise and sunset (Goodell 229). Very important notes for tomorrow should be placed under the call time followed by the schedule of the day’s scenes. The call sheet also needs to contain a list of cast with their individual call times, and a list of crew with their contact information. I also prefer call sheet templates that have extra room for production notes and show the advance schedule to allow people to look ahead at the next day. Local 92

Episode Title Production Company Credit Shoot Date Day x of y

Exec. Producer Janet Smith (xxx) xxx-xxxx BREAKFAST 8:00 AM CRAFT SERVICES Producer James Smith (xxx) xxx-xxxx LUNCH 1:00 PM Jim Doe (xxx) xxx-xxxx Producer John Doe (xxx) xxx-xxxx SUNRISE SUNSET Director Jane Doe (xxx) xxx-xxxx PRODUCTION 6:15 AM 7:50 PM Line Producer John Smith (xxx) xxx-xxxx WEATHER 70° AM 80° NOON 72° PM Prod Manager Jane Smith (xxx) xxx-xxxx TITLE/GRAPHIC Humidity 10% Mostly Sunny

Production Office (xxx) xxx-xxxx Nearest Hospital (xxx) xxx-xxxx Address Line 1 Address Line 1 Address Line 2 Address Line 2 CALL 9 AM

Sample Note 1: Individual call times may vary. **NO SOCIAL MEDIA**CLOSED SET** Sample Note 3: Walkie Assignments (5) Sample Note 2: Questions? Call Jack Doe (xxx) xxx-xxxx Sample Note 4: Walkie Units: 5

SCENES SET AND DESCRIPTION CHARACTER # D/N PAGES LOCATION/NOTES SET 1 Description 1 SET 2 Description 2 SET 3 Description 3 SET 4 Description 4 SET 5 Description 5 SET 6 Description 6 SET 7 Description 7 TOTAL PAGES

# CAST CHARACTER SWHF MU SET MINOR? SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS Y/N

STAND-INS / ATMOSPHERE PRODUCTION NOTES STAND-INS REPORT AT: PROPS: sc. 1 Video Camera 1 SI (Erin) 9:00 AM sc. 2 tools and rope 1 SI (Stephanie) 7:00 AM sc. 3 car keys 1 SI (Vanessa) 8:00 AM LOCATION: 1 Site rep, 1 FSO, 1 Officer GRIP: sc. 1 Wheelchair dolly ADDL LABOR: Studio teacher WARD: sc. 2 Jennifer's Uniform SI x MAKEUP: sc. 4 Jim's facial scar AFTRA x CAMERA: sc. 5 PRE-rig 60D to Prop Cart NON-UNION x NOTES:

ADVANCE SHOOTING SCHEDULE SCENES SET AND DESCRIPTION CHARACTER # D/N PAGES LOCATION/NOTES SET 1 Description 1 SET 2 Description 2 SET 3 Description 3 SET 4 Description 4 SET 5 Description 5 SET 6 Description 6 SET 8 Description 8 TOTAL PAGES

Fig. 18. Example call sheet from Aryll Studios et al.; “Free One Page Professional

Call Sheet Template.” Cast and Crew Call, castandcrewcall.com/free-one-

page-professional-call-sheet-template/.

Unit Production Manager: Key 2nd AD: 1st Assistant Director: 2nd 2nd AD: Free Call Sheet Template From CastAndCrewCall.com YAY!!! :) Local 93

Set Operations

If you are lucky enough to have a production manager, set operations will be their responsibility, but for many ultra-low budget productions, these tasks fall to the producer.

Base Camp

Base camp should always be set up as soon as you arrive on set. It is a place for cast and crew to take their breaks and should provide some protection from the elements.

In the summer, base camp needs to provide shade, and pop-up tents work well if there is not a place with natural shade that you can use. If there is an option to set up inside with air-conditioning, that is ideal, and you should have electricity whenever possible. In the winter, base camp needs to provide warmth. If this is not possible, having a vehicle nearby where talent can sit and warm up is better than nothing. Base camp needs a place to set up crafty and meals as well as chairs for people to sit. Blankets and camping chairs are usually sufficient for this. The idea is to make it as comfortable as circumstances allow. Bathrooms should be near base camp, and if there are no bathrooms on set, then a car should be available at basecamp to transport people to the bathroom as needed. Base camp should be located close enough to production that people can easily access it, but far enough away that it will not be in the picture, and if possible, where sound will not be an issue.

I always keep a set box at the base camp containing things people might need during the shoot. Figure 19 is a list of the items I keep in my set box, which is a big, waterproof trunk with wheels for easy transportation. Anything I feel like could prevent a delay in production or increase safety goes into the box, which I always keep at base Local 94 camp and allow crew to access. I actually keep my set-box in the trunk of my car at all times as it contains anything I could need in an emergency.

Setbox Checklist

First-Aid kit containing extra burn ointment

Scripts, sides, shot lists, and extra call sheets

A backup list of everyone’s emergency contact information

ABC fire extinguisher and ABC one-use fire extinguisher can

Common medications – Benadryl, Zyrtec, Advil, Tylenol, Anti-itch spray Box of office supplies – pens, markers, scotch tape, paper tape, Manila

envelopes for storing receipts, stapler, etc.

A powerful flashlight

Sunscreen

Bug spray Handwarmers (if shooting in winter)

Extra phone chargers

Car emergency kit containing jumper cables

Safety vests and small traffic cones

A basic multi-tool Extra trash bags

Extra blank production reports, forms, and releases

A contact sheet for cast, crew, locations, etc.

Tarps and ponchos (in case of rain)

A towel (good for rain, spills, or if you’re shooting a water scene and no brought a towel for talent)

Printed directors to and from location if shooting in areas with poor cell service

Fig. 19

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Craft Services

Meals and craft services are an important element of keeping crew morale high.

Ideally, meals should be worked out for the entire shoot before beginning production to prevent any scenarios where you run out of options and have to serve pizza every day.

Generally, I try to serve pizza or something easy like subs only once per shoot, and at the absolute most, once per week. Having a friend or family member cook meals is a great way to reduce costs while providing healthier, more robust meals than you could otherwise. Crock pot meals are a good option if you have electricity at the base camp, as you can pick them up at the beginning of the day and have them ready immediately.

It is important to think critically about the food being served as it affects production. Pizza and other greasy foods will make the crew tired and sluggish, and if you must serve it, should be combined with fruit and vegetables. Soups and baked pasta dishes work great for cold weather, and in hot weather, people tend to eat less and should avoid extremely heavy meals.

Craft services should be available throughout the day, but occurs in phases. With an ultra-low budget production, it is not reasonable to provide breakfast, but cast and crew still expect something. Setting out some apples, bagels, granola bars, cream cheese, muffins, and coffee is a cost effective way to handle breakfast and is why I always keep a cheap toaster on set. Coffee is always expected, so if there is no electricity, you should purchase coffee travelers or a Cambro at the start of each day. If you have an electric kettle to warm water, oatmeal packets and tea are a great affordable addition. Figure 20 is the checklist that I use to purchase craft services supplies.

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Crafty Checklist

Plates, utensils, trash bags, Clorox wipes, and lots of paper towels Sdsds Cheap fruit such as apples and bananas Bread, peanut butter, and jelly (not only is this a healthy and filling

snack, but if someone doesn’t like the meal, it can serve as a back-up) Filling snacks such as peanut butter pretzels, granola bars, and trail mix

A toaster, bagels, and cream cheese Coffee, tea bags, sugar, and creamer

Gatorade powder and other drink mixes

Cheap snacks such as regular pretzels, off-brand granola bars, chips and

other bagged treats (Aldi’s churros are always popular)

Something sweet such as cookies, brownies, or cupcakes Water bottles

A cooler with ice

Fig. 20

It is helpful to think of craft services in three different categories when purchasing it. First, there are meal replacement items such as bagels and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. I usually buy less of these items as many will not eat breakfast on set and lunch should be sufficient for the rest of the day. Then I buy a moderate amount of filing snacks such as apples, bananas, peanut butter pretzels, good granola bars, and trail mix. Last is the filler category. These items should be cheap, and you will likely buy more of them than the other categories. For filler, you can use the cheaper granola bars, regular pretzels, Debbie’s snacks, and anything else that is tasty and affordable. You always need to have water available on set, and should watch it throughout the day to make sure you never run out. Gatorade powder and flavoring packets are a good way to offer other

Local 97 beverages at a low cost. An important thing to note is that crafty should be set out in stages and replenished as it runs low. If all the crafty is put out at once, you will quickly run out of food. I also usually buy a week’s worth of crafty at a time to prevent unpopular foods from being leftover. If there is enough leftover in the budget, it is good for morale to put out treats every few days such as candy, cupcakes, or a vegetable tray.

Safety

Maintaining a comfortable work environment is only one aspect of set operations.

The other is safety. The rest of the crew is distracted by trying to create the film, and the director is the most distracted of all. I was working as a production manager on a feature when the director called me on the walkie talkie requesting my safety vests. When I asked why, I learned that he wanted to send a grip with a reflector board down to the road to slow traffic by shining light at the drivers. Obviously, I stopped this from happening.

On another film, the director seemed to only want to have meetings in the middle of whatever active street we were shooting near at the time.

A production manager must be diligent in watching for safety risks, reminding crew to look both ways before crossing the road, use spotters, and request help when lifting heavy things (Honthaner 314). I have seen crew walk into the road carrying something big enough that blocked their vision, sit on tall ladders for no reason, hangout on active train tracks, stand behind running cars, and put flammable items in front of powerful lights. A film set feels like its own entity, but it is not. It is set in the real world with active roads, distracted drivers, and faulty equipment, and it is the production manager’s job to make sure that the crew remembers this.

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Putting out Fires

The value of being adequately prepared before production is that frees up your day to allow you to handle the various emergencies that arise during production.

Everything from car accidents to losing locations, cast or crew, can happen during production, and there is no way to prepare for these issues beyond what I have covered in this paper. The most important thing is to be calm, to communicate directly to those that need to be involved while excluding everyone else to prevent a loss of morale, and to make good decisions quickly to repair the issue. Ideally, you should be able to handle any problems in such a way that talent and the director are barely even aware of them. Easy enough, right?

Some problems can be prevented, and one of those problems is low morale. Good craft services, enough rest time, and a friendly producer who knows the cast and crew goes a long way towards boosting morale (Lee 225). If morale is low for some reason such as bad weather or a forced call, being extra friendly and bringing in some kind of treat the next day can help rebuild morale. Department heads have a huge influence on the mood of their teams, so I try to devote some time each day to check in with all of them and assess their needs. I always bring something with me, for instance, if the director likes Twizzlers and the director of photography smokes Marlboros, I bring some them some every once in a while when I check in.

It is important to be able to be able to understand the interpersonal dynamics on set. The longer the shoot is, the higher the chances are that you will need to mediate a dispute on set. If you are aware of these issues as they are growing, you can begin to diffuse the situation before it becomes too serious. Often feuds between crew members Local 99 lose steam once they feel like they have been heard. It is important to listen, validate their concerns, and offer some steps that can be taken to reach a compromise.

Running behind schedule is another issue that can be prevented and affects crew morale tremendously. If there are some days that are particularly tough, following them with light days or adding some padding to the schedule can help morale as it creates a less strenuous workload and allows the crew to feel like they are making appropriate progress (Goodell 129). If you are consistently running behind schedule when you should not be, as in the film is not scheduled too heavily to begin with, you need to have a talk with the assistant director. Depending on the issue, there have been times when I had to step in as the assistant director to keep the production moving. Isolating the problem and then attacking it head on is the only way to make progress. Is the director of photography spending too much time setting up shots? Are we getting too many takes? Is the actor having issues with performance? Without knowing why you are running behind, it is almost impossible to fix.

The last issue that you can prevent is a hostile community. It is important for you as the production manager to spend time chatting with location owners and other people who are visiting your set. If a community is hostile, they may cause sound or traffic disturbances or even call the police, which is why you need to make them feel invested in your film, even if it is an inconvenience to them. Like mediating crew disputes, if someone has an issue with your production, listen to them, validate their concerns, and offer some kind step towards a solution.

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The Wrap

After cut is called on the final shot each day, the first priority is making sure cast leaves as soon as possible. Make sure that everyone has signed their Exhibit G’s and that any extras signed release forms. After everyone has packed up, walk through the location to make sure it is clean and no one has left anything behind. You should be the very last person to leave at the end of the day. Throughout the day, you should have been recording receipts and updating your budget to reflect anything that was purchased that day, but at the end of the day, double check to make sure everything has been recorded and stored away safely. I also update the credits list for the film each day to reflect any additional credits to prevent missing someone.

After the wrap on the entire film, it is customary to have a wrap party for the cast and crew that made your film possible, especially on a film where people are working pro bono. A small party or buying a few pitchers of beer at a local bar is enough, as long as everyone knows how grateful you are.

Following the wrap of the film, ultra-low budget films will experience and extended period of post-production. The extra time is the price of free or reduced cost editorial work. Whether or not there is any contingency money left over determines how this period will begin. The director or someone else will need to edit the film without pay, but with the contingency money and an additional fundraising round, you should aim to hire someone to do the color correction and audio mix as well as set aside funds for festival submissions.

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Works Cited

“The ABC's of SAG Exhibit G: A Complete Step-by-Step Guide.” StudioBinder,

StudioBinder, 25 June 2018, www.studiobinder.com/blog/how-to-fill-out-a-sag-

exhibit-g-form/.

Argyll Studios. “Free One Page Professional Call Sheet Template.” Cast and Crew Call,

castandcrewcall.com/free-one-page-professional-call-sheet-template/.

Ascher, Steven, et al. The Filmmaker's Handbook: a Comprehensive Guide for the

Digital Age. Plume, 2013.

Battista, Paul. Independent Film Producing: How to Produce a Low-Budget Feature

Film. Allworth Publishing, 2013.

Baumgarten, Paul A., et al. Producing, Financing and Distributing Film. Limelight

Editions, 2005.

Clevé, Bastian. Film Production Management. Elsevier, 2006.

Dickerson, William, and Jane Gould. Detour Hollywood: How to Direct a Microbudget

Film (or Any Film, for That Matter). Kettle of Letters Press, 2015.

“Filling out ‘The Exhibit G.’” Assistant Directing, 1 Sept. 2018,

www.assistantdirecting.com/the-exhibit-g/.

“1st Assistant Camera.” Music Jobs In The UK | UK Music Jobs, www.media-

match.com/usa/media/jobtypes/camera-assistant-1st--jobs-402686.php.

Goodell, Gregory. Independent Feature Film Production: a Complete Guide from

Concept through Distribution. St. Martin's Griffin Press, 1998.

Honthaner, Eve Light. The Complete Film Production Handbook. Focal Press, 2015.

Koster, Robert. The Budget Book for Film and Television. Focal Press, 2015.