Movie Budgets
Budgeting a movie is one of the most difficult tasks in making a movie. There are many ways to approach the task and none are better than any other. It is further complicated by the fact that there is no "correct" answer. So several people could budget a movie and all arrive at different figures yet all be correct. Calculating a movie budget is a long and complex process. I do not have the time or space to go into any detail.

But, I can give you two pieces of advice. First, the biggest impact on the budget is the level of quality desired. There are two cost divisions to a movie. Above-the-line and below-the-line. Above-the-line are the actors and other key people. So now back to quality and let's talk about above-the-line costs. If you want a high quality picture you would want "A list" talent. "A list" actors get paid 20 million a picture. If you are making a lower quality picture, then you could get talent for $19,500 (calculated using SAG's base rate.) So you can see that your movie's budget for above-the-line costs could be either 20 MILLION or 20 THOUSAND. That is a big difference. And let me mention, Rapid can locate and audition the talent for you. The same for below-the-line costs. Below-the-line costs are the crew, equipment, locations, soundstage rental, set construction, etc. Cameras, lights, locations, stock, craft, etc. all cost money. You can get cheap stuff or VERY expensive stuff. Camera rental can be $100 per day or $5000 per day - it depends upon the quality.

The second piece of advice is that the budget is usually done by the movie's executive producer or director. It must be someone that is very familiar with the business of making movies and knows exactly how THIS MOVIE will be made. Certain shots in the movie may require certain equipment. Directors and producers know what equipment is needed, how long it will be needed, how many special people will be required, if special insurance is required, etc. For an average movie, there may be a hundred scenes and thousands of setups. For each scene or possibly each setup, you will need to know if there is anything special that will effect the budget. Rapid has this experience. You can see that budgeting a movie could take months.

The ONLY way to know what YOUR production will cost is to talk to us about the details. We would be happy to give you an estimate. You can reach us toll-free at 1-866-376-1800.