Feature Film Equipment Rates
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Ethan ethan.goldber...@gmail.com
Hello All, I've been asked to do a couple weeks of mixing on a west coast feature coming east to do some location shooting. I typically do ENG/Doc sound, though i typically do a feature or two a year, mostly with rented gear. However, I'm trying to transition into doing more "desk" mixing, and am considering buying some gear for this shoot.
However, as I'm not renting the whole package (as I typically do for this type of work), I'm wondering what i should be charging the production for a kit rental. I'm planning on it being a multitrack rig (maybe pd6 or 744t, perhaps Metacorder, depending on what theyre asking for). Probably one boom mostlly and a few wireless. I'm also ***uming they'll want IFBs.
Just wondering what the standard ballpark rate would be for an IATSE indie? Do i charge a day rate or do i offer a weekly? Is there a standard flat rate with additional items added on a la carte? What should be considered "extra"?
Thanks for your .02 e.
Sergio Sanmiguel sanmiguel...@gmail.com
Hi e!
There is NOT such a thing as an "IATSE indie"... But anyways, negotiate a weekly rate for a basic sound kit plus boom OP and additional items for $20/day. Extra items would be anything not expendable that's NOT included in the basic sound package...
~ Serge
Lee Ascher leeasc...@hotmail.com
Thought I'd chime in here. There are many IATSE Indies shooting in L.A. these days. "Indie" usually means the production is independently financed, as opposed to a studio financing it... and most productions over $1M get unionized in L.A. The lowest budget IATSE agreements must pay a Mixer a minimum of ~$20/hr., and a boom op a minimum of ~$17/hr. Kit rental on low budget IATSE productions should be in the neighborhood of $300 - $400/day. Good luck!
Lee Ascher Los Angeles, CA
"yepthisismyem ...@gmail.com" <yepthisismyem
> Lee Ascher
> Los Angeles, CA Lee, In your experience is that $300-$400/day a 6 day week($1800-$2400) or a 2-4 day weekly rental?($600-$1600) Thank you in advance
Ethan ethan.goldber...@gmail.com
This is what i'm wondering too, am I expected to cut a 3-4 day week on the gear, as most rental houses do, or am I going strictly on a "day rate" By the way, $20/hour on a union shoot? Thats very surprising. Thats a Production ***istant rate as far as i'm concerned, no? Scary.
"Douglas Tourtelot" tourte...@speakeasy.net
First question; are you an IA member? If so, use your vote to put people in place at the top that won't ratify such contracts. They don't provide a living wage and are bad for the membership. Secondly, don't take the job at that rate. You are ALWAYS allowed to negotiate a better rate; the quoted rates are MINIMUMS.
Thirdly, my gear never rents for a weekly rate. The rate is for a "working day" and the $300 to $400 is in the ballpark; $300 for, let's say a cable TV movie and $400 for a bigger indie feature, and all in between. The "Big Boys" that I know get $500 but you had better have a pretty impressive gear package<g>.
D.
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Sergio Sanmiguel sanmiguel...@gmail.com
I worked on several feature films over $3million budget in LA and none of them got unionized, am afraid thats not a rule of thumb...
Noah Timan dontwritemeher...@yahoo.com
You'll be going on a day rate or a flat weekly rate. Forget about that rental house "3 day week" stuff as it generally applies to a line card for a la carte items being rented. I've never personally heard of a production manager renting a sound kit from a mixer this way.
Whether a day or a weekly proves more profitable will depend upon the production schedule.
I think the Tier 1 of the IATSE National Contract (<$3M productions) has $19.68 or something like that in for keys, $17 and change for 2nds, and $14 and change (!) for thirds. (By the way, they almost never budget in a utility person on a tier 1, at least in my experience in NY).
In my experience, your ability to successfully negotiate something above those minimums depends upon how badly the production wants to work with you, and whether or not there's someone else competent next in line who will do it for the minimums. It is, of course, never required that you accept this type of job in the first place.
PAs on those kind of shows are usually making a flat $100 or $150 per day (before taxes, of course) and getting worked up to 20 hours per day for that whopper of a check. Don't forget to be nice to them, even when they blow a lockup.
Regards, Noah Timan
David Waelder davidwaesha...@earthlink.net
On 6/5/07 1:02 AM, in article 1181030526.692964.207...@h2g2000hsg.googlegroups.com, "Ethan" The current IATSE rate for a production mixer is about $56/hour.
There are several low budget agreements that may apply to shoots operating below a specified overall budget. The Tier One budget that Noah references applies only to films budgeted below $3.9 million. There are also rates at Tier Two (to approx. $6.6 million) and Tier Three (to approx. $9.4 million).
I think there was some hope that the very low Tier One rates would bring the producer into the fold. Many of us watch in dismay as the same producers are permitted to make one Tier One show after another at rock bottom rates. We expected them to graduate up but that's often not the case.
Rates for equipment rentals are outside the contract and are entirely negotiable. However, I've found that TV shows tend to settle around $400 to about $450 per day for a package of gear. This is always a charge for days worked, not the equivalent of a catalog figure from a rental house that may be negotiated lower for longer periods of commitment. Typically the equipment package supplied by a mixer would considerably exceed $450 per day if rented piecemeal from a regular supplier. So, to be explicit, for six days of work a TV show would pay $2400 - $2700. For their $400 - $450/day, the production company will expect: Digital recorder Dat recorder Suitable mixing panel 2 boom poles (minimum) 2 matched mikes suitable for interior dialog 2 matched mikes suitable for exterior dialog At least four wireless Comtek or IFB feeds for at least 6 people Additional specialty mikes for plant situations, car rigs, etc.
Some sort of playback capability All necessary support cables, carpets, doo-dads, etc.
This is a minimal description; most working packages are somewhat more extensive.
No one will come and actually look over your gear to ascertain if you really have a "feature" package; rather it is simply ***umed that you understand what the ***ignment is likely to require and that you will be prepared accordingly. For "matched" exterior mikes, you could get by with, say, a Neumann 81 and a Neumann 82 although many will have a pair of the same thing available. For Comteks, IFB, you would be well advised to have a base station transmitter because the listeners tend to be intolerant of Comtek troubles. (Although you may have some slack on remote locations where RF troubles are recognized as unpredictable.) At this price, you are not generally expected to have unlimited tracks available or playback to cover a wide audience or other specialty items.
David Waelder (working e-mail is my name + wae, my server is earthlink dot net)
Billy Sarokin bigm...@verizon.net
Amen, Billy Sarokin
"Douglas Tourtelot" tourte...@speakeasy.net
Just to make it clear, the IA mixer's rate for a big Hollywood movie (and commercials) is around $57/hr. I WISH all IA mixers got that rate!! As someone else said, the bottom of this scale is under $20. I am GLAD that I make more than that!! So what we are saying is; negotiate your best rate, see if you'd be willing to do the job for that rate and say "yes" or "no." That's how it has always been done. For me, as and afterword, once I accept a job for a rate, I let that number go right out the window and do the best I can for the project I have signed on to do. I really hate those folks who take the job and then bitch about the deal. It's bush-league!
Regards, D.
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Ethan ethan.goldber...@gmail.com
Douglas: To answer your question, no i am not yet an IA member, though I am under the impression that several local IA mixers were contacted first before me and were unavailable.
Thanks to everyone so far for their responses to my post, this is all very informative.
Noah Timan dontwritemeher...@yahoo.com
Indeed. $57 an hour *as a minimum* is unheard of out here for ANY feature or episodic contract, no matter how big a movie or TV show.
Maybe that's what happens in LA when sound gets their own union <vbg>. It's comparable to the commercial contracts we have in the eastern US, but the feature and episodic contracts all top out around $45 an hour as far as mandatory minimums go. It's the same labor contract, regardless of whether the overall production budget is $11M or $111M.
nvt
Billy Sarokin bigm...@verizon.net
The current independent and studio contracts have the sound mixer in at approx $51
Noah Timan dontwritemeher...@yahoo.com
Did something change recently? Last independent contract I did (a few months ago) was $46 or $47, I believe.
nvt
Billy Sarokin bigm...@verizon.net
May. Usually the rates go up 3% every May. But last year 'American Gangster' paid $49+ and a film coming up quoted me $51 and change.
There's a million different contracts which I usually never see.
"Douglas Tourtelot" tourte...@speakeasy.net
BTW, AFAIK (and WTF) there is virtually NO overscale in Hollywood any more.
Any of you "big boys" getting overscale these days?
D.
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Noah Timan dontwritemeher...@yahoo.com
Gotcha. Thanks for explaining...
nvt
Billy Sarokin bigm...@verizon.net
lol, on American Gangster I got $50 and I thought I was all that until I found out scale was $49.78
"Douglas Tourtelot" tourte...@speakeasy.net
Well Billy, that answers my question. $.22 overscale!
D.
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JamieSound jscarpu...@aol.com
"Top mixers are getting 500/day for their package on features".....
Can someone please speak about what top mixers are getting for their full package on national spots? Many rental houses now charge $1250 -
$1300 a day (4 day wk) for a "premium" sound package (Deva, second recorder, Cooper, 5-6 wirelesses, only 6 Comteks etc..). My package has all that and much much more, but I've never gotten that much for it. Cheers, Jamie Scarpuzza
Jeff Wexler j...@jwsound.net
I am one of the few here on the West Coast still getting overscale. I actually have only done one movie at scale my entire union career and that was for Billy Crystal on "*61". That was on the HBO contract at scale and it was an hourly rate that I handed made since 1976.
Most of my fellow mixers have settled into just getting scale hourly rate particularly if the job is being done under the regular Basic Agreement (which is the $57.00/hour rate). Most are willing to work for scale so that the hourly is not something that even has to be talked about, but they do negotiate equipment deals that result in good income.
I hold out for overscale, partially because that is what I have always gotten, and then of course I don't have a lot of room to negotiate equipment package or deal. So, I don't really make any more money (actually, many of my friends working at scale are making lots more on their equipment than I do) but I prefer it this way --- even if it is just a silly psychological/ego thing with me. I like the fact that the producer is willing to pay ME more for my work, independent of anything to do with equipment, their budget or whatever. Of course, often they are willing to do this because I end up with so little for equipment it costs them the same. On the other hand, there is resistance to paying overscale as it could set a precedent. In my case, since I work as a loan out through my corporation, the producer and the studio knows that there is a level of insulation, for them, allowing the overscale deal.
The other factor for me is that I am involved in making Don Coufal's deal (my boom operator for over 30 years) and when it comes to making an overscale deal for the boom operator they are often very resistant. I have on a few movies made my deal and the equipment deal (possibly even a fairly decent equipment deal) and then when it has come to Don's deal I have reduced MY equipment deal to make up the difference for Don. Or, if that doesn't work, the production loses BOTH of us and we just don't do the job.
Regards, Jeff Wexler
Billy Sarokin bigm...@verizon.net
Someday, if we all get really good at this, we might make as much as an ***istant plumber... What dreams may come!
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