Most film directors have chosen to stay away from movie budgets and production costs. The heavy lifting MUST be left to the accountants, but let’s put it on the table:

The film director is in command of a great machine that burns money. The film director’s job is to produce his vision for the script, on time and on budget. At your service is a team of film production experts (the line producer, unit production manager, AD team, production accountant, etc.) to help the film director do just that. .

Film directors are charged with understanding the basic functions of film-making on set, without being able to fully illuminate a set, operate a crane, or focus a fixed camera. In the same spirit, the film director must understand the basics of budgeting and the extremely important weekly cost reporting process. Every creative decision involves money. It is logical to learn to translate creative ideas into costs.

Seasoned managers are familiar with the Weekly Cost Report. If you are not yet familiar with it, let me introduce you:

The Weekly Cost Report informs all producers, studio executives and financiers of the costs you are spending and how those costs compare to the approved budget. If you can’t challenge or defend the conclusions of those who read that financial “Report Card” (that is, those who control your pocketbook), your ability to control your career is significantly weakened.

Find a comfort level where you can, at the very least, know what to ask during the budgeting phase and have a good understanding of how you can offset excessive cost with cost savings in another area. Learn how to formulate general cost compensation concepts to arrive at your vision and you will impress Studio executives.

Imagine the following scenario:

You are the film director of an independent film production. You have filmed the exteriors required in the script and you have seen the newspapers; however, you KNOW there is a better shot of that exterior in Oklahoma that would give the perfect hook at the beginning of your movie.

You know you can convince producers of this on a creative level. But, you also know that most producers will flinch at the task of dropping that bomb on the Financiers / Bonding Company that you need to dip into carefully guarded contingency funds. (Oh, I told you we’re going to Okl …)

1. How do you propose solutions to these added costs?

2. What is the correct way to approach the cost tradeoff game?

3. How do you defend those cost offsets?

It will always be a challenge to present this type of choice, but it is a very doable challenge if you know how to translate your needs into cost offsets using my Walk The Talk ideas.

Usual way:

As the director of the film, you sincerely express your opinion that the Oklahoma shot would be a perfect start to the film. What kind of response do you think you will get? Here is the most likely, based on my experience:

Movie Producer / Bonding Company Representative – This will put us over budget of $ 150,000. I’ll talk to him … ‘whoever’ – (sure it’s a position).

Walk The Talk Way

Alternative: Film director

– The cost of filming 1 day outdoors will not require a full crew in Oklahoma. I called the Film Commission there (check my website for internet links to all Film Commissions and major unions) and they have assured me that there are plenty of local staff available to work at a very decent rate.

– I reckon it should cost around half of your estimate, let’s say around $ 75,000 to give us a little more than we absolutely need. I can get that back for the next 5 days here in New York. (Note: you will need to pick up a copy of my e-book to see how I arrived at the $ 75,000 figure – see Figure 17.2, Table 3).

– You see, I have rehearsed the next five days with my very experienced cast and there is no way we cannot complete the scheduled scenes in 10 hours a day instead of the 13 hours budgeted. And, as everyone knows, the last 2 hours in New York cost around $ 10,000 per day (see Figure 15.1 in my book).

Alternative: Surety Company Representative – Oh. Have the accountant schedule the costs and we can verify them. (That’s the last stance of a financier – it’s up to the accountant to verify his estimates.)

You understand drift. You are simply applying a cost compensation technique in the same technical way that you would use focal points, storyboards, crane shots, etc. You are ‘directing the money’; money is not directing you.

Some directors, through the school of hard knocks, have developed a “skill” to conceptually convey their creative ideas through a “what is the cost?” process. But that process is very often tinged with blaming ‘the blue suits’ and ‘the money guys’ and ‘the only thing they care about is money’ etc. It is also often based on misinformation, biased towards a predetermined decision. Take my word for it; Unless you, as a film director, can be familiar enough with the language of money in film production, you are on the proverbial path.

You, as a film director, are in command of a money-burning machine. The best way to gain the trust of those who control the money is to know how to participate in the budget approval process and then offset the costs to get YOUR vision while filming. You could think of it as managing, only you are directing the money.