Filmmaking | How To's

Casting on a Budget

1 Mar , 1999  

Written by Jen Muehlbauer | Posted by:

Industry professionals share tips about how to find and cultivate talent for your productions.

It’s easy and cheap for low-budget filmmakers to cast their friends and families. It’s expensive to get top acting talent by using a casting agency or the Screen Actor’s Guild. Right? Wrong. There are seven kinds of SAG contracts, one of which is probably right for your film. And you can start casting, for free, from your computer, with a service called Digital Casting.

The SAG program that "speaks to the budgetary constraints of independent filmmakers" was started several years ago. There are seven contracts, from the most expensive "basic theatrical agreement" to the least expensive (but most limiting) "student film agreement." Budget caps and day-player rates are subject to change, so call SAG’s Donna Sommers at 617-742-2688 for the most up-to-date information.

SAG’s basic theatrical agreement covers most major motion pictures, and currently provides a day-player rate of $576 and an unlimited budget. If this sounds a little rich for your blood, you’re not alone–SAG has six other contracts for you to choose from. Provisions of these contracts vary based on a film’s budget and how much exposure the filmmaker expects the film to get.

For instance, it might not sound very low budget to some indie filmmakers, but the budget cap for the low-budget agreement is $2 million. The day-player rate as of this writing is $466, and comes with full rights to theatrical exhibition.

The affirmative action low-budget agreement allows for a higher budget cap ($2.75 million) and the same day-player rate as the standard low-budget agreement. "If it’s a project that has a high proportion of women, or performers of color, or seniors, or performers with disabilities," says SAG’s Sommers, "then the Guild likes to be a little bit more supportive and let them have a higher budget."

Have a lower budget than low budget? The modified low-budget agreement is geared towards projects with budgets of less than $500,000, shot entirely in the US, that are intended for commercial release. The current day rate is $248 up front, and the producer is entitled to distribute the film and have a full theatrical release. If the film is a success, the performers earn money from the back end to make up for their lower initial pay.

Films under SAG’s limited exhibition agreement have a budget cap of $200,000. As the phrase "limited exhibition" implies, a producer may show the film only in certain venues, like art houses, while paying the actors a lower day rate ($100 as of this writing). "You can see how the salaries of the performers are directly related to the initial rights that the producer receives," says Sommers.

If you can’t afford to pay your actors yet and are planning on only distributing your movie to film festivals, the experimental film agreement might be for you. It’s for films with a budget of $75,000 tops, and there’s no obligation to pay the actors at the time of production, with the exception of reimbursing them for out-of-pocket costs. Producers under this contract have no commercial rights to distribute their films until they get distribution agreements. However, "if reaction is to [the film] is so tremendous that someone does want to pick it up for distribution," says Sommers, "it’s at that point that the full rates are applicable." Producers’ up-front costs are smaller, but actors get rewarded in the end if the film does well.

The student film agreement is the most lenient contract, because student films have the least chance of a commercial release. These films are obviously classroom-oriented, but the producer can also show them in film festivals. Performers’ salaries are 100% deferred until the (perhaps unlikely) event of the film being picked up for commercial release.

"It’s been tremendously successful across the country, and particularly in Boston," says Sommers "We’ve produced quite a lot of films under these various projects. Many of them also, happily, have gone on to quite a lot of critical success and been picked up for major distribution." Sommers recommends filmmakers call SAG and talk about their concerns before dismissing the idea of working on a union project.

Some examples of local films produced under SAG’s tiered contract system are the recent "Next Stop Wonderland," 1996’s "Squeeze," and "Autumn Heart," which was at the 1999 Sundance Film Festival. "It’s surprisingly affordable," says Sommers, "and the quality of talent you get is tremendous."

Whether or not you want to cast Guild members, you can use the web site DigitalCasting.com to find talent for your next project. Ad agencies, production companies, casting agencies, TV stations, theaters, independent filmmakers, and almost 600 local actors have discovered Digital Casting since its launch in 1997. It’s free for producers and $90 a year for actors, though discounts are available for union members and theater company members.

The database of actors is searchable by physical characteristics, professional experience, and just about everything else. "If you need an actor with Shakespearean experience, someone who can juggle, or a particular age range," says Digital Casting’s Lisa Lobel, "the people who meet your criteria come up along with their photo." Some actors also include voice clips. This can save producers hours of sifting through drawers full of photos, and gives actors a new way of marketing themselves.

Lobel says Digital Casting shouldn’t replace casting directors, but it’s a good tool for certain projects. "The independent film market is what got us started on this," says Lobel, whose partner at Digital Casting used to spend a lot of unpaid hours helping small films find good actors. "This is a way to connect the independent, low-budget films with actors so the film is getting made and the actors are getting work."

"A lot of great jobs have been cast from it," says Lobel. Digital Casting’s privacy concerns prevent them from naming names, but plenty of top companies and agencies use the service.

"I think it’s going to get used more and more as younger, more computer-savvy filmmakers and producers are starting to move up in the business," says Lobel.

To learn more about the Screen Actors Guild, visit their web site at www.sag.com/filmmakers.html or call Donna Sommers at 617-742-2688.

To learn more about Digital Casting, visit their web site at www.digitalcasting.com or call Lisa Lobel at 617-437-8400.


To learn more about the Screen Actors Guild, visit their web site at www.sag.com/filmmakers.html or call Donna Sommers at 617-742-2688.To learn more about Digital Casting, visit their web site at www.digitalcasting.com or call Lisa Lobel at 617-437-8400.

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