ASK & DISCUSS INDEX

9 years, 7 months ago - Paddy Robinson-Griffin

IMDB, see if they worked with anyone you know, and ask them? I seriously doubt you'll find anyone say anything uncharitable about another producer in any durable form, at best you'll get guarded, coded messages, but people feel a lot freer verbally and off the record.

9 years, 7 months ago - Dan Selakovich

Cathy, you just listed one thing that is a red flag: "being forced to work without contracts". Well, nobody is forcing you to work without a contract. Never work without a contract. Period.

Paddy's idea is a good one. Or, if there is a producer that has done several projects, check the crew list and see if there are completely different crews each time. That can be a bad sign. Usually producers find people they like and trust, and work with them again and again. If crews feel they are being treated badly, they won't make the same mistake twice.

In the end, bad shoots are a given. I might go as far as to say, getting screwed is the merit badge earned by everyone, and might be just as important an experience as learning your particular film job. You have to hone that bullshit detector.

The biggest complaint by far from crews is the quality of the food. Good producers try not to skimp on that. Bad producers skimp on that all of the time. But, really, when you're first starting out just expect crap food. If everything else is good (like pay and co-workers), it can be worth the experience. I've never heard of no water or no craft service. That's outrageous.

I've worked overseas quite a lot, and can give you this one bit of advice about that: make sure your check is direct deposited by the production company or payroll service back in your home country. If you're paid on a friday, and don't see that money in your account on Monday, take action! In the days before direct deposit, I had the experience of the production company not depositing my payroll checks. It worked out in the end, because here in Los Angeles, not getting paid on time means the employer must pay you triple or more.

9 years, 7 months ago - Paddy Robinson-Griffin

Slightly different in the UK in that most roles MUST be paid PAYE, which will be handled by a payroll company, and generally a week in arrears with holiday pay withheld as a final payment. PAYE means Real-Time Reporting for taxes between the employer and HMRC, so you're a lot less likely to be delayed/screwed over.

Food - I have arguments about food - I hate providing crap food, but good food is way more expensive than people think. The good stuff is cooked fresh with quality ingredients daily on site, there's plenty of it, a range of options to suit dietary requirements and favourites. This costs ITRO £40/head/day plus extra service vehicle hire plus extra service vehicle drivers and parking, larger unit bases etc. Shit food is centrally cooked and delivered in a hotbox, options are limited, menus repetitive, but is maybe £15/head/day. Or we go to local restaurants not geared up for 40 covers at a time, pay more, and lose shooting hours.

This means, all extra costs covered, great food is at least 3 times the price. I say it's worth it, it's the directors and crew who disagree. They say they would rather be paid better and see more on screen/make a better film. And we're both right - fact is you can only spend each pound once, and it gets pulled in every direction. Yes people will moan about poor food, but they also moan about being offered lower rates or about working with crap gear.

At the end of the day it's a compromise. I work on a lot of big live events where catering is better appreciated it seems, because we're in one place for a while, not as flitty as a unit between locations. There are a couple of premium caterers who UNDERSTAND the needs and respond to requests for long service windows, dietary needs, etc. Where we can, we fly those caterers into the country or take them on tour. Often though we work with local suppliers, and it's a battle every inch of the way, from basic hygeine to service windows to flavours to all sorts. I have argued the case with key creatives (who want to see all the budget on screen/stage) and been overruled, just for those creatives to give me grief for shitty catering. They were right, it was shitty, and that affects the mood on set/site - but you can only spend each pound once...

OK, rant over. Or almost at least... Remember, catering is almost always NONCONTRACTUAL, and entertainment is one of the very few industries to provide free food (which everyone comes to expect!). It should probably be declared to the tax man TBH as a benefit in kind, and be taxable, as perdiems are. Maybe that would change opinions around a little! Anyway, food is provided for the benefit of the PRODUCTION not for the benefit of the crew. It's there to prevent the crew from wondering off to find a pub to serve 40 covers in 30 minutes, which is why quality is variable. If crew were to sign up for some salary sacrifice for better catering (which is entirely legal) I'd be all over it and you'd get restaurant quality food, but everyone wants more money AND better food. I'm back to that pound only being spent once again...I'd better shut up now ;-)