| Tools of the Trade |
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When I first started doing schedules, I hand wrote my strips on paper and placed them into plastic sleeve, then put all those into the huge folding flaps. Many of you know what I talking about, if not - that's ok. Technology and information sharing has come a long way since then. Here, I have listed many of these tools which can help you do your job better and help communicate the production plan to the rest of the crew. Please note: All items are listed in no particular order. Opinions and reviews on this site are my own.
Scripts are written by writers, not you. However, it's a wise choice to have the software that is used to create the script in case you do need to make changes. I call this "making the script production friendly". The Script section covered items you will want to look out for, and with the script file, you can make those changes - such as, re-numbering the script, spelling errors and other things. Final Draft is the industry leader with a simple and intuitive interface for script writing and retails for around $250. Some other software is listed at Wikipedia. What you use is a matter of choice, or based on what the writer used. Most applications can convert to a Final Draft file, or in reverse, Final Draft can read other formats.
Schedules are usually handled by the Assistant Directors, however, in order to do a budget - you need a schedule and all the information it provides. It is therefore critical that you know how to use the software and it's features. There are a few options on the market. Entertainment Partners owns the software known as "Movie Magic". This encompasses both Scheduling and Budgeting. The Scheduling software is used most often on feature films of various sizes, as well as many television projects. Another great piece of software is Media Service's "Showbiz". This is an all encompassing tool that works out Scheduling & Budgeting. Scenechronize is fast becoming a well known tool. Using an online interface only, this application allows many departments to stay in-sync through-out the production. Cost varies based on the extent you need to use it. Scenecronize has another useful feature which allows you to do a script mark-up and then export that directly into your schedule. Handy. There are more applications on the market, with various degrees of quality. None are horrible, and each has their place for the size of your personal spending budget and the complexities of your project. Here are a few... Gorilla Software | Integrated scheduling, budgeting & rate guide Celtx | Main focus is collaboration and communication during prep
Ah, yes - this is the core of it. Here is where you will spend most of your time. It's important to choose an application that will allow you to do everything you will need to do. There are many options. Movie Magic Budgeting, in it's various forms (Classic, EP Budgeting & the New Movie Magic), is the industry standard embraced by the major studios, and my tool of choice. Again, I should mention Media Service's "Showbiz" and Gorilla Software as alternative choices. There are others, but none I can recommend to the serious professional.
There are also many items out there that simply help you do a better job, quicker and more accurately. I have listed here a few for your review. Cleve's Movie Tools. My good friend Cleve Landsberg, a well established UPM and Line Producer, has developed a laminated 'cheat-sheet' regarding rates and rules for various contracts and locales. I use these and highly recommend them. Reel Production Calendar is a very useful application, but is not yet available for the Mac. It is a calendar program at it's heart, but the great thing is that it can track multiple facets of your project and if anything needs to push, it has the ability to push everything at once - so you don't have to do everything by hand. Nifty feature. Although not directly used by you (more-so the Accountant) I have found the Media Services Time Cards solution to be outstanding. It calculates a lot of things for you to cut down on potential errors. Great application! There are different formats for Feature, TV and Commercial crews - as well as one for SAG.
Rates change nearly every year for most unions and guilds. you will need to keep up-to-date on the new rates and contract changes. Here are some sources to consider using:
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