The estimated number of days in a shooting schedule and all of the individuals and equipment that will be needed for those days provides much of the information needed for creating a film's budget. The rest of the information involves compiling the requirements of every other aspect of the production, including preproduction, production, and postproduction costs.

Budget Top Sheet

The budget top sheet is a summary of all the detailed budget categories, and as the title implies, is the first (or top) sheet of a production budget. The top sheet provides a quick reference to the budget and serves as an overview of the total production costs. Budget top sheets also show potential investors the financial requirements of a production.

In your budget information, every single item that has a price needs to be itemized and accounted for. All of this information is crucial if you hope to stay on track throughout the course of filming.

Above-the-Line Costs

Top sheets have two primary divisions, above-the-line costs and below-the-line costs. Above-the-line costs are usually flat fees that are negotiated before production begins and won't alter during the course of the production. These can include the cost of the script (with all of the necessary rights to the script) and the salaries of the producer, director, and entire cast.

Below-the-Line Costs

Below-the-line costs cover virtually every other item a production will require. Crew costs, set production and decorating, equipment rentals, location fees, props, office space, and telephone and fax lines are examples of below-the-line costs.

Despite the inherently tedious nature of budgeting, understanding every aspect of your budget is the only way to ensure that finances for the production are going to be spent in the most appropriate and effective manner. Major studios devote entire departments to budgeting, and many unit production managers have made successful careers out of preparing efficient budgets for independent productions.

If available funds are less than the budget calls for, it's time to make crucial production decisions. There are only two basic choices in this case: Find more money for the production or adjust the screenplay so that costs are lowered to match available funding.