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Breaking Into Hollywood – How Much Should I Ask People To Pay Me?

Breaking Into Hollywood - How Much Should I Ask People To Pay Me?

If you're starting out or moving up in the entertainment industry, knowing what pay rate to ask for is particularly hard, so here are some guidelines to go by.

In general, it's very important not to sell yourself too short OR price yourself too high. What determines this is not just the "market rate" for the services you're delivering. When you're setting your fee for a job, take the following into consideration - every time:

RATE "CALCULATOR"

1) What the market rate range is for the gig;

2) What experience you'll gain;

3) What contacts you bring;

4) What contacts you'll gain;

5) What relationship(s) you'll form with whom;

6) What credit you'll receive;

7) Who is issuing that credit (it matters!);

What experience you bring to the table;

9) When you will be paid.

Seems like a lot! Believe it or not, ALL of these are monetized in the entertainment industry. So do that 9-point checklist on every offer and adjust accordingly. Let me quickly break down how to use the list:

1) Market Rate. This is your opening number. You can always start with Guild tables; for screenwriting and teleplays, for example, the Writers Guild posts a Schedule of Minimums for payments. If you AND your potential employers are novices, this quote will probably be too high for you, for the reasons on the rest of the list. So beyond the various guilds and unions for your industry, a great way to research the market rate is to ask someone who recently was promoted past the position you're considering. They'll be happier to quote their former rate than reveal their current one! How to find them? Get online on the industry forums and boards! Join a Yahoo! Group in your field and post away.

2) Potential Experience ("-"). If you'll get important professional experience from the gig, this is worth lowering a quote in negotiations with someone who cannot pay much. The new work experience will help you get better jobs (and pay) as you rise. If the employer is a complete newcomer, however, be realistic about what kind of training you'll actually receive. The key question to ask is, "What are the credits and background of the most experienced person I'll actually be working with?" That will let you know how much you'll learn in the process of doing the job.

3) Your Contacts ("+"). If you are bringing key industry names to the project, and that is part of what you are expected to contribute, that's a bump for your fee.

4) Potential Contacts ("-"). There's nothing worth more money in this business than personal contacts. If you'll walk away with a great database of vendors, staff, crew and other industry contacts you connected with, take that into consideration as you set your price.

5) Potential Relationships ("-"). Beyond contacts, if the gig has you working closely with major players in your field, it's worth flexibility on your fee. This isn't just who will be on set with you. Which legitimate agents, managers, designers, network execs, bookers, casting agents, etc. will be part of the project and seeing you shine? Relationships are worth MORE than money in Hollywood.

6) Your Credit ("-"). If you have to choose between money and a better credit, in the beginning, go for the credit - as long as it is an accurate one! In other words, don't trade a writing credit for a "co-producer" (meaningless) or "producer" credit if you only wrote the script. Your producer credit will be vetted and tossed out in any credit dispute if the project goes anywhere. But if you're working on a TV pilot and they can't pay well, but you can get an Associate Producer rather than a Production Assistant title, that is worth money in the bank on your next job. So work with them on your fee.

7) The Credit Source ("-"). A credit only means as much as the person who gives it to you. If a major company offers you a lesser credit, don't dismiss it outright. That company's good reputation and position in the industry might give you more heat when you go to your next gig - and it certainly can open that next door a lot faster.

Your Experience ("-"). If you're new in the game, this is where you'll potentially shave quite a bit off of your quote, and that's a wide open range. If you'll be working for an established company, there still are minimum expectations for rates (again, check with outside people at the level above where you're being hired). Established companies are offsetting the lower rate with a list of career and future financial benefits. Newcomers are not. So if you are providing a real product or service to a fellow industry newbie, you must be paid for it. And not on the "back-end" (where unicorns and Bigfoot and other myths live)!

A producer who can't shoot a film without your script...can't shoot a film WITH your script - because they don't have money. It costs money to make a movie, and part of that should go to compensating the writer, especially since, unlike the crew, you are getting no other tangible experience in the process, and your writing credit will be skeptically received on an indie film that never saw the light of day. But if you've never had a script produced or done a modeling shoot or been in a play, and a newcomer wants to hire you, don't even think about holding fast to union minimums. Work with them on a fee or some tradeoffs, per the list above and the tip that follows.

9) The Pay Date ("+"). The later someone is going to pay you for your work, the more you can bump (slightly increase) your fee. Almost everyone reading this has been approached by someone who wants them to do work for free (on "spec"), with promises of payment "on the back end." That's meaningless because you're pretty much never going to see a back-end payment (it's possible; just not likely!). So here's a rule. If you are doing physical work for someone (writing a script, walking a runway, doing a photo shoot), you must arrange to get physical "payment," of some sort, when you do the work.

If the employer is an established company and you are a working professional, do not do spec work for them. Once you do it for free, you will always be expected to do it for free - or at least for too little. Thank them for the offer of employment, let them know you don't work for spec but are excited to work with them, then work out a deal memo through your lawyer, offering them an introductory fee for this first project and establishing a minimum "floor" for any projects that follow. Established companies are never shocked to talk to lawyers (that's how we do things in Hollywood), and they are more than used to paying for people's work.

Newbie employers can offer you "deferred payment" - but also request a guaranteed in-kind benefit you can leave that gig with (and sign that in a deal memo, too). If you're doing a fashion show for someone, ask them if they will at least hire a professional digital photographer (or let you bring one) so you can get shots (free clothes aren't enough - those won't get you your next gig!). Ask the designer to alert the photographer that you'll be bringing a laptop or memory stick to download your images before you leave, and bring a thank you note and truffle for the photographer. If you're writing the script for someone's film, ask them to buy a copy of professional screenwriting software and turn over one of their access codes to you. Work with strapped newbie employers to see what they can offer you in exchange for your labor - since they're not offering you entrée to the contacts, relationships and respected credits that would otherwise make a lower rate worth it.

ONE LAST WORD. As you work more steadily in this industry, your "rate" transforms into your "quote." Your ""quote" is what you were paid on your most recent gig(s), and it's the magic number everyone expects to pay you on your next gig. So once you begin working more steadily, you must be very protective of your quote, regardless of the additional benefits a certain gig would offer. Be particularly wary of being asked to accept a lower rate in exchange for a higher credit because that sets a ridiculously low quote for your new credit level. Sounds pretty sticky and uncomfortable? That's why people have agents.