Wrapping up the production budget!

Okay, we've covered actors, crew, cameras, lights, sound and all that noise, but we're forgetting a couple of miscellaneous bits that usually come up. Thankfully, these things aren't too expensive and shouldn't push our $60,665 budget much higher, so let's take a look at what we're left out until now:

C-Stands: C-Stands are fairly common on sets and really useful if you need to prop up large reflector boards or other such things. They're also REALLY cheap to rent and come with the arms you need. $9 a day and I'll probably want four of them, so that'll be $320.

Hand reflector: These are REALLY handy and also REALLY cheap. They can be collapsed at a whim and are super easy to transport and store. Plus they're basically essential for daytime shooting when you need to soften your actor's shadows and bring them up a stop. I'll probably want about three of these and they cost $65 each, so that's $195.

Sandbags: ALWAYS sandbag your gear if you care about it. I can not stress that enough. Sandbags are essential to making sure things do not get tipped over easily on a shoot. And believe me, the last thing you want to happen is a light stand falling over and ruining not only your light, but somebody's face. Lights get HOT. $25 each for 10. $250. BUY SANDBAGS.

Tripods: Oh, right. This was actually supposed to be included in the update about cameras but somehow got past me. My personal favourite brand for tripods is, like many others, Manfrotto. For this shoot, I'll be using a pair of two-stage aluminium tripod with the 501HDV head. It's a lot cheaper to buy than rent for this length of shoot, so that means $475 for two, which is $950.

Extension cords: Obvious reason for these. Basically you're looking at $20 a cord and you'll probably want about six of them, so that's $120.

Light gels: Gels are CHEAP. Don't let anyone try and rip you off with them. You're looking at $6 or so per gel. For an entire set of gels for each situation we'd encounter? $75 total.

C-Clamps: If you want to hang anything anywhere ever, you need clamps! A good set of C-Clamps and pony clamps will cost you about $15 and you'll want at least two sets. That's $30.

So we've done it. We've got our production budget done and it's... $1,940 plus $60,665 is... $62,605! That's a lot of money! And the worst part? We aren't done yet! We still need to consider our pre and post budgets! I guess I'll be covering those soon too!