Most crew budgets go wrong in the same places. The day rates are right, but nobody allowed for the shoot running long, the Saturday pick-up, the travel day or the kit. Then the money runs out and somebody gets paid late.
Here's how to build a crew budget that holds up, and how to book people in a way that keeps them wanting to work with you.
Start with the day rate, and know what it covers
Freelance crew charge by the day. On most UK commercials, branded content and corporate work, a day means 10 working hours plus an hour for lunch. That's the standard in the APA Crew Terms, the recommended terms most commercials producers use.
A day rate is for the person. Kit is usually charged on top, and so are expenses.
Rates vary by role, experience, region and the kind of production. Bectu publishes rate cards for many grades, and the easiest way to check is to ask the crew you want. Don't build a budget around the cheapest number you can find. Experienced crew cost more and usually save you time on the day.
How overtime works
Shoots run over. Budget for it rather than hoping it won't happen.
Under the APA Crew Terms (September 2026), the hourly rate is a tenth of the day rate. Overtime is then paid at a multiple of that, depending on the day rate:
| Day rate | Overtime per hour |
|---|---|
| £458 or less | 1.5 times the hourly rate |
| £459 to £696 | 1.25 times the hourly rate |
| £697 or more | The hourly rate |
So a sound recordist on £400 a day costs £60 for each hour of overtime (£40 x 1.5). A director of photography on £600 costs £75 an hour (£60 x 1.25). Overtime between midnight and 5am is three times the hourly rate.
If you're working a continuous day with no lunch break, overtime starts after 9 hours instead of 11.
Weekends and bank holidays
- Saturday: 1.5 times the day rate.
- Sunday or a bank holiday: double the day rate.
If you can move a shoot from a Sunday to a weekday, it's often the single biggest saving in the budget.
Prep, recce and travel days
- Prep days are booked for 8 or 10 hours at the hourly rate. That's 80% or 100% of the day rate.
- Recce days are 8 hours at the hourly rate.
- Travel days, when nobody's shooting, are paid at the hourly rate with a minimum of 5 hours. That's at least half the day rate.
Prep is the line people cut first and regret most. A camera team that's had a prep day turns up ready to shoot.
Kit, expenses and VAT
- Kit. Many crew bring their own cameras, lenses, lights or sound kit, charged as a day rate or a package. It's usually cheaper than a rental house, and it's kit they know inside out.
- Expenses. Mileage, parking, accommodation, per diems and any travel. Agree them before the shoot, not after.
- VAT. Crew who are VAT registered will add 20% to their invoice. Freelancers have to register once their turnover passes £90,000 a year, so plenty of experienced crew charge it. If you can't reclaim VAT, it's a real cost, so budget for it.
Add contingency
Add 10% to the crew line. Something always changes: an extra hour, a pick-up shot, a last-minute replacement. Contingency means you can say yes without going back to your client.
A worked example
Here's a two-day brand shoot with three crew. The rates are made up for the example, not a guide to what anyone charges.
| Line | Cost |
|---|---|
| Director of photography: 2 days at £550 | £1,100.00 |
| DoP overtime: 1 hour a day (£55 x 1.25 x 2) | £137.50 |
| Camera kit: 2 days at £300 | £600.00 |
| Sound recordist: 2 days at £450 | £900.00 |
| Sound kit: 2 days at £100 | £200.00 |
| Make-up artist: 2 days at £350 | £700.00 |
| Subtotal | £3,637.50 |
| Contingency at 10% | £363.75 |
| Crew total before VAT | £4,001.25 |
Our free crew budget calculator does all of this for you, including weekends, prep, travel and VAT, and you can copy or print the result.
Holds and pencils: how to do them fairly
A hold, or a pencil, asks someone to keep dates free before you can confirm. It's normal, and crew expect it. What they don't expect is to be left hanging.
- Say it's a hold. Not a booking.
- Give a time you'll confirm or release by.
- If someone else wants them, they'll usually come back to you first. Confirm or release them quickly.
- Release people the moment you know. A crew member who turned down paid work to hold your dates, then heard nothing, won't hold them again.
Pencilling two or three people for the same role is fine. Forgetting to release the ones you don't use isn't.
Cancellation fees
If you cancel a confirmed booking, crew are normally paid a share of the fee depending on how much notice you give. The APA Crew Terms use this scale:
| Notice before the booked day | Cancellation fee |
|---|---|
| 7 days or more | None |
| 4 to 6 days | 50% |
| 2 to 3 days | 75% |
| The day before | 100% |
If there's any risk the shoot might move, know these dates before you confirm anyone.
Put it in writing
Once you've confirmed someone, send a booking confirmation with the dates, day rate, overtime, kit, expenses, payment terms and cancellation terms. It takes five minutes and stops almost every argument before it starts. We've written one you can copy, along with hold and release wording and a call sheet, on our hiring paperwork page.
And pay on time. Crew talk, and the producers who pay within 30 days get first call when they need someone at short notice.
One thing to check
The APA Crew Terms are the standard for commercials and much branded and corporate work. TV drama, features and some broadcast work run on other agreements, such as those between Bectu and Pact, with different hours and rates. If you're not sure which applies, ask your crew. They'll know.