Submitting to a TV Channel? Payout?

M

MajestD

New member
Hello my wife and I made a nature/tourism documentary we are interested in submitting it to a TV station. In the paperwork to submit it it asks about the Budget to make the film. Is that the amount they would pay me for use of my film? What generally would one recieve from a tv station for them using my film? Curious if anyone here knows. Thanks! Dave
 
They want to know what budget you had to make it. Nothing to do with how much they pay. If you say it cost $50 to make, then that is one thing - if on the other, because of flights, hotels, air fares, transport, food, drink, vehicle hires, crew costs and equipment hire you spent $50,000 - it might impact on what they pay.

Essentially is it a low budget production, which could suggest low production values, or is it a big budget, expensive product - they just don't know what you are expecting - but of course if you pitch too high, you blow it, but equally, if they were thinking of paying a grand, and you say it only cost a hundred to produce, the grand might shrink. All down to your business negotiating skills - UNLESS - they too are small, and have a sourcing policy that you may not be aware of.
 
I think there's some sort of a union scale for various projects that is normally based on their lengths ... but I have no idea what it is or where to find it. For the beginning doc makers, scale is basically what you get paid.

Of course, it depends on what station it is. A network affiliate in a large metropolitan area is different than a UHF channel in a small market.
 
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