One of the most important jobs of a studio director is making sure the movie arrives on time and on budget. Matthew Sign, the executive producer of many movies and TV shows like Spontaneous, The Perfect Date, Polaroid, Scary Movie V, 47 Meters Down, Amityville: The Awakening, Scream The TV Series, Spy Kids: Mission Critical, and more explains the role of ‘a studio director in the process of budgeting for a film.

Budget approval

Budgeting is a crucial part of any movie. But it is not the studio director’s responsibility to do the budgeting. His work comes after the executive producer break down the script and create the budget. He goes through the script page by page creating a timeline for the best way to shoot the movie. Then he estimates what it would cost to shoot the entire show.

But what if the executive producer’s budget exceeds the approximate project budget? Matt says, “It happens on almost every project. There are many factors that determine a movie’s budget. Line producers spend days, if not weeks, budgeting. They have to visit filming locations, make deals, budget for the day’s filming costs, make estimates for costumes, lights, sounds, cameras, food, accommodation, transportation and tons of stuff. other things.

These are intricate details that allow everyone to edit the film. One of my jobs is to review the budget and make sure the funds are allocated correctly and help make tough decisions if the budget is more than we can afford. Of course, we try to find more money to be able to make the film on budget, but more often than not we have to make some sacrifices to get into the box that we have.

This work is usually done first or in conjunction with a physical studio production manager who oversees the executive producers, ensures that all guild regulations are followed, manages the film’s insurance, takes care of the providing film funding, and many, many more jobs. These physical production executives are some of the most detail-oriented and talented people in our industry.

Oversee spending

Approval of the budget does not terminate the responsibilities of an EP. According to Matt, “I visit the sets regularly to see if the budget allocation is being used correctly. I have to make sure things go as planned. I am ultimately responsible for getting the film out on time and on budget.

Matt’s last film as an EP, Spontaneous, got 98% on Rotten Tomatoes. He is currently working on many other projects which he hopes will entertain audiences around the world.

Posted on June 3, 2021