Not everything is an essential part of the filmmaking process, but this little lot tends to fall into the ‘must do’ category, which begins with getting the cash together…
 
Finding the money
Budgeting
Shooting schedules
Your insurance checklist
Health and safety

Finding the money

Scoop the big prize in the Virgin Media Shorts competition and you'll get up to £30,000 to make your next film. But there are other ways to get your cash together.

It helps to have a large trust fund, rich friends or to be in a ‘best mates’ situation with a film crew. If none of these apply, start small and shoot your film within your means.
 
If you do manage to get backing, remember that whatever money you spend, it’s unlikely you’ll get it back on your first production. If your backer wants a return on their cash, you might end up in a sticky situation – and why be stuck when you have other options?

Funding alternatives

Although you might never have won more than a tenner on the National Lottery, you could cash in for your film. Distributed through various organisations, lottery money has supported the production of over 400 films, 300 of which were shorts.
 
The Government-backed UK Film Council [http://www.ukfilmcouncil.org.uk/] is the main public body. They fund script development, film production, completion (post production) and more. If you need money, start with them.

There are also regional organisations you could tap into, including:

• Scottish Screen
• Northern Ireland Film & Television Commission
• Sgrin, Media Agency for Wales
• EM-Media (Funds projects with a strong connection with East Midlands)
• Northern Film & Media
• Screen East
• Screen South
• Screen West Midlands
• Screen Yorkshire
• South West Screen

Still strapped for cash? Some charities will help fund short films if it furthers their cause. The same applies to local councils.
 
But you don’t get something for nothing. With filmmakers a-go-go looking for a handout, you’ve got to be better than the rest - with an application to prove it.

The Six Golden Rules of applying for funding:

• Don't be sloppy. Smudges, typos and badly written applications never look good.
• Outline your plan. Sum up your vision and how you intend to make it happen from a practical and technical point of view - in one clear and concise paragraph.
• Talk money and timing. Provide details of your budget and the production schedule.
• Get visual. Include storyboards, which are sketches of each scene. If you can’t draw, hunt around for someone to do it for you. You might also want to include cuttings from magazines or photographs to show your influences and the intended look and feel.
• Show them what you’re made of. If you have a show reel of previous work, this is a very good time to use it.
• Show them what your team’s made of. If you can get ‘big names’ involved, it’s great for your credibility - but whether they’re recognised talent or not, include CVs for the key players (Producer, Director, Scriptwriter etc).

Budgeting

Once you’ve got your cash, there are loads of things you could use it for. As a starting point, have a think about how much you want to spend on:

• location fees
• crew and cast
• equipment, including your stock (film)
• props and costumes
• music
• post-production (editing)
• travel/food/accommodation
• marketing, PR and distribution
• insurance
• rights acquisition (See the Where to start? section)

 
The Producer, Line Producer and potentially the Exec Producer will have a hand in managing your budget, which may need to be updated as the production goes on.

Shooting schedules

Your cast and crew will need to know what they’re doing and when. The easiest way to do this is with a shooting schedule. Keep it short and you’re also more likely to get people to work for free.
 
To plan a schedule you need to know your film inside out, have done the storyboarding for each scene and know how long that scene will be and where it needs to be shot.
 
This will help you decide how much time you need to spend in each location, what you will need there in terms of equipment, props etc and the best order to shoot in.
 
Daily call sheets are your secret weapon in the fight for a film that comes in on schedule. They make sure everyone is in the right place at the right time and include essential information such as:

• locations and how to get there
• the scenes being shot and who’s involved, along with their contact details
• where the rushes are going at the end of the day

Your insurance checklist

There are always plenty of people happy to take money off you in the name of insurance. Obviously, not all of it is necessary, but some cover is essential and even legally required… You can buy the various policies individually or get a package that bundles up the lot…

Employers’ liability

If you’re running a production company, this is one of those legal must haves. It doesn’t matter if the person working for you is paid or unpaid or on a sub-contractual, casual or permanent basis, but if they have an accident on set or on location, this policy will safeguard your company.

Public liability

Protection for your company if a member of the public is injured during the production. 
 
Cover for film/digital film/negatives/slides/graphics

If your stock (unused film) is lost or faulty, or if your raw or edited footage is damaged or stolen, this is the cover you’ll be glad you had.

Film producers’ indemnity

If you have to cancel the production, any locations that you’ve booked may still have to be paid for. This policy will cover that expense – as long as the cancellation isn’t just because you’ve gone off the idea…

Equipment

Your cameras, lighting, props etc can all be insured, whether they’re your own or hired. If you’re hiring them, make sure you know what they’re worth so you’ve got enough cover.
 
Other policies you might be interested in…

• Travel insurance
• Cast insurance and key person insurance to bail you out if your lead actor or the Director comes down with something nasty…
• Extra insurance to cover things like livestock or plant hire or stunt work.

Health and safety

If you’re running the show, you’re ultimately responsible for the health and safety of your team. This means that if someone sets themselves on fire, falls from a great height or gets chewed by an animal, you’ll take the flack.
 
The Producer is normally given the task of making sure that there’s someone on set who really knows what’s what on the health and safety front - and that the cast and crew don’t ignore them.
 
Depending on what you’re up to, different rules apply. For example, there are specific requirements to cover filming in buildings, the use of special effects, stunts and using vehicles.
 
The Health and Safety Commission website will give you the low-down.
http://www.hse.gov.uk/entertainment/index.htm

What happens next?

Once you've finished production, it's on to post production and our In the Can section...