Crew Deal Memo

Template only. Adapt to your production and have a lawyer review before use.

Crew Deal Memo

Production: [WORKING TITLE] (the "Picture")
Producer / employer: [PRODUCTION COMPANY], [ADDRESS] ("Producer")
Crew member: [FULL LEGAL NAME], [ADDRESS, PHONE, EMAIL] ("you")
Position: [E.G. FIRST ASSISTANT CAMERA / GAFFER / SCRIPT SUPERVISOR]
Department: [DEPARTMENT], reporting to [DEPARTMENT HEAD]
Engagement: [EMPLOYEE / INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR: SEE CLAUSE 3]

This memo records the terms on which you are joining the crew. A longer agreement may follow; until it does, this memo is the deal.

Terms

1. Term. Start date: [DATE]. Anticipated end date: [DATE], plus wrap if needed. Prep days: [NUMBER]. Shoot days: [NUMBER]. Producer may move the start date by up to [NUMBER] days on notice; a longer move lets you decline the engagement without penalty.
2. Rate and basis. [$[AMOUNT] PER DAY based on a [10 / 12]-hour day / $[AMOUNT] PER WEEK for a [5 / 6]-day week / $[AMOUNT] FLAT for the engagement]. Pay period: [WEEKLY / BIWEEKLY], paid by [CHECK / DIRECT DEPOSIT] within [NUMBER] days after the period ends. Partial days: [DESCRIBE, OR "NOT OFFERED"].
3. Classification and taxes. [EMPLOYEE: You will be paid through [PRODUCER / PAYROLL SERVICE] with taxes withheld and workers' compensation provided.] [CONTRACTOR: You will invoice Producer, are responsible for your own taxes and insurance, and confirm that you are in business for yourself.] The classification above is Producer's good-faith determination for this engagement under applicable law.
4. Overtime and turnaround. Hours beyond the basis day are paid at [1.5x THE HOURLY RATE] per hour and beyond [NUMBER] hours at [2x], unless your position is exempt under applicable law. Minimum rest between wrap and next call: [NUMBER] hours. Meal break no later than [NUMBER] hours after call; a missed meal is compensated at [DESCRIBE]. Sixth and seventh days: [DESCRIBE].
5. Kit / box rental. [NONE / $[AMOUNT] PER DAY OR WEEK] for use of your own equipment listed on the attached inventory. Kit rental is paid separately from wages and is not wages. You insure your own kit unless the attached inventory is accepted onto Producer's equipment policy in writing.
6. Expenses. Pre-approved expenses are reimbursed against receipts within [NUMBER] days. Mileage in your own vehicle: [RATE / NONE]. Parking, tolls and production purchases need a purchase order or department-head approval.
7. Travel and lodging. For work more than [NUMBER] miles from [CITY], Producer provides [COACH TRAVEL / MILEAGE], [SINGLE / SHARED] lodging, and a per diem of $[AMOUNT] per day. Travel days are paid at [FULL DAY / HALF DAY / TRAVEL RATE].
8. Credit. On-screen credit as [POSITION TITLE] in the end crawl, in the form customary for your position, with size and placement at Producer's discretion. Producer will use reasonable efforts to correct a mistaken credit in future copies; an accidental omission is not a breach.
9. Work made for hire. Everything you create in the course of the engagement (footage, sound, designs, notes, stills, edits, artwork, code) is a work made for hire owned by Producer. If any of it does not qualify as work for hire, you assign it to Producer and waive any moral rights to the extent the law allows. You keep no right to use production material, including behind-the-scenes photos, without Producer's written permission.
10. Confidentiality. Scripts, schedules, cast and crew contact details, budgets, dailies and anything else non-public about the Picture are confidential during and after the engagement. No posting about the production on social media, and no sharing of stills or footage, without written approval from [PRODUCER / PUBLICIST].
11. On-set conduct. You agree to Producer's on-set policies, including: a safe set (report hazards; no one is asked to do unsafe work; you may stop work you believe is unsafe without penalty); no alcohol or non-prescribed drugs on set; respectful treatment of every cast and crew member and of the hosts of every location; and, at churches and other sacred sites, the conduct rules in the location agreement (quiet, no food or drink, no use of sacred objects as props, nothing placed on the altar).
12. Closed-set policy. Scenes designated closed by the director or first assistant director (intimacy, grief, sacramental or other sensitive material) are limited to the essential crew named on the call sheet. Monitors are limited, no stills are taken, and the material is not discussed outside the set. Closed-set scenes are flagged on the call sheet in advance.
13. Termination. Either party may end the engagement on [NUMBER] days' notice. Producer may end it immediately for serious misconduct, breach of confidentiality, unsafe behavior, or if the Picture is suspended or abandoned. You will be paid through the last day worked plus any expenses properly incurred. Clauses 9 and 10 survive termination.
14. Insurance. Producer maintains [WORKERS' COMPENSATION / OCCUPATIONAL ACCIDENT] coverage for crew as required by law and general liability for the production. Your personal property beyond the accepted kit inventory is not covered.
15. General. This memo, with the attached policies and kit inventory, is the whole agreement for the engagement and can be changed only in writing.

Signatures

Crew member
Signature: ______________________________
Printed name: [NAME]
Date: ______________

Producer
Signature: ______________________________
Printed name and title: [NAME, TITLE]
Date: ______________

Attachments: [ ] kit inventory [ ] on-set policies [ ] emergency contact form [ ] tax or payroll forms