Budget Actors
If you're making an episode of something, these are your rates. - SAG Rates 2021 With streaming giants like Netflix and Amazon Prime entering the scene, there’s more television work for SAG actors than ever. However, calculating your SAG rates for TV is by far the most confusing. Unlike SAG agreements for film (where everything is determined by budget), in the world of television, rates are determined by the number of episodes you’re going to create, and more often than not, the episode’s length. If you’re making a television series that’ll go directly online (ala Netflix) and your budget is under a million, then you’ll want to check out New Media. But if you’ve got a penny more, you’re in the right place. Here are the 2021 SAG rates for performers in television. We should note that these rates are for performers of cable and streaming shows. For network shows, producers should plan to budget an additional 15 percent. PERFORMERS IN ONE EPISODE Need an actor for just one episode of your series to say a few lines? Whether you’re producing a half-hour or hour-long episode, if you’re hiring a SAG actor for just one episode, you’re looking at $1,030 a day, $2,609 for three days, or $3,575 for the entire week. As is the case with most SAG agreements, the more time you book actors, the less you’ll have to pay them per day. SAG Day Rate: $1,030 / Day SAG Three-Day Rate: $2,609 / 3 Day Period SAG Weekly Scale: $3,575 / Week MAJOR ROLE PERFORMERS IN ONE EPISODE If you’re booking a big name guest star in one episode, then in the eyes of SAG this is usually classified as a major role performer. Under this SAG contract, producers pay $5,565 per week for major role performers on a half-hour program, and $9,064 per week for hour-long programs. However, if your major role performer is appearing in an episode within the first season of your show, it’s possible you may only have to pay the regular rate for a performer (above). 1/2 Hour Program: $5,565 / week 1 Hour Program: $9,064 / week PERFORMERS IN MULTIPLE PROGRAMS Performers under Multiple Programs Agreements is a contract that applies to actors who are shooting multiple episodes of a show within one week. If you’re producing a daily talk show or variety show for streaming or cable, this is your pay bracket. SAG rates for multiple programs are put in a weekly scale, with $2,650 per week for both 1/2 Hour and 1 Hour Programs, $3,114 per week for 90 minute programs, and $3,670 per week for two hour programs. 1/2 Hour Program: $2,650 / week 1 Hour Program: $2,650 / week 1 1/2 Hour Program: $3,114 / week 2 Hour Program: $3,670 / week SERIES REGULARS IN 1/2 HOUR A Series Regular Contract for 1/2 Hour Programs applies to actors who appear in half or more of a season’s given episodes (based on a thirteen episode season). SAG actors are paid weekly for their time, with $3,575 / week for appearing in every episode, $4,093 per week for appearing in more than half, and $4,772 per week for appearing in half. If an actor appears in less than half of a season’s episode order, talent would then be classified as a major role (guest star). Note that the SAG rates increase the less an actor appears, as those actors will be working less weeks and therefore more less net pay. 13 out of 13 Episodes: $3,575 / week 12-7 Episodes: $ 4,093 / week 6 Episodes: $4,772 / week SERIES REGULARS IN 1 HOUR The SAG pay scale for Series Regulars on 1 hour shows functions exactly like 1/2 hours. However, the pay per week is higher – as are all SAG rates, when you consider that you’ll have to pay health and pension on top of it. SAG actors are paid weekly for their time, with $4,302 per week for appearing in every episode, $4,799 per week for appearing in more than half, and $5,613 per week for appearing in half. 13 out of 13 Episodes: $4,302 / week 12-7 Episodes: $4,799 / week 6 Episodes: $5,613 / week |