Film Accounting Glossary
Cost report
What is the cost report?
Also called weekly cost report, or cost-to-date report.
The cost report is film accounting's central document: a weekly, account-by-account comparison of the approved budget against actuals to date, open commitments, and the estimate to complete, producing an estimated final cost and a variance for every line.
It is the report the studio, financier, and completion guarantor read to decide whether the picture is under control. Everything else in the accounting department exists to make this document accurate.
Example
One line reads: budget $180,000, actuals $148,500, commitments $22,000, estimate to complete $31,000, estimated final cost $201,500, variance $21,500 unfavorable. Repeat that across every account and the picture's real position appears.
Figures are illustrative, chosen to show the mechanics rather than to quote market rates.
Where you'll see it
Issued weekly to the producers, the studio or financier, and the completion guarantor. Everything else the accounting department does exists to make it accurate.
Common mistake
Building it on cash paid rather than cost incurred. Accruals and open commitments are what make it a picture of the production rather than of the bank account.
Related questions
- What columns are on a film cost report?
- Approved budget, actuals to date, open commitments, estimate to complete, estimated final cost, and the variance between that final figure and the budget.
- How often is a cost report issued?
- Weekly during production, against a fixed cut-off, and distributed to the producers, the studio or financier, and the completion guarantor.