Below the Line

The Cost of Physical Production

In film budgeting, all expenses not classified as “above the line” fall below the line (BTL). This category encompasses the entire practical and technical cost of making the movie. While ATL costs are for the key creative visionaries, BTL costs represent the wages for the vast army of technicians and artists who physically create the film, as well as the costs for all equipment, locations, and services required during pre-production, principal photography, and post-production.

Unlike the highly negotiated and variable salaries of those above the line, BTL costs are generally more fixed and predictable. The wages for most crew members are governed by union scale rates, and the costs for equipment rentals and location fees can be calculated with a high degree of accuracy. The Line Producer or Unit Production Manager (UPM) is the executive whose primary responsibility is to manage and oversee the entire below-the-line budget.

The Components of the BTL Budget

The below-the-line category is extensive and covers nearly every tangible aspect of a film’s creation. It is typically broken down into several key departments:

Category	Examples
Production Crew	Director of Photography, 1st Assistant Director, Camera Operators, Grips, Gaffers, Sound Mixers, Script Supervisor.
Art Department	Production Designer, Art Directors, Set Decorators, Prop Masters, Construction Crew.
Wardrobe & Makeup	Costume Designer, Seamstresses, Hair Stylists, Makeup Artists, Special Effects Makeup.
Locations	Location Manager, Location Scouts, Site Rental Fees, Permits.
Equipment	Camera packages, lenses, lighting equipment, grip trucks, generators, cranes, dollies.
Post-Production	Film Editor, Visual Effects (VFX) Artists, Sound Designers, Colorists, Music Composer, Post-production facility rentals.
Other Costs	Film stock or digital media, insurance, catering, transportation, legal fees, production office expenses.

Essentially, if you can see it on screen or it was physically used to capture what’s on screen, its cost was part of the below-the-line budget.