The low-budget agreement applies to films shot entirely in the United States, with a total budget of less than $2,000,000, but more than $700,000 planned for the first theatrical release. The agreement must be executed by performers at least three weeks before any work. Today, almost a hundred years later, SAG-AFTRA is still committed to organizing all work under their jurisdictions, negotiating the best wages, working conditions, health and retirement services, creating employment opportunities, enforcing contracts and protecting SAG-AFTRA members from unauthorized use of their work. However, the work of the Union is not possible without the cooperation of the hereditary industry, which is not part of the union, in particular the studio and production factories. Through collective agreements and subsequent contracts, SAG-AFTRA can govern and protect those who work in a performance role in the entertainment industry. The prices of the daily and weekly headliners under this agreement are set at 35% of the scale of the basic agreement. The novelty of the agreement (in addition to the new free media platforms) is the coverage of all the main players, coverage of the top 10 substantive players in the substantive areas and the negotiable rates. This agreement also requires that the remains be paid in accordance with subsequent guidelines and tariff calculations in accordance with the basic agreement, as soon as the residual requirements are met and payment is to begin. You can see an example of the new contract on our resources page and keep an eye on the SAG-AFTRA production center for future updates. If you have any questions about the short project agreement, SAG-AFTRA has even set up a phone line specially designed for these requests, 323.549.6680 (open Mo-Fr 9-5pm PT). You can also contact SAGine or visit our FAQ page and we will do our best to answer all your burning questions about life (and short films).

Once you have defined the classification of your production, you must send a preliminary information form to SAG-AFTRA, which provides detailed information about your project. Under this agreement, the signatories are contractually obliged to cooperate with the main players of SAG-AFTRA and up to a maximum of 30 people for the background. If you want to hire SAG-AFTRA members for your project and you haven`t done so yet, you (or your company) must be a signatory to SAG-AFTRA. As part of this agreement, there are a multitude of incentives for casting. SAG-AFTRA offers a casting incentive for low-budget filmmakers who can increase the entire range of theatrical agreements, which would increase prices, and other payments that a low-budget film might not afford. For more information on what is qualified for diversity, see Section 3 (a) of the Low Budget Agreement. SAG-AFTRA (”Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists”) is a union representing more than 160,000 film and television artists, radio actors, video games, radio and television advertisers, news anchors, singers and recording artists (both royalty artists and background singers) , performers in commercials and actors working as stuntmen and specialized acts. It is dedicated to protecting the interests of its members and improving wages, working hours and working conditions, and it does so through a series of contractual agreements (some of which are grouped above) applicable when one of its members participates in a production.