PM Budgeting Essentials

Required to upgrade to Production Manager.

DURATION: 2 days (4 hours per day)

FORMATS OFFERED: Zoom

Description

This course focuses on the production budget. It teaches new and aspiring PMs how to understand a budget provided by a studio and how changes in production affect the budget. You will learn how to:

• Efficiently navigate a budget in Movie Magic Budgeting (MMB)
• Examine a budget for critical elements
• Assign costs to major scenes
• Defend the amount of prep time
• Interpret a cost report

You will gain the knowledge and confidence needed to actively participate in all budget meetings.

This course does not cover:

• How to build a budget from scratch
• How to use MMB

Assignments

• This course includes pre-class work and a final budget assignment.
• Pre-class work consists of readings, MMB exercises, and a knowledge check.
• The budget assignment requires you to implement the Producer's notes on an early pass of a budget in MMB.
• You must pass the assignment to receive credit for the course.

Course Materials

• Materials will be provided online through the DGC BC training website.

Expectations

• You will be expected to participate in small group activities to solve typical budget scenarios in class.
• The budget assignment may require a significant amount of personal time to complete, depending on your level of experience with budgets and MMB.
• You should have a working knowledge of MMB software. You will need to know how to navigate the software, how to make changes to a budget in the software, and how accounts are connected.
• You should understand the production process and how the script, schedule, and budget are related.

Technical Requirements

• A computer with an internet connection to access the course materials.
• Zoom classes require a computer with a functioning webcam, microphone, and a stable internet connection.
• A copy of MMB software.

Registration

• This course is open to Members in Good Standing in the UM, 1st AD, 2nd AD, and LM categories, and Members with significant UM or PM days who have not yet upgraded to PM.
• Registration is by invitation only through Eventbrite.

MMB Software

• If you are not familiar with MMB software, we recommend the EP Academy MMB online course, which is eligible for the DGC BC training reimbursement.

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