How to track pay from freelance production jobs

Know which way each job pays you.

On a production job, crew are often paid in one of two ways. Some productions run crew through a payroll company. You submit a time card, the payroll company processes it, and you receive a pay stub and a deposit or check. Other jobs pay you directly against your invoice, as a business or independent contractor.

One job can involve both. A camera assistant might be paid for labor through payroll and invoice the production separately for a kit rental. Treat those as two payment records under the same job, because they arrive at different times, from different payers, with different paperwork.

When a payroll company handles your time card, keep submitting it there. Your own record doesn't replace it. It lets you confirm that what you were owed actually arrived.

How each type of pay is taxed depends on your situation and where you work. This guide covers record-keeping, not tax advice. Ask a tax professional how your pay should be reported.

A three-day job with payroll and a kit rental.

This illustrative job pays labor through payroll and a camera kit rental by invoice. The rates show how the record works; they are not suggested market rates. Amounts are USD.

Compare the gross on the pay stub with what you expected for the payroll part, not the deposit amount. The deposit will be lower because of deductions, so it can't tell you whether a day or an overtime hour is missing. The gross can.

Record the net amount you received too. It's your take-home for the job and will help when you look back at the year.

Record the same few details for every job.

You don't need to rebuild the payroll company's system. A useful record holds just enough to check that everything arrived:

• The job: production company, project name, your role, and work dates.
• The deal: rate, days, and anything agreed for overtime, kit, or mileage, from your deal memo or booking messages.
• Who pays: the payroll company, the production, or both.
• Paperwork sent: the date you submitted your time card or sent your invoice.
• What arrived: gross and net from the pay stub, or the invoice payment, with the date received.
• Open issues: anything that doesn't match, and when you'll follow up.

Keep the pay stub or remittance with the job. Months later, it's easier to find under the project than in an inbox.

If you track your own hours because there is no payroll portal or you're on paper time cards, add call, meal, and wrap times. Otherwise the totals above are enough.

Check each payment against the job.

Follow up early, and in writing.

If a payroll payment is short, first check the time card you submitted against the pay stub. A missing day or an unentered overtime line is the most common cause. Then contact the production's accounting or payroll contact with the job, dates, and the line you believe is missing.

If an invoice is late, send a short reminder after the due date that includes the invoice number, amount, and original due date. Attach the invoice again so nobody has to search for it. The freelance invoice guide includes a delivery email you can adapt.

Note each follow-up in the job record. When the money arrives, mark the record complete so your open list only shows what you're still owed.