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Article:
Filmmaking - Don't Pay Rate Card! by: Angela Taylor If you want to broadcast across Hollywood that you are an amateur, pay the rental company's published rate card amounts for your production equipment. No professional pays rate card! I don't even know why they bother to print rate cards, except to give you an idea of the top of the price range, how high not to go in your negotiations. You can get a deal on anything, but you have to ask. It really is as simple as that. You don't have to know anyone or say a secret password. Just ask. Let's use dolly rental as an example. Now, you don't just rent a dolly. I mean, you can, but that's all you'll get: the dolly. No tracks, no wheels, no camera mount, no seat'”just a dolly. You want to rent a 'dolly package.'¯ When you call to rent your dolly package, plan to shave 20% or so off rate card. Ask if they'll throw in extra days. If you need if for eight days, ask for the weekly rate. (Usually two to four days rental). Get the dolly first, then start adding in the extras. You need dolly track. Pay for the curved pieces, and ask for the straight ones for free or half price. Go through the entire equipment list that way. There are two things to keep in mind when you call for a deal: 1) The equipment isn't making any money sitting there unrented. They'd rather have it out for half price than not have it out at all. 2) They never rent at rate card. Odds are good the person you're talking to doesn't even know what the rate card prices are. It's called haggling. They do it with every single person who calls. You aren't asking for anything special. If you can't get everything at the price you want, tell them you'll have to check and get back to them. If you can call around and compare prices, do it. If you live somewhere where there's really only one place to rent a dolly, be slow getting back to them, anyway. When you call back, say, 'Look, I just can't go that high. Can you work with me some more on this?'¯ The person you are talking to wants to help. When she was eight years old, she was not saying, 'When I grow up, I want to work at a production rental house.'¯ Odds are good that, like you, she is a filmmaker. She feels your pain and will work with you however she can. If you're working on an extremely limited budget, try this: Tell the person on the phone how much you can spend: 'Look, I only have $'1
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