Film Budgeteers Will Budget Your Film Fast, for $100 or Less

Need a budget in a hurry? Indie filmmakers Jeff Orgill and Brian O'Malley say their new website can create a budget for your project in five minutes flat.

Film Budgeteers is a web app that gathers 10 pages of input from prospective filmmakers on everything from their total estimated budget to the number of principal actors and locations required by their script, as well as its reliance on special effects, VFX and stuntwork.

Working backward from the target budget, the app tweaks production details to match the quantity of funds available, scaling gear, crew and catering expenditures up and down depending on the total budget. Final budgets can range anywhere from $10,000 on the low end to $25 million on the high end.

It might seem unlikely that such an accelerated process can generate a completely accurate budget. But the Film Budgeteers team stresses that its software accounts for current union and non-union pay rates and fringe costs and accurately scales expenditures in different categories as a proportion of the total budget.

And the emphasis is on getting a budget dialed in to at least begin a conversation about a given production without getting mired in the budget-drafting process. The final product is at least affordable — users pay $97 for an Excel spreadsheet and PDF, $49 for a PDF only, and $19.97 for just a topsheet. And FIlm Budgeteers claims to offer a money-back guarantee to unhappy filmmakers.

"Most indie filmmakers I know don't have $500 to spend on the Movie Magic budgeting software, let alone the time to learn it," Orgill said in a prepared statement. "Our app allows indie filmmakers of all skill levels to create a custom film budget, download it, and get on with making their film or raising money.

"When meeting with potential investors a budget can make the difference between actually talking about the money or just getting another round of script notes."

Orgill and O'Malley's résumés include music videos, feature films, and a scriptreading service, as well as a shared tenure working for legendary low-budget film impresario Roger Corman.