Articles Finding roles
What $150/12 Means: How Pay Rates for Extras Work
A rate like $150/12 means $150 guaranteed for a day of up to 12 hours. If you are released after 8 hours, you still get the $150. Rates vary from one production to the next, and every Open Call shows the rate for its role, so read it before you tap "Yes, I'm available."
The guarantee
The first number is the guaranteed pay. The second number is the length of the day that the pay covers. In $150/12, you are paid $150 whether you work 8 hours or 12.
That is why an early release is not a loss. Your scenes are done, and the day's pay is the same.
Overtime is already built in
The rate already includes 4 hours of overtime. Overtime is usually figured the California way, which means after 8 hours in a day. Hours 9 through 12 are inside your guarantee.
Hours after the 12th are paid at time and a half. If you are held past 12 hours, your pay goes up. Continuity: Why Extras Get Held Late or Called Back explains why that can happen.
Typical ranges by role type
These are typical day rates on MyCastingFile. Use them as a rough guide and not a promise. The Open Call shows the rate for your role.
- General extras: $100 to $150
- Featured extras: $150 to $350, depending on the skill needed
- Stand-ins: about $175 to $200
- Photo doubles: usually the same as stand-ins
Background Extras: General, Featured, Stand-In, and Photo Double explains the four role types.
Pay bumps
There is usually extra pay for working with your car, bringing your pet, special wardrobe, and similar requests. Casting tells you the amount when you are hired. Read the booking details and ask casting if the amount is missing. Extras Casting for Cars and Pets shows how to add them to your Profile.
Paid fittings
A fitting is paid. It is usually a "quarter check," which is 2 hours of pay on a $150/12 rate. A fitting on the morning of the shoot day does not get extra pay. Wardrobe Fittings for Extras: When They Happen and Pay has the details.
Travel and parking
Extras are usually hired locally, so travel is usually not paid. Parking is paid when the production sends you to a paid lot or garage. Read the booking details for parking notes before you go.
Who pays you, and when
A payroll company usually pays extras. That company is the employer of record, so your W-2 comes from the payroll company and not from the production. Pay usually comes by mailed check, sometimes by direct deposit, in 2 to 4 weeks.
Some small independent productions pay differently, for example as 1099 work or in cash. Ask the production how and when it pays before the day, and write the answer down.
MyCastingFile is free to join, free to see Open Calls, and free to reply. You never pay to get a role.
Keep your records
Write down the date, the production, your call time, your wrap time, and the rate. When the check arrives, compare it with your notes. Movie Extra Casting: Getting Paid and Keeping Records explains a simple way to do that.
Open Calls is the next place to look. Pick one role and read its rate line by line.
