Last updated on February 16th, 2022 at 02:02 pm
The following jobs exist within the group (not technically a department) Directors.
- Director(s)
- Director’s Assistant
In Australian A-Z Budget — Feature Films these roles are in section B.2 Directors.
According to the Auteur Theory the Director is the Author of the film, it is their single creative vision of the motion picture that is delivered in the final cut. This is why a feature film often has a card “a Director’s Name film”.
Directors are Above-The-Line. The-Line is said to differentiate the team responsible for the creative control of a motion picture from the technicians and crafts-people who make the film. More accurately Above-The-Line people are attached during the Development phase of a production while Below-The-Line people are hired once the financing is in place and Preproduction phase begins. Costume, Art and Makeup departments are creative, but they still fall Below-The-Line.
Directors are considered Labour by unions such as MEAA and the ADG so their minimum rates of pay are defined in the standard industrial agreements for each production sector. As the pinnacle creative vision of the film, directors negotiate for the highest fee they can.
Director’s remuneration on Australian feature films is often equal with the Screenwriter and Producer, due to most favoured nation clauses supported by funding bodies and unions.
The Producer’s Offset scheme limits Qualifying Australian Production Expenditure (QAPE) on Above-The-Line to 20% of Total Film Expenditure. Before the Producer’s Offset, Australian funding bodies have historically limited Directors fees to 3% of the production budget for feature films with government investment or grants.
- Story & Script
- Producers
- Directors
- Production Management
- Production Accountancy
- Assistant Directors & Script Supervision
- Camera Department
- Sound Department
- Lighting Department
- Grip Department
- Costume Department
- Make-up Department
- Hairdressing Department
- Art Department
- Action Vehicles Department
- Livestock Department
- Construction Department
- Special Effects & Armoury Department
- Visual Effects & Animation Department
- Occupational Health & Safety Department
- Tuition & Technical Advisers
- Post Production Crew
- Music
- Publicity & Stills